CASTAWAY CRITTERS
The James A. Hueholt Memorial Foundation for Animals

An Introduction to Feral Cats & TNR

What is a Feral Cat?

We have all seen them—in alleys, behind restaurants, apartment complexes—anywhere where a food source is available. These feral cats, found in farming areas and cities, are the offspring of intact domesticated cats who were either abandoned or lost.

A feral cat is a cat that was born outdoors to a stray or feral mother and had little or no human contact.  Feral cats, while dependent on humans for food and veterinary care, cannot realistically be tamed and are not suited to living indoors with humans because they are afraid of us. It does not mean that the cats are aggressive or dangerous.  Feral cats run from people.  They do not attack unless they are cornered and feel that they have no other alternative but to fight for their lives.

Stray cats - abandoned pets - and young kittens are found in unmanaged feral cat colonies. Because a stray cat was once a companion animal, he or she can usually be re-socialized and placed in an adoptive home. 

The Need to Control Cat Overpopulation

Cat overpopulation is caused from feral, free-roaming unowned colonies, offspring of unspayed pet cats who were either abandoned or lost. Low-income people often cannot afford spay/ neuter for their pet cats, who are frequently displaced from their homes for being intact and prone to roam and mate. These domestic cats give birth to feral, free-roaming, unowned cats supplying 70% of the kittens to American households. Similar programs in other areas of the country have demonstrated that targeted low-income spay/neuter projects along with aggressive feral cat spay/neuter, show the quickest reduction in the number of euthanized and surrendered animals.

The unmitigated urgency of controlling the population growth of these feral cats is simply unquestionable. Whether a true feral or stray, the critical fact is that most of those cats have not been  sterilized  unless  trap-neuter-return  (TNR) has been practiced there. As a result, it is those cats that are overwhelmingly responsible for the flood of homeless cats and kittens streaming into our shelters. Area shelters are forced to euthanize many adoptable adult cats during kitten season. This season, usually running May to October, forces shelters to euthanize adult cats due to the large number of incoming kittens.

The Solution to Cat Overpopulation

"Nothing kills more cats than overpopulation," states Alley Cat Allies, a national group that advocates Trap-Neuter-Return—more commonly known as TNR—to control the feral cat population. TNR is becoming the national standard across the United States and is already the standard in the United Kingdom.

Why TRAP these cats? The answer is many of these cats had no contact with people and are, therefore, terrified of human beings. The traps do not hurt the cats; they are humane live traps. In fact, trapping, neutering and returning the cats is the most humane thing you can do. Cats are humanely trapped using food as bait, they are then transported to a veterinarian where they are spayed or neutered.  Their left ear is tipped so people will recognize that the cat has been sterilized. Unfortunately, adult feral cats are extremely difficult to tame and are not adoptable, so they are returned to their original environment where caregivers agree to provide them with food and water.

Understanding Managed Colonies

Individual cats usually live in a colony, a tightly knit family group. The difference between an unmanaged colony and a managed colony is the overall health and well-being of the cats. Unneutered, breeding and pregnant cats live in an unmanaged colony. These cats over-breed so much that there is little food, resulting in starvation. Cats that have been spayed or neutered and received their rabies shots reside in a managed colony. A managed colony is healthy and is cared for by a caretaker—an individual who regularly feeds the cats.

Alternatives to TNR

Do Nothing:  Common sense dictates that whatever the actual level of risk is, a vaccinated, sterilized, fed and monitored cat will always present less threat to another animal.

Remove all feral cats from the environment (Trap & Kill):  Aside from being inhumane, this approach is not a solution.  It is impossible to catch ALL cats in an area. Those that are left behind will breed prolifically.

Catch & Tame:  With the exception of young kittens, this approach is not realistic.  Wild adults cannot be socialized to humans to the point where they are able to find homes as pets.  For a small minority that could be tamed, the time and effort that goes into helping just a few cats is prohibitive.  Even with very young kittens, taming can take several weeks of intensive socialization work.

Relocation:  Cats taken to a shelter will be euthanized. Feral cats are wild, they are not socialized to humans, they are afraid of people.  Their temperament prevents them from being placed for adoption. Relocate to another property? Even if you were to find a place to take them, can you do a proper relocation where you confine the cats for a period to get them used to the area (2 month imprint time is the general rule)?  

Even if cats are able to be held in the new area long enough to get them used to the relocation site, there is no guarantee that those cats will remain there once they are set free. How will you feel if you remove cats from their original location and others merely move in to take their place?  This is known as the vacuum effect.

Relocation should be practiced ONLY in rare and extreme conditions. The reality is that all of us will have feral cats, like the birds in the sky.  The only issue is whether you want sterilized or breeding cats.  

Vacuum Effect: The vacuum effect is a situation arising when feral cats are removed from an environment.  Other cats then move in to take advantage of the food source that is available.  They will quickly fill the space from which the cats were removed.  These new, usually unsterilized cats will breed to the capacity of the site.

Benefits of Managed Colonies

There are many benefits to having managed colonies in our communities. The rodent population in these areas would be out of control if it were not for the cats. In controlling the rodent population, the cats are also halting the spread of disease. Managed colonies also teach compassion for cats, non-violence and tolerance for others, reports Alley Cat Allies. Removing and placing friendly cats and kittens from feral cat colonies usually reduces the colony by 50%.

Studies have proven that once a colony is stabilized (spayed and neutered), its members prevent other free roaming unaltered and unvaccinated cats from entering into an area. In addition, altering cats eliminates many nuisance behaviors including spraying and the loud yowling noises made by unneutered males fighting over unspayed females and/or territory. 

TRAP-NEUTER-RETURN WORKS!

*In San Diego County, California, the Feral Cat Coalition trapped, altered and released more than 3,100 cats in two years. In addition, an unknown number of kittens were trapped, socialized and adopted into new homes. During those same two years, the San Diego County Animal Management Information System reported that the number of cats handled by San Diego Animal Control shelters dropped from 19,077 to 12,446, while euthanasia of cats plunged 40%.*

*In Orange County, Florida, a cat sterilization program was implemented for caretakers of outdoor cats. Traps were loaned for humane trapping, and free spay/neuter surgeries were performed at the Orange County Animal Services clinic. A total of 2,228 cats were spayed and neutered fro December 1995 to May 1998. During fiscal year 1996-97, the number of impoundments of cats was down 7%. They were down another 3% in the first six months of fiscal year 1997-98.**

*In 1989, Stanford Cat Network was formed at Stanford University in California to trap, alter, release and manage the approximately 500 stray cats on campus. By 1994, only four kittens were found, and the cat population had declined to 300.*

*Karen Johnson for the National Pet Alliance, 1995, www.feralcat.com/feral-tr.html

**Alley Cat Allies, http://www.alleycat.org/

Additional resources:

Feral Cats vs Pet Cats

Humane Trapping Instructions (includes information on Mother cats and kittens)

How to Manage a Feral Cat Colony & Implement TNR from Neighborhood Cats

Living Outdoors

Summer Weather Tips, Keeping Cats Off Property

Options in Placing Feral Cats

Feral Cats & Felv/FIV

Feral Cat Resources

Medical Information

TNR Tools