“Throughout the country this year, forty million feral kittens will be born, but twenty million will die” (Manning)

“An estimated 70 million feral cats—cats who have never had contact with humans and who are the offspring of abandoned, unaltered tame cats—are roaming the parks, parking lots, back yards, and back streets of America” (PETA).

Each year, over ten million animals are turned into the animal shelter in Merced County.

Table of Contents  Introduction  What is a Feral Cat?  Why Should I Care?  A Problem in Merced County  Body  A Solution  The Advantages  Why is it the Best Solution?  How to Get it Started  Conclusion  Why I Chose This Topic  Works Cited

What is a Feral Cat?  It is a cat that is not domesticated or no longer domesticated and has converted to being wild  There are three factors that determine how wild a cat is:  Age – Young kittens are easily domesticated  Generation  Amount of human contact

Why Should I Care?  Millions of cats are being taken in to shelters  Chances of adoption are slim  Depends on a cat’s socialization level  Only option is euthanasia

A Growing Problem  Millions of feral cats will be born this year, but several will die.  Feral cats are reproducing at astronomical rates, and the result is overpopulation, due to the lack of concern and irresponsible human attitudes.  Irresponsible pet owners  Abandonment  Unaltered pets  Lack of motivation from citizens – Sharon Lohman’s story, Merced’s policy

A Solution: TNR  It traps feral cats, neuters, then returns them to the outdoors  A scientifically proven method  Improves lives of feral cats  Decreases size of colonies  It worked for Stanislaus County  The Trap-Neuter-Return program should be implemented because it helps cats in a humane way without taking them away from their natural environment

The Advantages of TNR  Helps diminish and stabilize feral cat populations  Eliminates new litters  Behavior of feral cats are reduced

The Advantages of TNR  Helps feral cats lead healthier lives  Relieves the constant struggle of reproducing  Eliminates the chances of cats developing mammary or testicular tumors  Vaccinated by veterinarians

The Advantages of TNR  Ends wasteful spending  Trap and euthanasia method does not work  Lohr, Cox, and Lepczyk study showed that TNR is less cost-effective

Why is TNR the Best Solution?  Most effective and humane solution  Returns cats to their chosen environment  Some might say…  It is inhumane to release an animal back into the wild

The First Step…  Go to:  City Council  Board of Supervisors  Get the media involved  Get citizens aware of the issue  Get volunteers

Why Did I Choose This Topic?  I personally have taken strays into my home and neutered/spayed  I adopted them and to this day they are still my pets

We Can Make a Difference  Ignoring the situation leads to the uncontrolled feral cat population  Investing in this program will control the feral cat population and improve the health of many cats

Works Cited  Alley Cat Allies. "Why Trap-Neuter-Return Feral Cats: The Case for TNR." Why Trap- Neuter-Return Feral Cats? The Case for TNR. n.d. Web. 16 Apr  "Feral Cats: Trapping Is the Kindest Solution." PETA. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr  Giwargis, Ramona. "Merced Sun-Star." MERCED COUNTY: Animal Experts Mull Options for Merced County's Feral Cat Problem. N.p., 21 Mar Web. 16 Apr  Lohman, Sharon. Personal interview. 25 April  Lohr, A Cheryl, Linda J. Cox, and Christopher A. Lepczyk. “Costs and Benefits of Trap-Neuter-Release and Euthanasia for Removal of Urban Cats in Oahu, Hawaii” Web. 26 April  "What Is TNR?" Neighborhood Cats: The Feral Cat Experts. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr