T-N-R (TRAP-NEUTER-RETURN)
It is estimated that there are tens of millions of feral cats in North America . A feral cat is a wild, unsocialized cat that was born outdoors and has never lived with a human family, or a house cat that has strayed from home and lived on its own for so long that it has reverted to a wild state. Feral cats are fearful of humans. These cats generally cannot be tamed and are content to live outdoors where they survive on food scavenged from garbage and around dumpsters, or feedings by sympathetic people.
Feral cats can be found in just about every human setting--urban or rural--because of the neglectful behavior of irresponsible owners, who have allowed their un-neutered cats to roam and reproduce. Stray and feral cats congregate near food sources, begin to breed and eventually form family units called colonies.
Unmanaged cat colonies are often regarded as a nuisance because of territorial behavior such as spraying, fighting and caterwauling during mating periods. Fighting also contributes to the spread of disease among cats. Attempts to eradicate whole colonies of cats usually fail because other strays soon fill the vacuum created by removing the cats. Stabilizing the colony by neutering, on the other hand, has been shown to eliminate undesirable behaviors, result in healthier animals, and over time the numbers of cats naturally decline.mstheme
mstheme
| Through TNR, cats in feral colonies are humanely trapped and taken to a veterinarian to be spayed or neutered. While under anesthesia, the cats are given a general “wellness" exam. They are checked and treated for ear mites and abscess, given a general antibiotic and vaccinated for rabies. After 24 hours of observation, healthy adult feral cats are returned to their colony where they can live their lives under the care of volunteers. Neutered kittens and tame cats (strays) may be returned to the colony or adopted out if foster care can be provided while they await good homes |
The pictures below are of a feral cat colony in Wilmot that we recently TNR'd. This TNR was done for Team TNR out of Annapolis Royal, a wonderful organization. There were seven cats in all that were spayed and neutered. Two of these cats were pregnant, which means there won't be any unwanted kittens born. They live on a property where there is a caregiver willing to feed these cats. Thank you Inez, you are a gem!
Traps ready to go to Wilmot.
Live trap with bait, covered with wool blanket awaiting a cat!
More live traps set and waiting for the feral cats. We used sardines and catfood for the bait. Nice and smelly. Towards the end we also used warm Kentucky Fried Chicken (works wonders for trapping feral cats!)
Cats in the traps on the back of our truck AFTER they were spayed and neutered, on their way back to Wilmot for an overnight stay in property owner's shed, before being released the following day.
Some of the cats in their traps after being altered. Ear tipping is done so that if they are ever trapped again we will know they have already gone through the TNR program and have been altered. It is not painful, and is done world wide.
Some more cats after altering. A very happy day.
Altered feral, probably wondering what in the world just happened! This cat will be much happier in no time.
This photo shows part of the property where this feral cat colony lives. They are one the luckier colonies as they have a wonderful lady named Inez feeding them every single day!
