Neighbor Concerns

Thank you for visiting the Wisconsin Humane Society’s website for more information about feral cats in your neighborhood. If someone is already caring for cats in your area, you may have questions or concerns about Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR). Below are some questions that neighbors frequently ask.

What is Trap-Neuter-Return?
Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) is a method of humanely controlling feral cat populations. Where TNR programs have become community-wide and institutionalized across the country, the impact has been considerable. From New York City to San Diego, cities across the nation have successfully implemented TNR programs.

TNR involves several steps. First, caregivers humanely trap the cats. The cats are then sterilized and vaccinated and receive an ear-tip (a small slit that identifies the cat as having been sterilized). Socialized, adoptable cats are found homes and cats who are truly feral are returned to their original location where they are fed, sheltered and continuously monitored by a caregiver.

What are the other options for dealing with feral cat populations?
Feral cat populations can be dealt with in one of four ways: trap and kill, whereby cats are caught and euthanized; trap and remove, whereby cats are trapped and relocated; trap and return (TNR); and doing nothing or withholding food from the cats. Both trap and kill and trap and remove methods have been proven ineffective in reducing cats in a given area. When cats are removed from an area, other cats move in quickly and breed prolifically, quickly forming a new (and sometimes larger) colony. This “vacuum effect” is well documented. Withholding food is inhumane and nearly impossible, as dumpsters, rodents, and other food sources are always available. In addition, trapping and killing cats is expensive and taxpayers foot the bill. If ignored, cat populations continued to multiply. Of the options available, TNR is the most viable and effective.

What are the advantages of Trap-Neuter-Return?
There are many advantages of Trap-Neuter-Return. Besides ending the breeding of more unwanted cats, it also reduces colony size without creating a vacuum effect that produces more feral cats. Additionally, TNR stops many nuisance cat behaviors like spraying, yowling and fighting. Through TNR, cats are vaccinated and caregivers continue to monitor the population so that new cats are sterilized and unhealthy cats are removed from the colony.

Won’t the cats spread disease?
Feral cats generally carry disease at the same rate as other felines. TNR helps to control the spread of disease in free-roaming cat populations. Through TNR, cats are immunized against rabies. Additionally, the health of the colony is continuously monitored by caregivers.

What is the Wisconsin Humane Society’s Community Cat Caregivers Program?
The Wisconsin Humane Society offers a TNR program called Community Cat Caregivers. The program provides sterilization and vaccination services to feral cats for a nominal fee.

Isn’t this against city ordinance?
The City of Milwaukee passed legislation that permits caregivers to participate in Trap-Neuter-Return through a program like the Wisconsin Humane Society’s. In order to participate in the Wisconsin Humane Society’s program, caregivers are required to attend an orientation in order to learn how to properly care for cats with as minimal disruption to their neighborhood as possible.

I like the birds in my neighborhood. Won’t the cats prey upon the birds?
The Wisconsin Humane Society boasts the state’s largest wildlife rehabilitation center in terms of the number of animals served. Birds’ lives are important to us, as well. Cats do instinctually prey upon birds, but research indicates that habitat destruction is the main cause of a decline in the songbird population. Through a managed colony approach, it is our hope that the number of free-roaming cats will decrease, leading to fewer outdoor cats to predate upon the songbird population. The Wisconsin Humane Society will be collecting data to monitor the impact that cats in our program have on wildlife.

My neighbor’s feral cats are digging in my flower bed. How can I get them to stop?
For simple solutions to this and other common cat behaviors, click here.

I have additional questions. What should I do?
Talk to your neighbor that is participating in our program to discuss your concerns. If you have further questions, feel free to contact us at (414) 431-6187 or feral@wihumane.org.