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A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to improving the status and well-being of companions animals in Connecticut.
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NEED HELP?
The Animal Welfare Federation of Connecticut is not a shelter or rescue organization. To locate a shelter or rescue group nearest you, please visit Petfinder.com or Pets911.
Information about behavior issues, feral cats, spay & neuter resources, finding a lost pet, adopting a pet, placing a pet, pet-friendly housing, allergies, wildlife issues, etc. can be found in our Frequently Asked Questions section. |
AWFCT's
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What is a Feral Cat?
Feral cats originate from former domestic cats who were lost or abandoned and learned to live outdoors. Feral cats, through birth or circumstance, have reverted to the wild, living outdoors in urban, suburban, and rural environments with little or no human contact. No one knows exactly how many feral cats live in the United States, but the
number is estimated in the tens of millions.
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As a general rule, feral cats cannot be adopted into human homes, and relocating them to another area is extremely difficult. In many cases, if feral cats are taken to an animal shelter they will be killed. But removing and destroying feral cats does not reduce feral cat populations. It only provides space for more cats to move in and start the breeding process again.
But there is a solution that not only reduces feral cat populations, but also improves the lives of feral cats. It's called Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR). |
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What is Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR)?
Trap-Neuter Return is widely recognized as the most humane and effective strategy for reducing feral cat populations. TNR is a full management plan in which feral cats are humanely trapped and transported to a veterinary clinic where they are vaccinated and sterilized. After surgery, the cats recuperate for a couple of days and then are returned to their colony habitat to live out their natural lives.
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What are the advantages of TNR?
Besides being the only humane solution, there are many advantages to Trap-Neuter-Return.
Since the cats can no longer reproduce, colonies decrease in size. And by eliminating mating behaviors, TNR stablizes the colony, reduces the influx of newcomers, and improves the overall health of the cats. Additionally the nuisance behaviors associated with mating, including yowling, fighting or spraying, are greatly reduced. |
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Trap-Neuter-Return is more cost-effective than trapping and killing feral cats. The average cost of sterilization is approximately one-third the average cost incurred to trap, hold and destroy a feral cat.
Another significant advantage to TNR is that, when practiced on a large scale, it lessens the number of kittens and cats flowing into local shelters. This results in lower euthanasia rates and the increased adoption of cats already in the shelters.
Perhaps the greatest advantage of Trap-Neuter-Return is that, unlike Trap-and-Remove/Trap-and-Kill it is a permanent solution.
Please read About Stray and Feral Cats and Do You Believe She Deserves to Live ...Even Though She is Wild? to learn more about feral cats and the compassionate solution that really works!
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Trap-Neuter-Return Resources
If you have found a colony of feral cats and need advice on how to help, please contact a local rescue organization for assistance with Trap-Neuter-Return. In addition below are some great sources of information about feral cats:
Alley Cat Allies is the national nonprofit clearinghouse for information on feral and stray cats. As the foremost experts on feral cats, Alley Cat Allies promotes nonlethal control for feral and stray cats with trap-neuter-return (TNR) programs that effectively reduce their population by sterilization - not euthanasia.
Neighborhood Cats is one of the leaders in the TNR movement. Neighborhood Cats offers workshops on how to manage a feral cat colony, a TNR mini-course, and a TNR handbook and video.
Wild About Cats! is a campaign to promote an understanding of the feral cat's nature, origins, history, social structure, and niche in our society and environment. Wild About Cats! presents unvarnished facts about feral cats and successful methods for humans both to interact with them and to humanely reduce their numbers.
New Jersey Animal Rights Alliance - Feral Cat Project is a great resource center for information about feral cats and Trap-Neuter-Return.
The San Francisco SPCA offers a series of informative Feral Cat Fact Sheets
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Additional Resources For Feral Cat Advocates and Caretakers
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