Who Are We?
Feral Cat Friends, Inc. provides Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) assistance for stray and feral cats in Monroe County, Indiana.
Feral Cat Friends Inc. is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization.
Feral Cat Friends, Inc. assists homeowner associations, apartment complexes, and mobile home parks or any individual with their feral and stray cat population through Trap-Neuter-Return. We painlessly trap the cats, transport them to our veterinarians for sterilization and vaccination, and return the cats after recovery to their original home. Caregivers continually monitor each colony and provide food, water, and shelter daily. Any cat whose left ear is not ear tipped, which is the universal sign of a neutered cat, or any cat that requires medical care is trapped and taken to the veterinarian for sterilization and medical care.
Why Do We Do It?
Feral Cat Friends, Inc. began out of a necessity to provide a humane solution to the cat overpopulation problem. Cats were not being effectively addressed in our community and proof was in our shelter euthanasia statistics. In 2003, 24 percent of all animals euthanized at our municipal shelter were feral cats. To make matters worse, the intake of cats was steadily increasing each year.
Progressive cities such as San Francisco, New York, Indianapolis, and Chicago had implemented a successful non-lethal sterilization program called Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) to humanely reduce the feral cat population. We researched these programs and found the cat populations are decreasing where TNR is practiced.
In July, 2004, a small group of individuals decided to purchase 10 traps and assist citizens who were feeding stray or feral cats but did not want them to reproduce. Word spread quickly about our trap-neuter-return program and within months we purchased an additional 35 traps.
To date, we have sterilized and vaccinated over 2000 cats.
Most citizens don't want the cats killed; they simply want the population controlled effectively and humanely. Our wait list is proof there is a demand for TNR and the decrease in intake of feral cats at our shelter is evidence that the Trap-Neuter-Return program is effective.
