TNR stands for “trap/neuter/release,” which is a program where unowned cats, whether feral (wild) or simply “strays” are trapped, spayed or neutered, vaccinated for rabies, and released back into the environment where they were found.

For years Lake County, like most parts of the country, has had a “trap and euthanize” policy which has completely failed to resolve our cat overpopulation problem.  

As has been mentioned in previous articles, Lake County kills five times more cats per capita than any other county in the state. This is a shameful and embarrassing statistic.

Our cat problem has a negative impact on real estate values and the quality of life for our citizens. It generates strife between neighbors, poses health risks to people and their pets, and shocks visitors and prospective homebuyers coming to the area.

There are two types of cats the Lake County Animal Control shelter deals with: truly feral cats which fear humans and cannot be safely handled, and friendly strays which are lost or abandoned by their owners.

They all have one thing in common: most of them are being fed, either intentionally or not, by humans.

Yes, these cats can and do hunt for food, but most of them rely on food provided by well-meaning people who don’t want to see them starve.  

Surveys show that 10 to 20 percent of households feed cats they don’t own. Because of this most experts are calling such unowned cats “community cats.” They are free-roaming cats, some too feral to touch, some very friendly, being fed by people who don’t consider themselves the “owners” but who feed them daily.

Because these people don’t consider themselves owners, they don’t feel responsible to have the cats spayed and neutered, and in many cases the sheer number of cats being fed makes it financially impossible for them to do so.  

If you take a feral cat to the shelter it will almost certainly die there.  It is hard to make a case that they are somehow better off being brought to the shelter where they will sit huddled in a small cage, stressed and frightened, exposed to contagious viruses, for the mandatory three days before they are euthanized.  

The modern TNR program stops the reproductive cycle and gets them back to where they came from within 24 hours. They can live out their lives and the population will decline over time due to natural attrition.

Opponents of TNR usually bring up the negative impact that cats have on wildlife – primarily song birds.

My reply to that is we’ve given “trap and kill” programs a chance for the last 30 plus years and it hasn’t worked. The cats are still there, the birds are still being killed. Do you want to just keep doing what we’ve been doing for the next 30 years?

Others say TNR does not work. Experts in the field say that if managed properly and given enough time, it does work.

Successful TNR programs have reduced euthanasia rates from 30 to 70 percent in Florida, New Hampshire, New Jersey, San Diego, North Carolina, Connecticut and Utah.

Still others say TNR is too expensive.

When you add up all the direct and indirect costs of the current “trap and kill” programs it costs the taxpayers about $100 per cat. When you consider how much the county has already spent on a program that hasn’t worked, doesn’t it make sense to try something else?

In our opinion the main reason “trap and kill” has not worked and will never work is that the public will not stand for it.

People who have been feeding stray cats so they won’t starve are certainly not going to participate in a cat extermination program.

In order to get our cat population problem under control we are going to need the help and cooperation of the public, which means finding an alternative to euthanasia.

In January of 2012 local veterinarians created the “Catsnip” program which offers a limited number of free spay and neuter surgeries for Community Cats for one year.  After that time we expect the county to step up with a plan.

We would like to see the county fund a minimum two year TNR pilot program where vouchers would be issued for spay/neuter of community cats.

Lake County Animal Care and Control recently installed a spay/neuter facility for impounded/adopted dogs and cats. They are currently only performing surgery three days a week.

A county-funded TNR program would allow them to utilize their facility full-time. Vouchers could also be used at the SPCA spay/neuter facility on Highway 29, as well as any private practice willing to accept them.

What can you do to help?  

1. If you are feeding community cats and you can’t afford to spay/neuter contact one of the Catsnip coordinators listed below to get on the waiting list for the Catsnip Free Spay/Neuter Program.  Remember, only truly unowned cats qualify for this program.

2. If you can afford $50 to $65 to spay/neuter the community cat you are already feeding, DO IT! You will be doing yourself and your neighbors a favor. Spayed and neutered cats tend to keep newcomers away so your colony will not keep increasing in size. The SPCA and several private veterinary clinics around the lake offer spay/neuter for Community Cats at a significantly discounted rate. Contact Vicki Chamberlin for more information.

3. Kitten season is here. If you are feeding a community cat who has kittens, trap them ASAP so they can be socialized and hopefully adopted.

4. If you own a barn or warehouse in need of rodent control contact Lake County Animal Care and Control. There is no safer, more effective means of rodent control than a couple of hunting cats.

5. Microchip your cats! Many of the friendly cats brought to Animal Care and Control are owned but never recovered because there is no way to identify them. If you can, keep your cats indoors or inside an escape-proof yard. Studies have shown that confined cats live five times longer on average than free roaming cats.    

6. Attend the next Animal Control Advisory Board meeting scheduled for Monday, March 26, at 1 p.m. at the shelter where this subject will be on the agenda.

7. Let your Supervisor know you support TNR.

8. Volunteer to help! The Catsnip program needs help with trapping and transporting cats.

Catsnip coordinators:

Vicki Chamberlin, Lakeport, 707-263-3958, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Kathy Langlais, Animal Coalition of Lake County, Clearlake, 707-995-0552
Erica Bergstrom, Middletown, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Susan A. Cannon, DVM, and Chris S. Holmes, DVM, work at Wasson Memorial Veterinary Clinic in Lakeport, Calif. Their guest commentary is endorsed by Main Street Veterinary Clinic, Clearlake Veterinary Clinic, Animal Hospital of Lake County and Middletown Animal Hospital.