DIRECTIONS

• Compile all critical information (See the Best Friends worksheet/checklist)

• Make copies of the Best Friends FAQ document for officials

• Delete this slide from your presentation• Personalize this PowerPoint presentation as

appropriate• Practice the presentation, keeping in mind any

time constraints

Community Cats and Trap/Neuter/Return

• SPEAKER’S NAME• CREDENTIALS• ORGANIZATION AFFILIATION

(if applicable)• CONTACT INFORMATION• Phone• Email

INSERT A PICTURE OF THE SPEAKER HERE

Free-Roaming Cat Dynamics

Ownership status• Owned• Unowned

Lifestyle• Indoor only• Free-roaming outdoor• Free-roaming unowned

Socialization status• Friendly• Unsocialized

Continuum• Move from one lifestyle to another

Community/Free-Roaming Cats Exist in all types of

environments May impact:

• Public health• Environment• Cat welfare

7% to 26% of U.S. households feedcommunity cats*

*American Association of Feline Practitioners

Traditional Management Methods Community cats are often

unsocial, so they are deemed unadoptable and killed in shelters

Community cats produce the majority of kittens entering shelters

The sheltering system is ill-equipped to handle these unsocialized animals

Trap and Kill Ineffective Fails to curtail population

growth Costly Leads to compassion fatigue:

• High employee turnover in shelters

• Taints public image Publicly unpalatable

Philosophical Shift in Animal Control

“The cost for picking up and simply euthanizing and disposing of animals is horrendous, in both the philosophical and the economic sense.”

—Mark Kumpf, President, National Animal Control Association, 2010

Trap/Neuter/Return (TNR)

TNR: A Non-Lethal Management Plan

Humanely trapped Evaluated by a

veterinarian Spayed/neutered Ear-tipped Vaccinated Returned to the habitat

where originally trapped

Cat Deterrents

• Provide non-lethal, proactive strategies

• Deter cats away from areas where cats are not wanted (e.g., backyard, garden)

Video about cat deterrents: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nnOibg6nYc

What? You Return Them?

Benefits of TNR

Reduces shelter admissions and euthanasia rates

Improves public health Provides access to grant

funding and volunteer participation

Decreases nuisance complaints

Stabilizes and even reduces the number of cats

TNR SuccessesJacksonville, Florida: Feral Freedom

Jacksonville reported: Net savings: 2007–2010• $160,000 • 13,000 lives

Decrease in feline nuisance complaints

31% decrease in feline shelter admissions• FY06–07: 13,455• FY09–10: 10,302

Jacksonville: Feral Freedom

0

20

40

60

80

100

JUL 07 JAN 08 JUL 08 JAN 09 JUL 09 JAN 10 JUL 10

Perc

ent o

f Int

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Impact on Feline Live Release RateLRR (%) w/FF LRR (%) w/o FF

Salt Lake City: Feral Fix

Feral Fix program (launched in 2008) reported:• 2008–2010: SLC improved its save rate by 40.4%

Result: Overall cost savings of more than $65,000 • 2008–2010: Utah save rate only improved 4.7%

In 2010, SLC realized a 21.8% decrease in shelter cat intake from 2009

No increase in feline nuisance complaints

Other Examples (as Reported by Some Organizations)

Maricopa County, Arizona: cost per cat • $61 to trap, hold and euthanize • $23 to TNR

Indianapolis, Indiana: cost per cat • $130 to trap, hold and

euthanize (national average)• $20 to TNR (IndyFeral)

Utah Community Cat Act§11-46-303

Gives Utah cities the freedom to release cats immediately for TNR

Community cats are eligible for release prior to the 5-day hold period

Hazards of Feeding Bans They are impossible to

enforce Starving cats continue to

breed Desperate cats move closer to

homes Malnourished cats are more

susceptible to illness and parasites

Other food sources are available

Criminalizing kindness is bad public policy

Problems with Cat Licensing

Difficult to enforce May increase shelter

admissions because if too costly, people relinquish cats

Hard to market for indoor-only cats

TNR implications:• Cost-prohibitive• Cats are not “owned”

Hazards of Pet Limits

Limits are arbitrary Negatively impacts

responsible pet owners Difficult and costly to

enforce Fails to prevent

hoarding situations May deter people from

fostering animals

Cats Are Not the Primary Threat to Birds

“By far the largest threat to birds is loss and/or degradation of habitat”*• Human development• Agriculture

Chemical toxins Direct exploitation

• Hunting• Capturing birds for pets

*Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Threats to Native Birds:http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/conservation/planning/threats

Liability Unsocialized cats tend to avoid people, thus

minimizing likelihood of contact Community cats are typically vaccinated against

rabies Liability results from negligence: A municipality’s

involvement in TNR for the purpose of reducing free-roaming cat populations, protecting public health (mandatory rabies vaccinations), and resolving nuisance complaints is NOT negligence

Advantages of Adopting a TNR Ordinance

Promotes community involvement

Establishes reasonable standards

Defines duties Encourages caregiver

cooperation Gains caregiver trust

Effective Public Policy Must consider the

human dimension No solution works in

every area Need creative,

integrated programs Must be cost-effective TNR (for maximum

effect)• Caregiver trust and

cooperation• Adoption

Existing Resources in(insert name of city/town/or county)

Compile a list of all resources available to support TNR of free-roaming cats:• Funding• Existing programs• Volunteers• Cooperative agreements• Etc.

Ask them for what you want

• Be clear and concise• Do you want:

Money? If so, how much?Bans lifted?TNR ordinance adopted?

Thank you!