1. TNR

• Ian MacFarlaine VN

Neutering Manager, Cats Protection

2. Good morning. Has anyone here been abducted by aliens? 3. It happened at night 4. It happened at night 5. There were bright lights 6. There were bright lights 7. A mysterious craft appeared 8.

A mysterious craft appeared

9. The mother ship contained a smaller craft 10. The mother ship contained a smaller craft 11. Aliens got out of it 12. Aliens got out of it 13. A hatchway opened 14. A hatchway opened 15. We were drawn by a strange force 16. We were drawn by a strange force 17. The door closed behind us and they took us back to the mother ship 18. The door closed behind us and they took us back to the mother ship 19. They took us to a weird lab 20. They took us to a weird lab 21. Where we blacked out and were probed 22. Where we blacked outand were probed 23. Then they took us back to where we were abducted from 24. Then they took us back to where we were abducted from 25. Were left with a weird mark 26. We were left with a weird mark 27. About CP :

We have a stand outside come and see us!

And now some learning!

28. Why TNR?

Moral argument

More effective

Kinder to people

Cheaper than sheltering

Good PR

Rewarding

29. Good TNR:

Involves the community

Neuters enough cats to stabilise

Legal, supported by authorities / vets

Accepts it cannot solve all cat prob-lems but can help distinct groups of cats in a district

Considers education and the neutering of owned cats

Looks at environmental aspects such as waste disposal

Takes a nucleus/district approach

30. Bad TNR:

A low cat survival rate

Is ineffective because neutering of colonies is not completed

Is ill equipped

Does not run alongside education or neutering of pets, so pets repopulate colonies

Excludes locals leading to suspicion and poor compliance

Excludes local vets, leading to suspicion and no continuation.

31. Problems

Public Health argument

Legalities of capture, return to site, ear tipping

Required to hold before neuter

Veterinary skills lapsed

Equipment inadequate

Trapping skills poor

Feeder collaboration poor

Exponential passive food sources

32. How many cats?

Colonies mostly 1 male per 2 females

Females related, males within the colony will be a few older toms then lots of males below 1 year

X 1.4

33. 10 cat colony,wide ranging male# 1 6 cats 13 cats,2 males 6 cats, no male seen Fishing depository4 cats Fishing maintenancehuts, 7 cats,Wide ranging male #2 1 cat, territorial queen 5 cats ,1 wide ranging queen 1 male 2 cats , 3 cats.1wide ranging queen , Colony of 13 cats, no male seen Wide ranging male # 1 Total cats 76;Caught72;uncaught 3 males, 1 female Praia da Vagueira, Portugal, W/B 9 thNov 2008 Wide ranging male number 2 34. Ten Tips 35. Ten Tips 36. Ten Tips 37. Ten Tips 38. 1: Be prepared!

Intelligence Recce the site

Know your patch

Look for the obvious

Ask around

Talk to other NGOs

Census

Equipment

39. 2. Neuter before they reproduce

Get cats through the TNR process quickly,

Clear the colony quickly and faster than cats can breed

Focus on one or two colonies and get the job done

Focus on a district

Define the role of your organisation and the area it covers

40. 2. Neuter before they reproduce 41. What happened next? 42. What happened next? No, not this! 43. 3. Ladies First 44. Neuter the females first Lets imagine each female produces 3 kittens So, after 3 months. 45. Males first? 46. Males first? Result: 47. Females first? 48. Females first: Result 49. Females first: Result Well show you how to trap girls first, in a minute 50. 4: Work with feeders Food-up 24-36 hrs 51. 5: Return to site whenever possible dont keep them! 52. 6: Recruit local vets as allies 53. 6: Recruit local vets as allies

Involve them in your charity

Give them a voice

Keep them informed

Establish links with Colleges / Orders / Registers

Establish links with local veterinary schools

Work with your local practitioners to gain experience with surgery, your animals are a good opportunity to help them develop their skills

54. 7: Acclimatise

Trap-shyness - not unique to cats

Causes:

- Foreign object

- Something about this trap in particular (smell etc)

- Cats have seen previous capture

Often previous poor trapping

Kicks-in after 4 thactivation of a trap

55. 7: Acclimatise 56. 8: Use a manual trap 57. 58. 59. 60. 8: Use a manual trap

Trap only what you need

Prioritise

No repeat trappings

Doesnt require pedal activation

More than one cat: reduce number of closings

No mechanism to hurt cat

Quick clearance (record being 27 minutes for 13 cats)

(Cats which enter a trap together will be safe to remain together. Can easily split)

61. 62. 63. 8: Use a manual trap 64. 8: Use a manual trap 65. 9: Minimise stress 66. Earphones . 67. 10: Early neuter, pregnant spay, and be willing to PTS 68. Oh go on, one more tip, and an important one ! 69. A Very Important Tip ! 70. And if the law doesnt allow you to do it like this. get it changed ! A Very Important Tip ! 71. life begins at tortie.. Acknowledgements to Harry Eckman, Jenny Stavisky & APAFF for some of the photos.