Continued from yesterday’s post: What cat problem?


The most limiting factor on a stray populations is resources – mainly food – but it’s nearly impossible to eliminate sources like garbage tips and rubbish bins. With a reliable food supply cats are able to breed efficiently and the population grows. Program have shown that a typical stray cat lives 3- 4 years and will produce 6 litters in her lifetime (with 4 kittens in each litter). A semi-owned cat will be healthier due to a good diet so will be even more able to breed.


Undesexed stray and feral cats fighting for resources cause many of the behaviours that annoy the community; spraying, fighting and litters and litters of kittens. Shelters and rescue groups struggle to find enough homes for cats. For every cat rehomed there are ten more waiting and a dozen more ‘free to good home’ in the newspaper. Getting these unowned cats under control is the key to reducing the ‘cat problem’.


Growing scientific evidence shows that TNR is more effective than culling. Removing adult cats from an area allows whole litters of kittens (of which around 70% would not normally survive) to grow to adulthood. A ‘vacuum’ effect is also created allowing other cats to simply ‘move in’. Populations quickly recover – sometimes in as little as 6mths.

I think of desexed ferals a wall, keeping back the reproducing cats.
Dr Gwenda Williams (Rainbow Group)

TNR also improves the welfare of the cats in colonies as the most debilitating cat diseases (like feline leukaemia and feline AIDS) are transmitted by blood or fluid and desexing reducing mating and fighting.


By providing low cost and early age desexing and TNR we can engage the community and encourage them to take ownership in a postitive manner – rather than us just being seen as ‘the organisations that kill cats’.

Setting up a TNR clinic

Eric Yeoh of Cat Alliance Australia spoke on his experiences working for Noah’s Ark in Singapore and Malaysia; the 2 major costs of a TNR clinic are labour and supplies.

Labour

There is a lot of potential to funnel fresh veterinary graduates through a high volume desexing clinic. Private practices will likely support this kind of program because it’s better to ‘practice’ on strays.


Finding the right volunteers is crucial and this is where engaging the community becomes vital.

Supplies

Sourcing donated materials saves large amounts of money. Vets and human doctors can be good friends who pass on suture materials and other medical suppliers which is near expiry.

The steps of setting up a clinic

• engaging the community




• planning and fundraising




• setting up the facilities




• getting the people/volunteers

Ear tipped cat

Tipping of the ear

Ear-tipping TNR cats is a novel concept in Australia, but has had great success overseas. The advantages of ear-tipping include;

• It discourages people from dropping their own pets off to be desexed through the clinic




• It allays the concerns of vets that you will be taking business from them (the pets we’re treating are street cats)




• It helps identify cats, especially where they might be culled. Ear-tipping is very obvious (better than tattoos that can sometimes fade), the cats don’t need to be caught to identify them and there is less chance that the cat will be desexed twice!




• It raises public awareness; a campaign can be built around the ear tipped cats as it is a mark of difference

As ear-tipping is done while the cat is under a general anesthetic it is not traumatic to the cat.


Tomorrow: TNR – a veterinary perspective