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The Solution, Part 1
With excerpts from Neighborhood Cats, NYC
"TNR"
their territory. The returned cats, who are eartipped to identify them as their
territory. The returned cats, who are eartipped to identify them as neutered,
are provided regular food and shelter and are monitored for newcomers.
Whenever possible, kittens young enough to be readily socialized and friendly
adults are removed and placed for adoption.
and friendly adults are removed and placed for adoption.
TNR immediately stabilizes the size of the colony if at least 70 percent of the
fertile adults are neutered. Neutering closer to 100 percent will result in a
gradual decline of the population over time. In addition, the nuisance behaviour
often associated with feral cats is dramatically reduced. This includes the
yowling and noise that comes with fighting and mating activity and the odour of
unaltered males spraying to mark their territory. They will still continue to
provide natural rodent control, a particularly valuable benefit in urban areas.
On a wider scale, TNR has several advantages:
Foremost, the neutering of ferals lowers the number of cats and kittens flowing
off the streets into the local shelter. Thus, the rate for domestic cats drops
when there are fewer ferals because the lack of street kittens means less
competition for spots in adoptive homes.
Another potential advantage on a large scale is cost savings to animal control
agencies. Traditionally, the cost involved with feral cats includes the time it
takes for an officer to trap the cat, the expense of feeding and sheltering during
the usual mandatory waiting period before the animal can be euthanized, and
the cost of the euthanasia procedure. In contrast, the only cost involved with
TNR is the neutering and vaccination of each cat. The rest of the work –
trapping, feeding, and so on – is done by volunteers. In a study over the course
of two and a half years of a new TNR program, cost savings were found to be
47 percent.
TNR has the ability to mobilize large numbers of volunteers because it is life-
affirming, which is in itself an advantage. Catching the vast number of feral cats
now at large in our communities requires volunteers, as animal control alone
can rarely make even the slightest dent in the problem. A volunteer is not going
to step forward if the ultimate fate of the felines is to be killed. But if people
know the cats will be released and then cared for they will offer their time and
effort.
Failed Alternatives:
Perhaps the most significant argument in favour of trap-neuter-return is that
not only does it succeed in controlling feral populations when properly
implemented – it is the only known method that ever has! The traditional
approach has been “trap-and-kill“, whereby feral cats are trapped, usually by
animal control, and then invariably euthanized. The typically out-of-control feral
cat numbers in most regions should be testimony enough to the failure of this
method.
Reasons for Failure:
First, as anybody who is actively involved in TNR can testify, it is not easy to
catch all the cats in a feral colony. It can take several days and a lot of
persistence. Animal control agencies rarely have the resources to make this
kind of sustained effort. Instead, what normally happens is that animal control
officers set some traps, catch some of the cats, and make a temporary
reduction in the colony’s numbers. At this point though, nature kicks in. Feral
colonies grow in size up to the number of cats their food source can support.
Once the colony is reduced, the remaining cats overbreed until the ceiling
imposed by the food source is reached again, and the temporary drop in
population is quickly erased.
Even assuming all the cats in a colony are caught and removed, that still won’t
lower the population in the long run. This is due to the “vacuum effect,” first
observed by Roger Tabor in his studies of London street cats (The Wild Life of
the Domestic Cat). No feral colony is an island. It is surrounded by other feral
cat groups in adjoining territories. If a colony is removed but its food source
remains, cats in neighbouring territories will move in and start the cycle of
reproduction again. Normally, most of these cats stay out of the territory if it is
occupied by a colony of sufficient size.
You might ask: “Why not remove the food source along with the cats and avoid
the patterns just described?” That’s much easier said than done. Apart from
rodents, the food source might be the daily waste from a restaurant or mess
hall, or garbage left out for collection, or cans of food that continue to be left by
the cats’ caretaker. Trying to control all this and stop food from being available
is rarely a practical alternative.
At the other end of the spectrum of failed alternatives to TNR is the rescue
model, which views the cats as essentially domestic animals who belong in
human homes and should be placed in them. This vision may have been
plausible at one time, in areas where there were only a few stray cats, most of
them recently abandoned. It does not make sense now, when the number of
feral cats is in the millions in many countries. Once past kittenhood, ferals can
be very difficult to socialize, and there are not nearly enough homes available
for them anyway. Plenty of domestic cats are now dying in shelters for lack of
space.
Why bring in ferals off the streets when they can be maintained where they
are, in a manner more befitting their unique natures?
Another method often adopted in individual situations is to try to make the cats
go away by depriving them of food. The belief is that the cats will look for
another food source. In fact, depriving the cats of food often has the opposite
effect – they just come closer. Cats are extremely territorial, and their nature
keeps them from wandering off. Rather than leaving to find food elsewhere,
they’ll encroach further into human habitations within their territory in search of
sustenance. Depriving the cats of food is also obviously rather cruel, as it can
result in their starvation.
TNR has the advantage of being humane because it respects the cats’ right to
live and provides them with as high a quality of life as possible under the
circumstances. It is also effective at lowering population levels, both within
individual colonies and across entire communities. Other methods not only cost
more; they don’t work. TNR is clearly the future when it comes to enlightened
care of feral cats.
Every once in a while, you’ll come upon an adult cat who is many generations
feral and rarely has contact with people yet is quite friendly. This, however, is
very much the exception. It is important to recognize that if a cat is truly feral,
then the most compassionate choice may be to allow him to live outdoors.
Trying to domesticate such a cat is little different from trying to make a squirrel
or a raccoon a household companion – you might succeed somewhat, but never
fully and only with a great deal of time and patience. Moreover, you would not
be permitting the animal to live in the manner that suits him best. Many well-
meaning people, convinced they are “saving” a feral cat by bringing him
indoors, end up condemning the poor creature to a life of hiding under the bed
and being in constant fear. Better a fuller, even if riskier, life in freedom.
With excerpts from Neighborhood Cats, NYC
"TNR"
their territory. The returned cats, who are eartipped to identify them as their
territory. The returned cats, who are eartipped to identify them as neutered,
are provided regular food and shelter and are monitored for newcomers.
Whenever possible, kittens young enough to be readily socialized and friendly
adults are removed and placed for adoption.
and friendly adults are removed and placed for adoption.
TNR immediately stabilizes the size of the colony if at least 70 percent of the
fertile adults are neutered. Neutering closer to 100 percent will result in a
gradual decline of the population over time. In addition, the nuisance behaviour
often associated with feral cats is dramatically reduced. This includes the
yowling and noise that comes with fighting and mating activity and the odour of
unaltered males spraying to mark their territory. They will still continue to
provide natural rodent control, a particularly valuable benefit in urban areas.
On a wider scale, TNR has several advantages:
Foremost, the neutering of ferals lowers the number of cats and kittens flowing
off the streets into the local shelter. Thus, the rate for domestic cats drops
when there are fewer ferals because the lack of street kittens means less
competition for spots in adoptive homes.
Another potential advantage on a large scale is cost savings to animal control
agencies. Traditionally, the cost involved with feral cats includes the time it
takes for an officer to trap the cat, the expense of feeding and sheltering during
the usual mandatory waiting period before the animal can be euthanized, and
the cost of the euthanasia procedure. In contrast, the only cost involved with
TNR is the neutering and vaccination of each cat. The rest of the work –
trapping, feeding, and so on – is done by volunteers. In a study over the course
of two and a half years of a new TNR program, cost savings were found to be
47 percent.
TNR has the ability to mobilize large numbers of volunteers because it is life-
affirming, which is in itself an advantage. Catching the vast number of feral cats
now at large in our communities requires volunteers, as animal control alone
can rarely make even the slightest dent in the problem. A volunteer is not going
to step forward if the ultimate fate of the felines is to be killed. But if people
know the cats will be released and then cared for they will offer their time and
effort.
Failed Alternatives:
Perhaps the most significant argument in favour of trap-neuter-return is that
not only does it succeed in controlling feral populations when properly
implemented – it is the only known method that ever has! The traditional
approach has been “trap-and-kill“, whereby feral cats are trapped, usually by
animal control, and then invariably euthanized. The typically out-of-control feral
cat numbers in most regions should be testimony enough to the failure of this
method.
Reasons for Failure:
First, as anybody who is actively involved in TNR can testify, it is not easy to
catch all the cats in a feral colony. It can take several days and a lot of
persistence. Animal control agencies rarely have the resources to make this
kind of sustained effort. Instead, what normally happens is that animal control
officers set some traps, catch some of the cats, and make a temporary
reduction in the colony’s numbers. At this point though, nature kicks in. Feral
colonies grow in size up to the number of cats their food source can support.
Once the colony is reduced, the remaining cats overbreed until the ceiling
imposed by the food source is reached again, and the temporary drop in
population is quickly erased.
Even assuming all the cats in a colony are caught and removed, that still won’t
lower the population in the long run. This is due to the “vacuum effect,” first
observed by Roger Tabor in his studies of London street cats (The Wild Life of
the Domestic Cat). No feral colony is an island. It is surrounded by other feral
cat groups in adjoining territories. If a colony is removed but its food source
remains, cats in neighbouring territories will move in and start the cycle of
reproduction again. Normally, most of these cats stay out of the territory if it is
occupied by a colony of sufficient size.
You might ask: “Why not remove the food source along with the cats and avoid
the patterns just described?” That’s much easier said than done. Apart from
rodents, the food source might be the daily waste from a restaurant or mess
hall, or garbage left out for collection, or cans of food that continue to be left by
the cats’ caretaker. Trying to control all this and stop food from being available
is rarely a practical alternative.
At the other end of the spectrum of failed alternatives to TNR is the rescue
model, which views the cats as essentially domestic animals who belong in
human homes and should be placed in them. This vision may have been
plausible at one time, in areas where there were only a few stray cats, most of
them recently abandoned. It does not make sense now, when the number of
feral cats is in the millions in many countries. Once past kittenhood, ferals can
be very difficult to socialize, and there are not nearly enough homes available
for them anyway. Plenty of domestic cats are now dying in shelters for lack of
space.
Why bring in ferals off the streets when they can be maintained where they
are, in a manner more befitting their unique natures?
Another method often adopted in individual situations is to try to make the cats
go away by depriving them of food. The belief is that the cats will look for
another food source. In fact, depriving the cats of food often has the opposite
effect – they just come closer. Cats are extremely territorial, and their nature
keeps them from wandering off. Rather than leaving to find food elsewhere,
they’ll encroach further into human habitations within their territory in search of
sustenance. Depriving the cats of food is also obviously rather cruel, as it can
result in their starvation.
TNR has the advantage of being humane because it respects the cats’ right to
live and provides them with as high a quality of life as possible under the
circumstances. It is also effective at lowering population levels, both within
individual colonies and across entire communities. Other methods not only cost
more; they don’t work. TNR is clearly the future when it comes to enlightened
care of feral cats.
Every once in a while, you’ll come upon an adult cat who is many generations
feral and rarely has contact with people yet is quite friendly. This, however, is
very much the exception. It is important to recognize that if a cat is truly feral,
then the most compassionate choice may be to allow him to live outdoors.
Trying to domesticate such a cat is little different from trying to make a squirrel
or a raccoon a household companion – you might succeed somewhat, but never
fully and only with a great deal of time and patience. Moreover, you would not
be permitting the animal to live in the manner that suits him best. Many well-
meaning people, convinced they are “saving” a feral cat by bringing him
indoors, end up condemning the poor creature to a life of hiding under the bed
and being in constant fear. Better a fuller, even if riskier, life in freedom.
