Frequently Asked Questions
The following information has been sourced from Alley Cat Allies, a global advocacy organization and champion for the humane treatment of all cats. To learn more about how work like theirs has impacted Trap-Neuter-Return efforts in towns like Bensalem - and for community cats around the world - please visit their website at www.alleycat.org.
Q: The cats in my neighborhood are wild. I’m afraid they may be carrying a disease or may harm my children or pets. What should I do about them?
A: In cases like this, the best thing to do is often nothing! You are describing feral cats, which are essentially wild animals. While a few people believe that they are a danger to some wildlife, the truth is that that they fill a predatory niche in our ecosystem once occupied by predators no longer in existence in our area. They are important to the health of prey species, as are all predators. Because they are essentially wild, like many truly wild animals, they are often very healthy without the benefit of human care. Feral cats are all around us all the time. We generally do not see them, except by quick glimpses and stolen opportunities. Feral cats, like wild animals, are afraid of people and want nothing to do with us. They will keep their distance and are of no real health concern to you, your children or your pets. Confirmed cases of rabies or other serious illness are exceptionally rare in feral cats likely due to their aversion to people and other animals.
Q: What is a feral cat?
A: A feral cat is a cat who has either never had any contact with people or her contact with people has diminished over time. She is not socialized to people and survives on her own outdoors. Most feral cats are not likely to ever become lap cats or enjoy living indoors. Outdoor cats have existed alongside humans for 10,000 years. They are not a new phenomenon. Feral cats are members of the same species as pet cats - and are therefore protected under state animal anti-cruelty laws. The difference between feral cats and your pet cat is that they have had little or no contact with people, and so they are wary of us, and cannot be adopted. They have a home - outdoors. They live and thrive in every landscape, from the inner city to rural farmland. Since feral cats are not adoptable, they should not be brought to animal pounds and shelters, because there they will likely be killed.
Q: What is the difference between a stray cat and a feral cat?
A: Stray cats are socialized to people and can be adopted into homes, but feral cats are not socialized to people and are happy living outdoors. A stray cat is a cat who has been socialized to people at some point in her life, but has left or lost her indoor home, as well as most human contact and dependence. She can become feral as her contact with humans dwindles, but can under the right circumstances become a pet cat once again. Stray cats that are re-introduced to a home after living outdoors may require a period of time to re-acclimate. They may be frightened and wary after spending time outside away from people. A feral cat is a cat who has either never had any contact with humans or her contact with humans has diminished over time. She is not socialized to people and survives on her own outdoors. Most feral cats are not likely to ever become lap cats or enjoy living indoors.
She can have kittens who can be socialized at an early age and adopted into homes.
Q: I live close to a main road. I’d rather trap the cat and bring it to a shelter where it can be humanely euthanized, then allow it to be injured or killed on the road or subject to some other horror.
A: We applaud your compassion, but think about it from the cat’s perspective. This cat does not know there is any other way of life and is not suited to being indoors. It does not want to sleep by a fire or lounge in a lap. While life outside can be challenging, a feral cat is not a domestic animal and is well
suited to this life. The trauma of being trapped and then placed in a cage is horrific for any wild animal and no less so for a feral cat. Certain death by injection, however kind it may be intended so to avoid any possibility of injury or accidental death on a road, by a predator or due to disease is not likely the choice the feral cat would decide upon. Catch and kill methodologies as a means of feral cat control have been failing for more than thirty years. Once a group of feral cats is trapped and killed, another group forms to replace them. The cycle of killing will be repeated, over and over again, because it is not a sound method to control feral cat populations. Where there is a food source, there are feral cats.
Q: Isn't it unsafe for feral cats to live outside?
A: The outdoors is the natural habitat for feral cats, and empirical evidence indicates they can live long and healthy lives. A 2006 study published in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery found that of 103,643 stray and feral cats examined in spay/neuter clinics in six states from 1993 to 2004, less than 1% of those cats needed to be euthanized due to debilitating conditions, trauma or infectious diseases. In addition, the lifespan of feral cats compares favorably with the lifespan of pet cats. A long-term study (published in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association in 2003) of a Trap-Neuter-Return program noted that 83% of the cats present at the end of the observation period had been there for more than six years - meaning that the cats’ lifespans were comparable to the mean lifespan of 7.1 years for pet cats. Feral cat caregivers can take steps to make feral cats more comfortable, like neutering them, feeding them, and providing shelter. These steps promote the cats’ well-being, improve their relationships with neighbors, and assist the people who live nearby to understand and co-exist with the cats. But most feral cats don’t require intervention beyond TNR.
Q: What happens to feral cats when they are brought to most shelters?
A: Because feral cats are not socialized to people, they are unadoptable as pets. In most shelters and pounds in the U.S., unadoptable animals are killed. In fact, 70% of all cats who enter shelters are killed there, according to the most reliable data available. That number jumps to close to 100% for feral cats. Many shelters now realize that allowing feral cats to enter their doors is a death sentence and that Trap-Neuter-Return is the humane approach for their care. In recognition of this, some pounds and shelters have a “no feral cats accepted” policy, as well as a policy of returning eartipped cats to the place where they were initially trapped. Unfortunately, there are more pounds and shelters that still kill feral cats - some as soon as the cat enters the facility. Feral cats can live full, healthy lives outdoors, but are killed in shelters nonetheless.
Q: Why doesn't removing feral cats from an area work?
A: Animal control’s traditional approach for feral cats - catching and killing - is endless and cruel, and it does not keep an area free of cats. Cats choose to reside in a location for two reasons: there is a food source (intended or not) and shelter. Because of a phenomenon called the vacuum effect, when cats are removed from a location, survivors of the catch and kill effort and new cats who have moved in breed to capacity. Cats have been living outside alongside people for 10,000 years - a fact that cannot be changed.
Q: What can I do to help community cats?
A: Assisting and supporting Bensalem authorities and local nonprofit groups in their efforts to effectively and humanely manage community cat colonies through Trap-Neuter-Return will not only directly benefit the cats living in our Township, but homeowners and businesses, as well.
For additional educational resources, visit the Community Cat Care section of the Alley Cat Allies website.
Q: The cats in my neighborhood are wild. I’m afraid they may be carrying a disease or may harm my children or pets. What should I do about them?
A: In cases like this, the best thing to do is often nothing! You are describing feral cats, which are essentially wild animals. While a few people believe that they are a danger to some wildlife, the truth is that that they fill a predatory niche in our ecosystem once occupied by predators no longer in existence in our area. They are important to the health of prey species, as are all predators. Because they are essentially wild, like many truly wild animals, they are often very healthy without the benefit of human care. Feral cats are all around us all the time. We generally do not see them, except by quick glimpses and stolen opportunities. Feral cats, like wild animals, are afraid of people and want nothing to do with us. They will keep their distance and are of no real health concern to you, your children or your pets. Confirmed cases of rabies or other serious illness are exceptionally rare in feral cats likely due to their aversion to people and other animals.
Q: What is a feral cat?
A: A feral cat is a cat who has either never had any contact with people or her contact with people has diminished over time. She is not socialized to people and survives on her own outdoors. Most feral cats are not likely to ever become lap cats or enjoy living indoors. Outdoor cats have existed alongside humans for 10,000 years. They are not a new phenomenon. Feral cats are members of the same species as pet cats - and are therefore protected under state animal anti-cruelty laws. The difference between feral cats and your pet cat is that they have had little or no contact with people, and so they are wary of us, and cannot be adopted. They have a home - outdoors. They live and thrive in every landscape, from the inner city to rural farmland. Since feral cats are not adoptable, they should not be brought to animal pounds and shelters, because there they will likely be killed.
Q: What is the difference between a stray cat and a feral cat?
A: Stray cats are socialized to people and can be adopted into homes, but feral cats are not socialized to people and are happy living outdoors. A stray cat is a cat who has been socialized to people at some point in her life, but has left or lost her indoor home, as well as most human contact and dependence. She can become feral as her contact with humans dwindles, but can under the right circumstances become a pet cat once again. Stray cats that are re-introduced to a home after living outdoors may require a period of time to re-acclimate. They may be frightened and wary after spending time outside away from people. A feral cat is a cat who has either never had any contact with humans or her contact with humans has diminished over time. She is not socialized to people and survives on her own outdoors. Most feral cats are not likely to ever become lap cats or enjoy living indoors.
She can have kittens who can be socialized at an early age and adopted into homes.
Q: I live close to a main road. I’d rather trap the cat and bring it to a shelter where it can be humanely euthanized, then allow it to be injured or killed on the road or subject to some other horror.
A: We applaud your compassion, but think about it from the cat’s perspective. This cat does not know there is any other way of life and is not suited to being indoors. It does not want to sleep by a fire or lounge in a lap. While life outside can be challenging, a feral cat is not a domestic animal and is well
suited to this life. The trauma of being trapped and then placed in a cage is horrific for any wild animal and no less so for a feral cat. Certain death by injection, however kind it may be intended so to avoid any possibility of injury or accidental death on a road, by a predator or due to disease is not likely the choice the feral cat would decide upon. Catch and kill methodologies as a means of feral cat control have been failing for more than thirty years. Once a group of feral cats is trapped and killed, another group forms to replace them. The cycle of killing will be repeated, over and over again, because it is not a sound method to control feral cat populations. Where there is a food source, there are feral cats.
Q: Isn't it unsafe for feral cats to live outside?
A: The outdoors is the natural habitat for feral cats, and empirical evidence indicates they can live long and healthy lives. A 2006 study published in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery found that of 103,643 stray and feral cats examined in spay/neuter clinics in six states from 1993 to 2004, less than 1% of those cats needed to be euthanized due to debilitating conditions, trauma or infectious diseases. In addition, the lifespan of feral cats compares favorably with the lifespan of pet cats. A long-term study (published in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association in 2003) of a Trap-Neuter-Return program noted that 83% of the cats present at the end of the observation period had been there for more than six years - meaning that the cats’ lifespans were comparable to the mean lifespan of 7.1 years for pet cats. Feral cat caregivers can take steps to make feral cats more comfortable, like neutering them, feeding them, and providing shelter. These steps promote the cats’ well-being, improve their relationships with neighbors, and assist the people who live nearby to understand and co-exist with the cats. But most feral cats don’t require intervention beyond TNR.
Q: What happens to feral cats when they are brought to most shelters?
A: Because feral cats are not socialized to people, they are unadoptable as pets. In most shelters and pounds in the U.S., unadoptable animals are killed. In fact, 70% of all cats who enter shelters are killed there, according to the most reliable data available. That number jumps to close to 100% for feral cats. Many shelters now realize that allowing feral cats to enter their doors is a death sentence and that Trap-Neuter-Return is the humane approach for their care. In recognition of this, some pounds and shelters have a “no feral cats accepted” policy, as well as a policy of returning eartipped cats to the place where they were initially trapped. Unfortunately, there are more pounds and shelters that still kill feral cats - some as soon as the cat enters the facility. Feral cats can live full, healthy lives outdoors, but are killed in shelters nonetheless.
Q: Why doesn't removing feral cats from an area work?
A: Animal control’s traditional approach for feral cats - catching and killing - is endless and cruel, and it does not keep an area free of cats. Cats choose to reside in a location for two reasons: there is a food source (intended or not) and shelter. Because of a phenomenon called the vacuum effect, when cats are removed from a location, survivors of the catch and kill effort and new cats who have moved in breed to capacity. Cats have been living outside alongside people for 10,000 years - a fact that cannot be changed.
Q: What can I do to help community cats?
A: Assisting and supporting Bensalem authorities and local nonprofit groups in their efforts to effectively and humanely manage community cat colonies through Trap-Neuter-Return will not only directly benefit the cats living in our Township, but homeowners and businesses, as well.
For additional educational resources, visit the Community Cat Care section of the Alley Cat Allies website.