Seeing homeless cats on the streets of Northern Arizona? Did your neighbors lose their house and their pet kitty was left in the driveway? Want to help? National animal welfare organization Best Friends Animal Society is holding a “boot camp” on humane methods to control populations of – and care for– free-roaming cats.
This successful method, known as “Trap-Neuter-Return” or “TNR” is being used by a growing number of communities across the country. The free TNR Boot Camp will be held 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, July 23 at McCoy Motors, 361 N. Switzer Canyon in Flagstaff.
The event is being sponsored by several Flagstaff businesses including Olsen’s Grain, Westside Veterinary Clinic, Main Street Strays, Caring for Community Cats, Paw Placement, The ARK Cat Sanctuary and Coconino Humane Association.
Shelly Kotter, coordinator for Best Friends’ cat initiative will conduct the training camp which is free of charge. “We were asked to come to Flagstaff based on the success of our boot camps in other communities. To have so many people in Flagstaff care about what happens to these homeless kitties, these ‘foreclosure pets,’ is very heartwarming,” Kotter said.
Linda Salazar, director of Flagstaff-based group Main Street Strays, Caring for Community Cats said, “We asked Best Friends Animal Society to become involved because Flagstaff has a feral cat population that only a small number of people are caring for in a humane way. Funding has been cut for the spaying and neutering of feral cats, which will have an adverse effect by causing an increase in their population. We are working to find ways to make the public aware that a humane approach is not only the most cost effective, but also the best for the community and the cats.”
Kotter added, “It makes no sense economically to trap and kill cats; it costs about twice as much to go that route. There is a life-saving alternative that stops the breeding and keeps cats out of the shelters.”
Attendees will learn about trap/neuter/return (TNR) techniques, nuisance control, working with neighbors, animal control, and care and management of a cat colony. For more information or to register for the workshop contact Linda Salazar at HYPERLINK “mailto:howling@aspect1.net” howling@aspect1.net or (928) 774-5998.
###
About Best Friends Animal Society “http://www.bestfriends.org/” Best Friends Animal Society is a nonprofit organization building no-kill programs and partnerships that will bring about a day when there are No More Homeless Pets. The society’s leading initiatives in animal care and community programs are coordinated from its Kanab, Utah, headquarters, the country’s largest no-kill sanctuary. This work is made possible by the personal and financial support of a grassroots network of supporters and community partners across the nation.
