Feral cats
Feral cats are domestic cats that live in the wild and have not been socialized with humans. Unlike stray cats, which may have once been pets, feral cats are typically born in outdoor environments and remain fearful of people. They often form colonies near food sources, and these groups can lead to ecological challenges, as feral cats are known to hunt and significantly impact local wildlife populations, particularly birds and small mammals. In the United States, it is estimated that there are over fifty million feral cats, with many living together in colonies primarily composed of females and their kittens.
To address the growing feral cat population, humane methods such as Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) programs have been developed. TNR involves trapping feral cats, spaying or neutering them, and then returning them to their territories. This approach not only helps control the population but also reduces disruptive behaviors associated with unaltered cats. Providing care for these colonies can improve the cats' health and reduce their negative impact on the surrounding environment. Understanding the complex dynamics of feral cats can foster more effective and compassionate strategies for managing their populations and addressing the ecological issues they present.
Subject Terms
Feral cats
Feral cats are free-roaming domestic cats that are born and live in the wild. Feral cats have not been socialized by people as kittens. Some may have never had contact with humans. Because of this, feral cats are fearful of people and keep their distance. A feral cat differs from a stray cat, which is a tame cat that may have been abandoned or become lost. Many feral cats live together in colonies in places near a food source. Large feral cat colonies, if unmanaged, can devastate the population of birds and small mammals in an area. TNR (trap, neuter, return) programs are an effective and a humane way to reduce the feral cat population. The Humane Society estimates that more than fifty million feral cats live in the United States.
Background
To grow up tame, kittens need to be socialized by people. They must be spoken to, petted, played with, and held. Socialization should take place between three and seven weeks. While it is possible to socialize older kittens, the process is more difficult. Friendly cats that seek attention from people have been socialized as kittens. Feral cats are born outdoors and have little or no human contact. Most adult feral cats cannot be tamed and are therefore not adoptable. Feral cats display the following behaviors:
- They are nocturnal and seldom seen during the day.
- They cannot be touched and run from people.
- They do not make eye contact with people and do not meow.
- They crawl or stay low to the ground.
- They keep their tail down when they move.
Feral cats typically congregate near a food source or shelter. They may live in abandoned buildings near restaurants or the homes of people who feed them. Groups of related feral cats living together are called colonies. The cats within a colony share a food source and territory. Stray cats may also become part of a feral cat colony. Most colonies consist mainly of female cats and kittens. Males live on the periphery of colonies, defending their territory from other males.
Overview
Feral cats are the offspring of unaltered stray or feral cats. Cats reproduce quickly. A female kitten can become pregnant at five months and have several litters of three to five kittens each year. Without human contact, the kittens will be feral. They will not be spayed or neutered and will continue to reproduce. As the cycle continues, the result will be an enormous feral cat population within an area.
Those living in areas with many feral cats often have many complaints. Feral cats howl and scream at night when they are fighting and breeding. They use flower beds and gardens as litter boxes. Unaltered males spray to mark their territory. Feral cats sometimes leave the carcasses of the animals they kill on sidewalks and porches.
Environmental Impact
Free-ranging cats—cats that roam outdoors—kill billions of birds and small mammals in the United States each year. Most of these cats are feral. Zoologists consider feral cats an invasive species because they are not native to an area. Because feral cats spend all of their time outdoors and are more likely to be hungry than pet cats allowed outdoors, they are largely responsible for the widespread destruction. A 2013 study by ecologist Scott Loss indicated that feral cats are most likely responsible for 69 percent of bird kills and 89 percent of small mammal kills. Another study conducted during the same year by Dr. Pete Marra of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) found that unowned cats, a category that includes strays, feral cats, and farm cats, were killing three times as many animals as pet cats allowed outdoors. Experts are not certain how many of the birds and small mammals killed by feral cats are species that are threatened or endangered.
Well-meaning people who feed feral cats without spaying or neutering them may actually make the situation worse. In nature, the population of a species is limited by the food supply. If an area has too many predators, some will not have enough food and will die off. This will continue to occur until the number of predators is in balance with the food supply. People who feed feral cats increase the food supply, which, in turn, increases the number of cats.
Population Reduction
To combat high populations of feral cats, animal control agencies and shelters traditionally used a “catch and kill” approach in which the cats were trapped and then euthanized. Opponents of this approach consider it to be inhumane and ineffective in the long run. After the feral cats in an area are killed, feral cats from neighboring territories will claim the territory, a phenomenon known as the vacuum effect. This phenomenon also comes into play when feral cats are trapped and relocated to a new place. Relocation is also considered cruel since the cats moved to a new area are away from their food supply and shelter and often die.
A more effective alternative is to initiate a TNR (trap-neuter-return) program. With TNR, cats in a colony are trapped and then taken to a veterinarian, who spays or neuters and vaccinates them. The cats are also “ear tipped,” a procedure in which about one-quarter of a cat’s left ear is removed. The procedure is performed while the cat is under anesthesia and is relatively painless. An ear tip is a universal sign of a sterilized feral cat.
After surgery, a feral cat is returned to the trap, where it stays until the anesthesia has worn off. Then the cat is returned to its territory and released. During TNR, kittens that are trapped are removed from the colony so they can be socialized and adopted into homes.
Ideally, a sterilized colony is managed by a caretaker who provides the cats with food, water, and shelter along with emergency medical care. Such care significantly increases the lifespan of feral cats and, over time, reduces the size of the colony.
Feral cats that have been spayed or neutered are healthier and easier for neighbors to tolerate because nuisance behaviors such as spraying and fighting are eliminated. Furthermore, no additional kittens are born in the colony. TNR has also been shown to be the least costly way of reducing a feral cat population.
Bibliography
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“What Is a Feral Cat?” Feral Cat Coalition, 2023, www.feralcat.com/. Accessed 13 Dec. 2024.
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