Chatham County and Savannah have been buzzing lately with reports of a government endorsed attempt at elimination of outdoor cats, an outdoor cat contracts Rabies and suddenly is feral from a managed colony to a state agency showing interest not in the truth but what one person alleges.
It is time to put aside what was said in the past and work together to develop a set of ordinances that humanely address the cat overpopulation by setting the following goals: Spay/Neuter and Vaccinate free-roaming cats, manage the colonies through registration with a sponsor, track progress with semi-annual reports to the Chatham County. This will result in less intakes at NGO animal rescues and shelters and reduce intake/euthanasia at the Animal Control Facility. Cats in managed colonies are healthier, monitored for injuries that are addressed and the likelihood of Rabies contraction is minimal because cats are vaccinated and receive updated vaccinations, and provided sustenance on a daily basis.
For the last 20 or so years, the practice of Trap/Kill has been used to address problem areas in our County. It's been ineffective and only providing a very short-term fix. At a cost of approximately $150 to trap and kill each cat, the costs to the County's coffers add up quickly. With TNR used, $150 could fix several cats thus resulting in a long term solution to reproduction which is almost constantly adding to the size of the colony.
Working together seems to be answer - there is no way any one group can develop an ordinance that addresses this problem and I encourage all involved agencies, Commissioners and individuals to do some research. Don't believe everything you hear - check it out. Maybe even start with Alley Cat Allies (alleycat.org).
