Killing cats isn’t the answer

THERE’S YET MORE EVIDENCE THAT TARGETED TNR IS THE WAY TO GO

Spay or neuter enough free-roaming, outdoor cats in a community and their numbers will not only stop going up, they’ll actually decrease over time. It’s so obviously true that it hardly needs repeating. But because free-roaming cats who end up in shelters are killed at an alarming rate, we’re not going to stop repeating it until more of those cats are being saved.

Now there’s even more evidence for trap-neuter-return (TNR), in a recently published research paper that sheds new light on the subject. The article, “A Long-Term Lens: Cumulative Impacts of Free-Roaming Cat Management Strategy and Intensity on Preventable Cat Mortalities,” was co-authored by a diverse team of experts in animal welfare, wildlife conservation and veterinary medicine, and published in the peer-reviewed journal Frontiers in Veterinary Science.

The study authors used sophisticated computer modeling to compare different approaches for managing community cats. The approaches they studied were TNR, removing cats altogether, and taking no action at all. They also looked at the intensity, or rate of frequency, that cats were served by TNR or removed from a given site.

Their study found that, over a 10-year period, free-roaming cat populations managed by a high-intensity TNR program experienced more than 30 times fewer preventable cat deaths than taking no action, while reducing their numbers over time. “High intensity” means at least 75% of the “target population” is sterilized every six months. Sounds like a lot of work — and it is. But it’s already being done all across the country.

In fact, such high-intensity, targeted TNR has been an integral part of Best Friends’ community cat programs (CCPs) for years now. By combining this approach with shelter-based return-to-field programs, our three-year CCPs produce significant reductions in shelter intake and deaths. Plus, we’ve observed an average reduction of nearly 20% in the number of kittens entering shelters. That’s worth celebrating.

The study also found that culling (waiting until populations rebound before conducting a removal effort) is likely to be ineffective for population management regardless of intensity. The growing body of evidence, then, supports what we’ve always believed: Killing isn’t the answer. Smart spay/neuter really does make a difference in saving cats’ lives.

You can help cats in your community. Find out how: bestfriends.org/straycats

The study authors used sophisticated computer modeling to compare different approaches for managing community cats.