It all started when we noticed mice in the house. They were the cute kind, so it wasn’t too bad at first. But it quickly became a problem. I try to avoid using poison or other toxic materials in my home, so I turned to Mother Nature for help by enlisting the neighborhood feral cats.
Since we no longer had dogs, I began feeding the cats near the house, hoping they would also take care of the mice. They did their duty well. In fact, one time, they left a dead mouse on the doormat. How thoughtful!
Where one problem was solved, another was created. In March 2024, we got our first litter of kittens. The mother cat gave birth in the yard, and later that day, a terrible rainstorm hit, lasting all day. The mother cat came onto the porch, seemingly begging us for help. We found three newborn kittens in the yard. She allowed us to pick them up and bring them onto the porch. They were soaked and barely moving.
We got a heating pad and some towels, warmed them up, and went to bed, expecting them to be gone by morning. To our surprise, they were still there, along with their mother. She stayed with them on the porch for a couple of days before finally moving them to a large vase where we store extension cords. Genius!
Long story short, we kept one of the kittens but quickly realized we would end up with many more if we didn’t get the cats fixed. There are dozens of cats in this neighborhood, all coming to our food bowl. So, which ones do we take care of, and which do we leave on their own?
That’s when a friend and member of the Downtown East Social Ride pointed me to the feral cat program. The Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program is a partnership between the Companion Animal Alliance (CAA) and Rescue Me Animal Welfare. CAA covers the cost of spaying and neutering up to 80 feral cats each month, with the LSU Vet School students performing the procedures.
Rescue Me Animal Welfare handles the groundwork. The woman coordinating all the efforts is Ashleigh Soniat. Twice a month, she helps organize trappers and individuals to fill the open slots. Every spot is valuable, so no-shows come at a higher cost than most people realize.
Currently, Ashleigh has a waiting list of 73 people. The number of cats associated with those people is triple or quadruple that, because, as you know, it takes more than one cat to create a litter of kittens.
So far, I’ve managed to get six cats in my neighborhood fixed. Every time I’ve shown up for my appointment with a cat, which is why Ashleigh continues to give me a spot when she has an opening—though only one at a time. Right now, there are about five more cats near my house that need to be fixed.
You might be asking yourself, do they really “need” to be fixed? I had the same thought. Cats seem perfectly fine living a happy feral life, so why interfere? Well, let’s start with the environmental impact. Remember my mouse problem? While they are great for killing mice, they also kill other small animals.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, domestic cats are “one of the most prolific and widespread invasive species, found on every continent except Antarctica, and on many remote islands and islets.” Free-range or feral cats are “a major, if not the greatest, source of mortality to native birds.” I’ve witnessed several bird deaths in my yard, which is one of the heartbreaking side effects of keeping these cats around but not bringing them indoors.
How many birds are we talking about? Apparently, they did the math. The assumption is that there are 30 million feral cats in the U.S. each year. If each feral cat kills 8 birds a year, and each bird is valued at $30, the economic impact of cats on birds amounts to $17 billion annually!
Disease is another issue with feral cats. They are “the most common vectors of rabies in domestic animals.” Another benefit of the TNR program is that the cats are vaccinated, reducing this risk.
Though TNR programs aren’t a complete solution to the cat/environment problem, they have made a difference. The Baton Rouge-based program has been in operation since 2015, and since its founding, the CAA “has seen a drastic decrease in our cat intake numbers and a significant increase in our feline life-release rate. Thanks to this program, CAA’s save-rate for cats is over 90%.”
However, TNR programs are not without criticism. Some say it’s inhumane to release cats back into the environment after being spayed or neutered, while others argue it’s ineffective at controlling the feral cat population. Some even believe that euthanizing the cats is the only real solution due to the environmental damage they cause.
Personally, I believe this program has been the right solution for my neighborhood. The cats that have been altered look healthier and fight much less. Although I’ve seen them kill birds and small critters, it doesn’t seem to be a substantial issue. In fact, I’ve noticed more hummingbirds, butterflies, and other pollinators in my yard this year than in previous years. If the cats were fully disrupting the ecosystem, I doubt I’d see such diversity.
At the end of the day, the TNR program won’t solve the larger problem, but it’s helping with the current one. For that, I believe it deserves our support.
Here are some ways you can support this program:
Live traps: These traps are essential for catching cats quickly to prevent colony growth. If you’d like to purchase one, send it to:
Rescue Me Animal Welfare
4134 Poydras Bayou
Port Allen, LA 70767
Newspaper and old towels: Bring these to any Downtown East Social Ride, and I’ll ensure they get to the shelter. Towels help calm the cats after surgery, and newspaper is used to line the cages.
Cat food: Wet or dry food is appreciated. You can bring it to the ride or mail it to the same address as the traps. Setting up a recurring delivery from your favorite retailer would be a huge help.
If you don’t have money but do have time, they need volunteers to help trap cats. It’s easy—just requires patience.
If you’d like to help, send an email to rescue.me.mail@gmail.com.
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