Feral Cats … or Discarded Treasures?

How We Assist Feral Cats

TNR

The most common approach to assisting feral cats is referred to as TNR (Trap, Neuter, and Return). This approach assumes that an individual, or an organization, will trap each cat, accomplish spay or neuter and then release the cat (typically where it was found) and over a period of many years, someone will faithfully care for that cat and any others from it’s colony. Issues arise almost immediately. Will it be welcome on the property where it was trapped? Does it need other medical attention? Is there someone who is willing to dedicate the time, money and energy to caring for this colony over the very long run (a cat’s lifetime is a very long period)? Almost always, one of these requirements is not faithfully met. There’s another problem too, once the cats are back in their habitat, they will almost certainly develop health problems at some point. I can easily give you examples, just from the group of cats that we care for. There is Mega colon (a killer if not addressed), urinary track infection, ulcerated corneas, battle injuries, the list is long. The problem is that, once you notice that one of “your cats” has an issue, you must then trap that specific cat. Cats are pretty bright, currently we have some that know exactly what a trap is. I can trap right in the midst of my one outdoor colony and nab a stranger every time. The resident cats have seen the procedure so many times that they simply avoid the trap. As a good friend says of feral colonies, “everything’s fine, until it’s not”.

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