Los Angeles has become a haven for feral cats, often called 'community cats,' that experts say need ample resources in order to curb the population growth.
It s all paws on deck to get these cats and kittens adopted • Long Beach Post News lbpost.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from lbpost.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
ANIMAL WATCH-When Los Angeles General Manager Brenda Barnette received approval by the Los Angeles City Council for an estimated $60M Citywide Feral Cat-TNR Program in November 2020,
she did not publicize that the new ordinance would also require pet owners with more than three (up to five) indoor cats to pay a registration fee for their extra pets.
Under that program, the City is now obligated by law to provide annual spays/neuters for 20,000 unowned/stray/feral cats living in the streets of Los Angeles, which will be done primarily by volunteer TNR (trap/neuter/release) caregivers. All of this will be paid with City money either tax dollars or donations.
To many animal welfare advocates, these cats are vulnerable they live a scant few
years, falling victim to wild predators, speeding cars, or rat poison they ingest. But to others, outdoor cats are opportunistic predators that hunt not only birds an estimated 1.3 billion to 4 billion but also lizards and small rodents.
Everyone agrees that cats shouldn’t be roaming outdoors. The question is how to reduce that population in a humane way.
As most animal welfare experts recommend, Los Angeles wants to embrace the practice of trap-neuter-return (known as TNR). When the cats are neutered or spayed, an ear tip is notched. Volunteers and rescue groups mostly carry this out and also feed colonies of cats.
Alley Cat Allies Applauds Los Angeles Vote for Cats and TNR
News provided by
Share this article
Share this article
LOS ANGELES, Dec. 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ Alley Cat Allies President and Founder Becky Robinson praised the unanimous vote by the Los Angeles City Council in favor of funding their new Citywide Cat Program for Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR). The Council s vote clears the way for the city to use municipal funds to operate the Citywide Cat Program, which will spay and neuter 20,000 cats per year while also providing ongoing funding for pet cats. We extend huge thanks to the City of Los Angeles and City Council for their vision, leadership and perseverance through years of bureaucratic red tape to do the right thing for people and cats in L.A. Robinson said. The good news is that the Citywide Cat Program is smart, effective and humane cat population management. In the years to come, L.A. will be a shining model of the many benefits of non-lethal cat population managemen