Community Cat is working to “fix†the cat overpopulation problem by focusing on spay/ neuter for outdoor cats. Whether we know it or not, most of us have feral cats and free-roaming pet cats living nearby. Unfortunately, most of these cats are reproducing like crazy. We see them roaming our yards, dumpster diving, and trying to survive long enough to raise their kittens. Cat lovers or not, we can all agree that there are just too many of them.
Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) of feral and free-roaming cats is Community Cat’s specialty. Scientific research and practical experience show that TNR is not only humane; it’s also the best method we have to fight cat overpopulation. At first it’s hard to understand: why would you catch them, take them to a vet, and then put them right back where you found them? It’s easiest to explain with an example.
When Community Cat starts a TNR project during breeding season, they remove young kittens and get them into  adoption programs. Right away, that makes the colony 30-50% smaller. That also means that those kittens are spared from a very sad fate: most would never have lived to adulthood. Next the adults are trapped, fixed, vaccinated for rabies and distemper, and returned. The vet also removes a cat’s left ear tip to show that it has been fixed and vaccinated. Community Cat can also install winter shelters. The cats continue to defend their territory by chasing off new, unaltered cats. The result: the neighborhood still has cats but they are quieter, cleaner, and healthier. A local caretaker feeds and monitors the cats – no more dumpster diving, fighting over food, or door-to-door begging. Community Cat is committed to the long term care of the colony and helps the caretaker on an ongoing basis.
Some people just want all of the cats removed and for people to stop feeding them. In reality, neither of these things will happen. Cities can declare bans on outdoor feeding but these bans don’t normally work. No one wants to see starving
animals in their neighborhood and the police can’t spend all their time trying to stop people from feeding cats. Removal doesn’t work either. Aside from the enormous expense involved, it’s also impossible to trap 100% of all
outdoor cats. And there are always new cats wandering in search of a new territory. It only takes one pregnant stray to
make a whole new colony – that’s 15-20 cats in a year or two, and it’s only the beginning.
Community Cat does TNR because it works. They operate on a shoestring budget, so they depend on volunteers and private funding to make it happen. Please contact them if you would like to donate or get involved! You can reach them at communitycat@yahoo.com or 608-24/7-PURR. You can also visit their website at commcat.org.
Community Cat is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
