Community Cat Action Team of Marathon County

Community Cat Action Team (CCAT) is a group of concerned community members working to substantially and humanely reduce the number of community cats, sometimes called feral cats, and their associated costs. The current practice of trapping and housing community cats is costly and has not reduced population.

The TNR Model

The Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) Model is a standard protocol endorsed by the ASPCA and numerous other animal care organizations and is used in hundreds of communities across the country to control free-roaming cat populations.

How TNR Works

  • Current caregivers are trained to humanely trap feral cats.
  • The cats are provided with a rabies vaccination, spay or neuter surgery and post-surgical care. The tip of the left ear is clipped for future visual identification.
  • The cats are returned to their home territory and allowed to live out their lives with caregivers who feed, shelter and facilitate any additional needs including neighborhood concerns.

Advantages

  • The breeding cycle is interrupted, resulting in a decrease in feline population over time through natural attrition.
  • Euthanasia and disposal rates are reduced, resulting in cost savings.
  • Fixed cats who are returned to their location discourage other cats from moving in.
  • Neutering cats significantly reduces their fighting, territory marking and other mating-related behaviors, resulting in decreased nuisance calls to law enforcement and city officials.
  • TNR is a way of managing community cat populations without the public relations difficulties related to a trap/kill program.
  • Free-roaming community cats who are part of the TNR program would receive at least one rabies vaccination (rather than none, as they currently do) and TNR cats in organized colonies are fed and cared for, reducing incidence of disease.

Other Resources

Our TNR Process

If you're feeding community cats and want to know how to trap them for low-cost spay/neuter and vaccination, please follow our instructions below. We will lend you a trap and walk you through the entire process. You will not need to (and shouldn't) handle the cats outside the trap at any point in the process. We can help you with one or two cats or an entire colony.

  1. Contact Terry Carrol at 715-348-9162 or via email CCAT at wausauccat@gmail.com
  2. Terry will get approval for you to schedule your appointments with The Fix Is In. You need this approval to schedule an appointment.
  3. Call The Fix Is In at 715-550-SPAY(7729) to schedule your appointment. Let them know you you have approval from Terry.
  4. Once your appointment is scheduled, schedule a time with Terry to pick up a trap.

TRAP: How to Use the Traps

The cat(s) need to be trapped the night before your appointment and not any earlier. It is easier to trap if the cats are on a feeding schedule. We will provide a metal live trap to aid you in taking a community cat to your appointment. The traps that we use are designed to make it easy to slip some food in the night after surgery. Again, you will not need to (and shouldn't) handle the cats outside the trap at any point in the process.

More detailed instructions on how to trap will be given after appointments are made and arrangements for trap pickup are finalized. The trap will need to be returned within one week of your appointment with The Fix Is In.

Neuter/Spay: Appointment Details

You must bring the trapped cats to your appointment in a live trap. The day of their appointment they receive their surgery, and rabies vaccinations. A small portion of their left ear is removed while they are asleep to identify them as a cat that has gone through the TNR program. The cats need to be picked up the same day and can be released from the trap the next day.

Female Cats

CCAT does not normally fix female cats during the winter month. It depends on the situation. Female cats get their bellies shaved for surgery. Having their bare skin exposed can be uncomfortable and a danger their overall well-being. Contact us to discuss your situation. If the cats have adequate shelter (live in a barn or garage) we may be able to go ahead with the process, but we'd make that decision on an individual basis. Please call, and we'll discuss.

Female cats can be spayed while they’re pregnant, but it is safer to do earlier in their pregnancy. If a female cat has given birth, it cannot have surgery during their nursing period. Wait 6–8 weeks after they've given birth before scheduling an appointment.

Cost/Payment

We ask that you pay the $40 fee to get the cat(s) fixed (spayed/neutered). We can provide financial assistance if needed. However, our funds are very limited. We want you to pay for part, if possible. Please ask for assistance only if you truly need it.

Release: After Your Appointment

After your appointment, keep the cat indoors and in it's cage for one night. Cats have trouble regulating their body temperature after surgery and could die if they get cold. Release it the next day where you trapped it. CCAT will then sign off on a registration form (if you're a Wausau resident), so you can openly feed and provide shelter for the cat(s).

Continued Care

Once a cat has been released back where it was trapped, providing shelter, food and water is important.

There are many online resources with instructions on how to build an insulated cat shelter. A few are listed below. If making a shelter isn't an option, you can purchase one online.

Resources

Contact Us