Bryan Kortis, Executive Director [e-mail] 212-662-5761 www.neighborhoodcats.org

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Bryan Kortis, Executive Directorheadcat_at_neighborh
oodcats.org212-662-5761www.neighborhoodcats.org

• Trap-Neuter-Return
• An Introduction

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What is TNR?

• Feral cat management method involving
• Trap members
• of a colony
• Neuter (plus
• rabies vaccination
• eartipping)
• Return ferals to
• original site
• 4. Long-term caretaking/monitoring

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Eartip ¼ inch straight line cut off tip of left
ear
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What is a feral cat?

• A feral cat is unsocialized to humans. They
  originate from lost or abandoned cats.
• A stray cat is living on his own, but remains
  socialized and adoptable.

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What is a colony?

• Feral and stray cats tend to live in groups
  centered around a common food source.

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U.S. Feral Cat Population Estimates

• 13 million in winter, 24 million in summer
  (Clifton, M., Where cats belong and where they
  dont, ANIMAL PEOPLE June 2003 .)
• 50 million (Levy, J., Humane strategies for
  controlling feral cat populations 2004,
  Journal of the American Veterinary Medical
  Association, Vol. 225, No. 9. )
• 60 to 100 million (Alley Cat Allies, Tracking
  Our Success 2005.)

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Feral cat overpopulation impacts

• Shelters
• animal control
• Public health
• Wildlife
• Animal welfare

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Impact on Animal Sheltering Control

• 50 million feral cats 147 million kittens/yr
  82 of kittens born per year
• Pet cats 85 sterilization rate
• Feral cats 2 sterilization rate
• Levy, J., Humane strategies for controlling
  feral cat populations (2004), Journal of the
  American Veterinary Medical Assn., Vol. 225, No.
  9.

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• Kittens trapped adults rising
• intake euthanasia rates
• complaint calls
• financial costs
• opportunity costs
• stress to workers

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Impact of feral cats on Public Health

• rabies
• other zoonotic diseases (toxoplasmosis,
  cat scratch fever, etc.)
• quality of life complaints (odor, noise,
  unsanitary conditions, dead kittens, property
  damage)
• financial costs (investigation)

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Impact of feral cats on Wildlife

• Predation
• Competition
• Potentially devastating impact on sensitive
  ecosystems of rare species vulnerable to cat
  attacks

Alabama beach mouse
Piping plover
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Impact on animal welfare

• high kitten mortality
• for adults - short average life span in
  unmanaged situations (cars, cruelty, disease,
  fighting, etc.)

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What to do? The Choices

• Do nothing
• Feeding bans
• Trap Remove (usually for euthanasia)
• Sterilization vaccination (TNR)

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Feeding bans fail because

• Unenforceable
• Difficult to remove food sources
• Cats remain in the territory still reproduce
• Malnourished cats lead to parasitic infestations
  disease

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Trap and remove fails because

• Too many cats, not enough animal control
  resources
• Caretaker resistance (when euthanasia is the
  outcome)

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Trap remove also fails because

• Vacuum effect new cats fill the void due to
• a) migration from other colonies to take
  advantage of available food source
• b) reproduction and increased survival rate of
  untrapped cats (due to more available food)
• Ongoing abandonment lack of long-term
  monitoring
• Synergistic effect of all these factors

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Fantasy solutions

• Socialize/adopt very difficult time-consuming
  to socialize an adult feral
• Sanctuaries very few are well-run and many
  often turn into hoarding situations, plus there
  are too many cats
• Cat licensing leash laws may or may not help
  reduce future inflow into the feral population,
  but dont address the current problem

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TNR Advantages

• Nothing else works
• Volunteer manpower
• Less costly if private sector involved
• Caretaker cooperation
• Long-term monitoring
• No vacuums (esp. if TNR is widespread)

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TNR addresses sheltering issues by

• Ending or limiting
• reproduction (no more kittens!)
• Colony size often reduced immediately through
  adoptions
• Attrition reduces numbers over the long-term
  (fewer cats fewer complaint calls)

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TNR addresses public health issues by

• Vaccination for rabies
• Spay/neuter eliminates or dramatically reduces
  noise, odor and roaming ( fewer complaint calls)
• A community-based TNR program can mediate and
  solve common problems like property damage, cats
  in yards, etc.

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TNR addresses wildlife issues by

• Reducing the
• number of cats in the environment
• Through cooperative problem-solving in situations
  involving rare, threatened or endangered species
  (e.g., New Jersey Feral Cat Wildlife Coalition)

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TNR addresses animal welfare issues by

• Providing consistent caretaking, including food
  and shelter
• Improved health through spay/neuter
• Less roaming
• Fewer kittens, who are the most susceptible to
  disease

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Does TNR work?

• University of Central Florida
• - 155 cats on campus in 1991
• - 23 cats in 2002 (85 )
• Levy, et.al. (2003a), Evaluation of the effect
  of a long-term trap-neuter-return and adoption
  program on a free-roaming cat population, Journal
  of American Veterinary Medical Association 222
  42-46.

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Reece, J.F., S.K. Chawla (2006), Control of
rabies in Jaipur, India, by the sterilization and
vaccination of neighbourhood dogs, The Veterinary
Record, 159 379-383.
Jaipur, India

• Nov. 1994 thru Dec. 2002, in target area
• 19,129 dogs TNRed
• 65 female, 6 male sterilization level attained
• RESULTS
• Dog population 28
• Rabies cases zero in target area last 2 years of
  study increased in other parts of Jaipur

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Newburyport, MA (Merrimack River Feline Rescue
Society)

• - 300 cats on riverfront in 1991
• - 1st year trapped 200, adopted out 100,
  returned 100
• - 100 sterilization in 1998
• - 1 cat left today (35 feeders!)
• - opened local shelter and spay/neuter
  clinic to address sources of ferals

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• NYC Feral Cat Database as of 7/24/08
• (self-reporting by caretakers)
• - 458 colonies with at least 1 TNRed cat
• - 6141 cats reported at TNR Start Dates
• - 4613 cats currently (25 )
• - Average s/n rate 67
• - 3183 cats kittens placed for adoption
  (6.9 cats per colony)

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Other Community Examples

• San Francisco 1993 through 1999, TNR part of
  comprehensive program inc. s/n, adoptions
  intake down 28, euthanasia down 71 (including
  73 for ferals)
• Indianapolis Oct. 2004 through Dec 2007, 10,000
  feral s/ns intake down 37, euthanasia down
  29.
• Long Beach, NY over 400 feral s/ns since April
  2005 intake down 62 in 2007 cf. 2005.

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Effectively Managing Feral Cats (CD/DVD) produced
by The Humane Society of the US - 9.99

• Trap-Neuter-Return How to Fix Feral Cat
  Overpopulation 16 min. policy DVD directed by
  Bryan Kortis
• How to Perform a Mass Trapping 32 min. DVD
  produced by Neighborhood Cats
• 3. The Neighborhood Cats TNR Handbook A
  Guide to Trap-Neuter-Return for the Feral Cat
  Caretaker (pdf file) manual authored by
  Neighborhood Cats
• 4. Implementing a Community
  Trap-Neuter-Return Program (pdf file) manual
  authored by Bryan Kortis
• https//gateway.hsus.org/asopubs/ItemDetail.cfm?i
  temID1082Audience1

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Print copies

• The Neighborhood Cats TNR Handbook (with VHS of
  How to Perform a Mass Trapping) - 24.99
• http//www.aspca.org/tnrkit
• Implementing a Community Trap-Neuter-Return
  Program - 9.99
• https//gateway.hsus.org/asopubs/ItemDetail.cfm?i
  temID1070Audience1

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Online course

• Trap-Neuter-Return How to Manage Feral Cats
  (Humane Society University)
• - authored by Bryan Kortis
• - 50.00
• - comprehensive colony care training, including
  trapping, feeding, shelter, community relations
  and more
• http//www.humanesocietyu.org/workshops_and_class
  es/tnr.html

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Websites

• www.neighborhoodcats.org
• www.hsus.org/feralcats
• www.bestfriends.org

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• Photos by Meredith Weiss, Neighborhood Cats