The Washington Humane Society is launching an aggressive campaign to help control the city’s feral cat population.
The catch-and-release program, the Cat Neighborhood Partnership Program (or CATNiPP), will spay and neuter feral cats, many of which live in the District’s vacant lots or unkept alleys.
Feral cats are the offspring of stray or abandoned pets. They form colonies where food and shelter are available, but often reproduce to the limit of their food supply. Many end up being euthanized at animal shelters.
The Humane Society, who is doing the program in conjunction with Alley Cat Allies, said it is counting on residents to help identify the cats. They will be trapped, treated and tagged before they are brought back to their outdoor homes.
The program “will provide real and humane solutions for the cat overpopulation problem” in D.C., Executive Director Howard Nelson said.
Humane society officials are putting out traps citywide, based on residential responses. The program is being paid for by the Humane Society and through donations. The goal is to spay and neuter 210 cats during the next week, said spokeswoman Tara deNicholas. The program is ongoing, and there will other periodic drives.
“We’re kind of looking at it like these cats are their neighbors,” deNicholas said.
People looking to report feral cats can call the Humane Society at 202-723-5730 or Alley Cat Allies at 240-482-995.
A similar nonprofit program, Operation Catnip, began its work in Raleigh, N.C., in 1994. It has since expanded its operation to Gainesville, Fla., and Richmond.
By spaying or neutering a cat some nuisance-causing behaviors, such as fighting and yowling, can be reduced.
“This program will work with each neighborhood to improve the lives of all cats in the District and also will enhance the lives for those D.C. residents who live with and around cats,” Nelson said.
