Feral CatsUnderstanding the Issues. Creating Solutions.

www.vet.utk.edu/cait

Feral Facts

• Feralcatsliveinfamilygroups called“colonies.”

• Dependingonavailabilityoffood,these coloniescanvaryinsizefromtwocatsto 200ormore.

• Theaveragelifespanofaferalcatis aproximatelythreeyears.

• Althoughtheincidenceofdiseasein feralcatsisnothigherthanintameorownedcats,theyareatmuchgreaterriskofbeinghitbycars,injuredbyothercats,orattackedbypredators.

• Theyareespeciallynumerousoncollegecampusesandmilitarybaseswherepetcats,manyofwhomarenotspayedorneutered,aresometimesabandoned whentheirownersmustrelocate.

• Earlyeffortstocontrolferalcatswere donebypermanentlyremovingthem fromtheircolonies.Thistechniquedidnotreduceferalcatpopulations.Instead,it leftspaceintheenvironmentfornewcatstomoveinandreproduce.Thisiscalled the“vacuumeffect”.

Thousands of feral cats are euthanized in animal shelters every year.

Teresa Jennings

CA

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inistrator

The U

niversity of Tennessee

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f Veterinary Med

icine 2407 R

iver Drive

A205 Veterinary Teaching

Ho

spital

Kno

xville, TN

37996

tel: 865-755-2276 (ES

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email: cait@

utk.edu

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w.vet.utk.ed

u/cait

What are the Answers?

TNR clinics: Trap-Neuter-ReturnTrap-Neuter-Returnisahumaneandeffective alternativethatcontrolsferalcatcoloniesand improvesthehealthandwell-beingofthecolonycats.Theyaretrapped,vaccinatedandspayedorneuteredandthenreturnedhometotheircolony.

Agoodwaytoknowifa catispartofamanagedcolonyistolookforatippedear.Whilethecatisunderanesthesiaforaspay/neuter, avetclipsthetipofitsear.

TNR,coupledwithcolonymanagementthat includesregularmonitoringandfeedingby volunteers,keepsferalcatpopulationshealthierandlessdependentonwildlifefortheirsurvival.

Onceallcatsinthecolonyhavebeenspayed/ neutered,animalcontrolcomplaintstendtobe lessfrequent.

Responsible Animal OwnershipStraycats,feralcatsandownedcatsthatareletoutaregenerallycalled“outsidecats”.Ifyouhavepetcatsthatyouletout,havethemspayedorneutered.Kittensasyoungasnineweekscanbespayedandneutered.Askyourvetifhe/she performsearlyagespay/neuters.

Ifyouarefeedinganystrayorferalcatsthatdonotbelongtoyou,havethemspayedorneutered.

Althoughtmalecatsarenotburdenedwithkittens,theystillcontributetotheproblem.

FoodTrip plate

Trap door

Humane Trap used in TNR

What is a Feral Cat?

Thewordferalmeans“gonewild.”Feralcats aredomesticcatswhohaverunawayorhavebeenabandonedandhave“gonewild”tosur-vivewithouthumancare.Whenstrayorferalcatsreproduce,theirkittensarefearful ofhumansandcanseldombetamedenoughtobecomepets.

Why are they a problem?

•Whencoloniesareleftunmanaged, thecatsconstantlyproducemoreand morekittens.

•Un-neuteredmalecatscreateanoxiousodorbysprayingtheirterritoryandcanbeloudwhenfightingormating.

• Insuburbanareas,thecatsdigupgardensandcanbeanuisanceforresidents.

•Feralcatslivinginruralareastypicallyrely onwildbirds,rodentsandothernative speciestosurvive.

•Peoplewhofeedgroupsofunalteredferalcatswithouthavingthemspayed/neuteredallowthecolonytocontinuetogrowandcompoundtheproblem.

How Can I Help?

Effortsbigandsmallareneededtohelp manageferalcats.

Herearesomewaystohelp:

• Ifyouknowofanunmanagedcolony contactyourlocalferalcatgroup.

•Volunteeryourtimetoferalcat management.YoucanhelpmonitoracolonyorlendahandataTNRclinic.

•MakeamonetarydonationtoaTNRclinic.Yourdonationwillbeusedtocover surgicalcosts,medicine,and/orfoodforthecats.

•Thinkaboutjoiningalocalferalcatgroup,suchasKnoxvilleFeralCatFriends (www.knoxvilleferalcatfriends.org).

•Stayinformedaboutthenationalferalcateffortbyvisitingwww.alleycatallies.org

•Paythespay/neuterfeeforsomeone whocan’taffordit.Tolocateasubsidizedspay/neuterclinicinEastTennessee call(865)974-6464.