Feral Cat Program
Our Trap-Neuter-Return committee has been developing a system to spay and neuter community cats with support from the City of Tuscaloosa , the City of Northport, and Tuscaloosa County.
To date, TSNIP has supported over 175 colonies in the Tuscaloosa, Northport, and Tuscaloosa County areas with over 1,200 cats total. Our first colony was established at the Battle-Friedman House in downtown Tuscaloosa.
Why Trap-Neuter-Return?
Removing and euthanizing cats is expensive, and doesn't solve the problem long-term. New cats will move into areas providing access to food and water sources and they quickly expand their populations. Fortunately, cats are territorial. Spaying and neutering cats and returning them to their colony reduces the cat population over time. The "fixed" cats use the resources and maintain their territory, thereby keeping new cats out. Instead of removing cats from the same location several times a year, the cats are fixed once and can keep that neighborhood stable for years. This method is known as TNR, or Trap-Neuter-Return.
Why ear-tip?
During the spay or neuter procedure, TNR cats receive a rabies vaccine and the tip of one ear is trimmed flat. This lets us know at a glance which cats in a colony have been spayed or neutered. You can look for a flat left ear-tip on feral cats as an indicator for whether a feral cat may already be fixed.
If you see would like to help with trapping cats or would like to donate, please contact us at (205) 349-8111 or TSNIPhelps@gmail.com.
To date, TSNIP has supported over 175 colonies in the Tuscaloosa, Northport, and Tuscaloosa County areas with over 1,200 cats total. Our first colony was established at the Battle-Friedman House in downtown Tuscaloosa.
Why Trap-Neuter-Return?
Removing and euthanizing cats is expensive, and doesn't solve the problem long-term. New cats will move into areas providing access to food and water sources and they quickly expand their populations. Fortunately, cats are territorial. Spaying and neutering cats and returning them to their colony reduces the cat population over time. The "fixed" cats use the resources and maintain their territory, thereby keeping new cats out. Instead of removing cats from the same location several times a year, the cats are fixed once and can keep that neighborhood stable for years. This method is known as TNR, or Trap-Neuter-Return.
Why ear-tip?
During the spay or neuter procedure, TNR cats receive a rabies vaccine and the tip of one ear is trimmed flat. This lets us know at a glance which cats in a colony have been spayed or neutered. You can look for a flat left ear-tip on feral cats as an indicator for whether a feral cat may already be fixed.
If you see would like to help with trapping cats or would like to donate, please contact us at (205) 349-8111 or TSNIPhelps@gmail.com.
Interested in what it takes to trap feral cats? Watch this video filmed by the Best Friends Animal Society.