Instituting a "trap, neuter, release," or TNR, program in Brick will humanely control the township's population of feral cats, officials say.
The program, which runs on a volunteer basis, involves trapping stray cats, sending them to a veterinarian to be spayed or neutered, then releasing them.
"We have an overpopulation of cats in town, and probably all across the United States," said Councilman Michael Thulen, who has been working with volunteers in town to help get the project off the ground.
Thulen said he's been working with "colony caretakers," volunteers in town who are responsible for getting the TNR program started in their neighborhoods. The colony caretakers must take classes to learn about the program and how it is administered. After cats are spayed or neutered, the colony caretakers look after the cat until it is released.
According to the Feral Cat Caretakers' Coalition, TNR programs are usually more successful than trapping and killing feral cats since TNR is an ongoing effort that prevents future births, rather than a short-term population control effort where many cats are left to breed.
Brick officials are in the process of establishing a pool of veterinarians who will perform the surgeries. The veterinarian fees will be paid through the township, and fundraising efforts are underway to raise money to defray the cost.
"As the cats are collected in groups, 10 or 15 at a time, we would go to this veterinary pool," Thulen said. "They would be paid by the donations and then invoiced through the township. Hopefully, because it is the township writing the check, the vets will give us a good price."
"We’re going to try to avoid using any taxpayer money," Thulen added.
Those who have already started the program say they can already see results.
"We have been seeing tremendous results in birth reductions in our colonies," said Adrianne Sarno, a colony caretaker who lives in the Kentwood Village development. "It’s a positive for not only the animals, but for all of us in our communities."
Thulen said those interested in participating in the program should contact the Brick Township Recreation Department at 732-262-1076.
"The intention is, hopefully, by the end of this year to actually start trapping, neutering and releasing cats around town," Thulen said.
Which brings me to another point. If they are going to trap s/n release, shouldnt the cats also get a rabies vaccine? I know they are only good for 2 years, but would help stop the spread of rabies, for a while at least.
That is another point, the shelters are always looking for food donations, if you lose your pet, please take what ever pet supplies you have to your local shelter, or if you get a good deal on bagged food, drop some off.
Tastes like chicken? Now that is a sick statement
It is a struggle to pay the taxes, Dan. We don't need you guys thinking up faster ways to spend the money on things like this. It's like a kick in the pants and a slap in the face at the same time.
Capture them and put them down, it's better than living a tick & flea infested life along w/ worms as well as rabies.
However, TNR is far from an ideal solution. It sounds really nice to lots of people. But is rarely if ever done on a scale that actually makes it "better than doing nothing". As some of you have acknowledged: we need to get our pet cat population under control . Several irresponsible folks with fertile outdoor cats can easily make up for hundreds of feral cats that are fixed. Why not spend the time and money to get all the pet owners in the community on board with fixing their pets first? I am also concerned about communities implementing TNR because it often means feral cats become classified as "unowned" pets that are cared for by volunteers. There needs to be as much accountability for these cats as pet owners by law are supposed to have (like keeping the animals under control and keeping rabies shots updated). Rarely are there funds and provisions taken to ensure and enforce colony compliance- it is often voluntary.. Too often communities implement TNR without properly examining the problem first and they measure success by counting only part of the actual cat population (colony cats and shelter intake). Many feral cats are not in colonies and don't get counted. How do you really know you are successful?
Yes, if you remove animals from a favorable location, neighbors can move in. But why is removing them slowly any different? Why not make that location unfavorable to begin with(like properly storing trash) and simply remove the cats - if there is no food, why would other cats move back in? And what about these "other" cats? How does managing some cats control their numbers? Please note, rarely are wild animals managed this way - because it is expensive, inefficient and not really a long term solution. For example, if you don't want lots of rats and raccoons hanging around your house - you keep your home and yard clean and garbage sealed up (works well for bears too). If you want fewer deer hanging around your yard, you don't put out extra food for them. Also, rarely if ever is TNR done on a scale large enough to solve the problem. In fact, many folks who practice TNR use words like "stabilize" rather than "reduce" or "eliminate" the population- and they tend to measure success on an individual colony level. Like trap and remove, if you don't catch and fix every cat, the problem can persist. And, as long as the original source of feral cats exists (abandoned or unaltered free-roaming pets) the problem cannot be solved. TNR doesn't sound like a "long term solution to me. It is more like a very expensive and time-consuming way to have more pet cats on public or other people's private property.