Cleveland Residents Can Help Stray Cats for $10

City of Cleveland Offers Subsidy to City Residents and Rescue Groups for Sterilizing Free Roaming Cats in Cleveland through the Cleveland APL’s Trap-Neuter-Return Program When City of Cleveland Kennel Division phones ring, chances are good it’s a complaint about an outdoor cat from an exasperated resident. In response, the City of Cleveland Public Safety Department and the Cleveland Animal Protection League (APL) are happy to announce the renewal of a groundbreaking partnership that effectively serves both residents and animals. The City has budgeted $40,000 that will assist residents and concerned citizens with the cost of sterilizing (or “fixing”) free-roaming cats in Cleveland through the APL’s Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program, leaving only a $10 co-pay per cat for program participants.

Through the TNR program, participants humanely trap free-roaming cats and transport them to the APL, where they are evaluated, vaccinated, and sterilized. Cats that have undergone the procedure are ear-tipped for identification – meaning a small portion of the left ear is painlessly removed. Participants then return cats to their familiar habitats and monitor their care.

“This program, modeled after other successful programs throughout the United States, helps reduce the overpopulation of stray and unwanted cats and provides a much needed pet-friendly service to the residents of our community,” stated Public Safety Director Martin Flask.

“There are thousands of homeless outdoor cats roaming the streets of our community and they’re breeding as we speak,” said Sharon Harvey, Cleveland Animal Protective League Executive Director. “Research has shown that Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) is the most effective way of controlling and ultimately ending stray cat overpopulation.”

“We’re delighted that the City of Cleveland recognizes that preventing the births of unwanted cats is not only more humane, but also more cost-efficient, than trapping and euthanizing them after they’re born,” continued Harvey. “This public–private partnership is an enlightened national model for reversing the tragic suffering of cats on the streets while also serving the interests of constituents.”

Cleveland City Council members report that complaints about cats are more frequent than those for other well-recognized problems such as potholes or streetlights. The APL and the City point to studies that show that sterilizing felines in feral colonies will first stabilize the number of resident cats and then lead to a decline through attrition. Nuisance behaviors associated with breeding, such as the yowling of females or the spraying of toms, are virtually eliminated. Many people don’t realize that un-spayed cats can go into heat at just 4 months of age and give birth to three litters each year.

To participate or learn more about the Cleveland APL’s TNR program, call Marta Anderson, Cleveland APL Spay/Neuter Services Supervisor, at 216-377-1624 or visit www.clevelandapl.org/tnr.htm.