OUR WORK
Number of Cats Provided TNR Services Since October 2017 is 1,343, 254 in 2023, and 87 so far in 2024.
Currently, Community Cat Allies is able to provide direct Trap-Neuter/Spay-Vaccinate-Return (TNR) assistance with small colonies in Monterey County, California. This means we trap, transport to our local veterinary clinics for spay/neuter surgery and vaccination, and return cats to sites where they will be cared for by a guardian. Community Cat Allies can also loan traps and train community members to provide TNR themselves and continue to responsibly maintain their colony. We do not trap unsocial cats for adoption or socialization and believe feral adult cats are happiest in their outdoor home.
We currently ask for a $25 donation per cat to offset the costs of providing these services but are willing to discuss all financial situations. We're also partnering with local agencies to pool our resources towards this effort and applying for grants to create more opportunities for low cost spay/neuter surgeries for local free roaming community cats.
Download our PDF on TNR:
and TNR FAQs in English: or Spanish:
Every Cat has a Story
And every life counts! In 2020, 43% of cats who entered the Monterey County municipal shelter were killed.* They need our help to reduce that number! Here is what we're doing:
COMMUNITY CATS
Community Cats (aka feral cats) are often better left in the community when they have the support of a guardian who feeds and looks after them. Even without a guardian, cats raised out of doors generally do well on their own. Altered (fixed) community cats can live long, healthy lives in their "home" territory and do not contribute to cat overpopulation. Community Cat Allies' goal is to help the public understand the benefit of allowing altered community cats to remain free roaming in the community. For more information, download of our our PDFs above.
If you find a sick or injured cat that you cannot care for yourself, it is appropriate to take the cat to the shelter. Staff there will either treat the kitty and prepare the cat for adoption or humanly euthanize the cat to end its suffering. When fewer cats are admitted to shelters, shelter staff have more resources to help the animals in their care.
TRAP-NEUTER-RETURN
TNR is the widely accepted best practice to humanely and effectively manage the community cat population. Free roaming cats are humanely trapped, spayed or neutered, vaccinated, and returned to where they were trapped. An ear is clipped or "tipped" to show that they have been altered. Attempting to manage the feral cat population by removing and killing them or ignoring them does not work - we've been doing that for decades and we still have feral cats roaming and reproducing freely. Community cats removed to shelters, even "friendly" ones, often cannot be adopted and are killed. Please do not take an ear tipped cat to a shelter unless it is injured or gravely ill. Ignoring unaltered outdoor cats leads to fast growing colonies. Young kittens are some of the most vulnerable animals in shelters due to their need for round the clock care. When targeted TNR programs focus on all feral cats that can be trapped in an area, stable cat communities are created and over time the population of free roaming community cats and kittens is reduced.
We do not trap community cats for adoption or socialization. Cats born and raised outdoors do not want to become pets and would find the process of "socialization" terrifying. If you would like more information on this, please watch Kitten Lady's video. She has wonderful information on fostering and caring for kittens on her website: kittenlady.org.
Have a colony of cats in your neighborhood? Visit our Resources page for information on low cost spay/neuter options or contact us for information on our TNR program. Community Cat Allies is looking for trappers willing to assist with TNR efforts. If you'd like to volunteer to help with our efforts or learn about our resources, contact us. Check back often for updates!
SPREADING THE WORD
While change can start with one cat, we also need to change community perception about community cats. Some cities in Monterey County have laws banning the feeding of community cats. Our local shelters are underfunded and doing the best they can, often making tough choices. Beyond diverting community cats, the community needs to speak up for greater funding and support of our shelters and rescues. We need to change ordnances to allow TNR and Shelter-Neuter-Return (SNR) where community cats brought to shelters are spayed or neutered, vaccinated and returned to where they came from. To reach our goal of making the United States a no kill nation by 2025, we all need to take action. While we keep our focus on each cat, Community Cat Allies also has the bigger picture in our sights - creating a country where all homeless animals are permitted to live long, healthy and safe lives.
Would you like to get involved? There are many ways of contributing to our causes at Community Cat Allies.
* Best Friends Animal Society Pet Lifesaving Dashboard, July, 2021