Frequently Asked Questions - Trap-Neuter-Return-Manage (TNRM)
Trap-Neuter-Return-Manage (TNRM) is a method being promoted as a humane alternative to euthanasia for managing and reducing community cat populations. TNRM relies on sterilisation of the cats so that they don't breed.
TNRM begins with the trapping of community cats using humane traps. The captured cats are taken to a veterinary clinic where they are sterilised. The sterilised cats are marked so that they can be easily identified, usually by cropping the pointed end of the ear so that it has a square appearance (known as ear tipping) or cutting a notch at the tip or on the side of the ear.
After the cat has recovered from surgery, it is subsequently released to the site of capture.The cats are then managed back in their original environment.
A caregiver then provides regular food and monitors the colony over time. With TNRM, the cats’ reproductive capacity is eliminated, leading to a gradual decline in their numbers, and nuisance behavior is substantially reduced.
A community cat is commonly known as a stray cat, but we think the word ‘community’ better describes these cats. Calling them stray cats gives one the impression that these cats don’t have a home and that they wander around -- but they do actually have a home, which is the environment they live in! Some of these community cats have been residents in the environment for much longer than some of the residents.
Community cats are a part of the community too!
Feeding does not lure cats into the area -- food and territory are not the same. A cat may live in one area and eat in another.
Also, there are cats everywhere -- these cats were already in the community in all likelihood before someone started feeding them. Imagine this -- is it more likely that someone stood outside every day with a plate of food hoping a cat would show up one day, or that the feeder saw a cat or cats and started feeding them? It’s not fun to feed -- to do it properly takes a lot of time and commitment. Most feeders do so out of a sense of compassion and would be happy to stop if there were no cats that were hungry and waiting for them.
No it is not. Feeding cats is perfectly legal. Littering is however illegal. Please make sure that you feed properly and that the area is cleaned up after you are done with the feeding. For more information, write to us at info@catwelfare.org, including your name and address and we can send you a brochure on responsible feeding. If you feel you have been harassed during a feeding session, do drop us an email; or if it’s an urgent case, call the police.
You can help to start a group in your area, or join an existing group if there is one. Do drop us an email at info@catwelfare.org and we’ll try and put you in touch with other volunteers in the area if there are any.
It is not enough to just feed and sterilise the cats, important as that may be, as we need to have people manage the cats in the area, so that cats and people can happily co-exist. With a good management programme in place, complaints should be settled, or not even arise, so that the cats are safe where they are.
