Trap–neuter–return (TNR), also known as trap–neuter–release, is a controversial method that attempts to manage populations of feral cats. The process involves live-trapping the cats, having them neutered, ear-tipped for identification, and, if possible, vaccinated, then releasing them back into the outdoors. If the location is deemed unsafe or otherwise inappropriate, the cats may be relocated to other appropriate areas (barn/farmyard homes are often considered best).For example: Often, friendly adults and kittens young enough to be easily socialized are retained and placed for adoption. Feral cats cannot be socialized, shun most human interaction and do not fare well in confinement, so they are not retained. Cats suffering from severe medical problems such as terminal, contagious, or untreatable illnesses or injuries are often euthanized. Implementation of TNR is often also accompanied with the introduction of new laws that prevent land owners from removing feral cats from their properties, as well as protection from liability for people that feed and release feral cats.
In the past, the main goal of most TNR programs was the reduction or eventual elimination of free-roaming cat populations. It is still the most widely implemented non-lethal method of managing them. While that is still a primary goal of many efforts, other programs and initiatives may be aimed more towards providing a better quality of life for feral cats, stemming the population expansion that is a direct result of breeding, improving the communities in which these cats are found, reducing "kill" rates at shelters that accept captured free-roaming cats, in turn improving public perceptions and possibly reducing costs, and eliminating or reducing nuisance behaviors to decrease public complaints about free-roaming cats.
Scientific research has not found TNR to be an effective means of controlling the feral cat population. Literature reviews have found that when studies documented TNR colonies that declined in population, those declines were being driven primarily by substantial percentages of colony cats being permanently removed by a combination of rehoming and euthanasia on an ongoing basis, as well as by an unusually high rate of death and disappearance. TNR colonies often increase in population for a number of reasons: cats breed quickly, and the trapping and sterilization rates are frequently too low to stop this population growth; food is usually being provided to the cats; and public awareness of a TNR colony tends to encourage people in the surrounding community to dump their own unwanted pet cats there. The growing popularity of TNR, even near areas of particular ecological sensitivity, has been attributed in part to a lack of public interest regarding the environmental harm caused by feral cats, and the unwillingness of both scientific communities and TNR advocates to engage.
Terminology
TNR usually stands for trap–neuter–return. It is sometimes described as trap–neuter–release.for example, Joe Vaccarelli, "Denver Animal Shelter partners up to help reduce feral cat population" , The Denver Post, June 12, 2014 The word return emphasizes that most feral cats are returned to their original locations under such a program. Variant acronyms and terms include: TNSR (for 'trap–neuter/spay–return'),"How to Help: Financial Donations" , Corporation of Delta, accessed August 6, 2014. Quote: "...our Trap–Neuter/Spay–Return program for feral cats". TNVR ('trap–neuter–vaccinate–return'),Humane Society of Tampa Bay, "Trap / Neuter / Vaccinate / Return (TNVR): What is TNVR?" , accessed June 15, 2014. TNRM ('trap–neuter–release–maintain/manage') where 'maintain' generally means caregivers feed and monitor the feral cats after they are returned to their territories,Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Montreal, Quebec, "Do you know about our TNRM program?" , July 5, 2013, accessed June 15, 2014 and TTVAR ('trap–test–vaccinate–alter–release').for example, National Pet Alliance "NPA's TTVAR Program: Trap, Test, Vaccinate, Alter and Release" , accessed June 15, 2014.
TVHR ('trap–vasectomize/hysterectomize–release') refers to a different method of cat population management, despite its similar name. TVHR differs in the type of sterilization surgery performed on the cats. Unlike traditional spays (ovariohysterectomy) and neuters (castration), which are done in TNR, the vasectomies and hysterectomies in TVHR result in sterile but sexually active cats.
RTF ('return to field') or TNS ('trap, neuter, shelter return') are alternative approaches that simply focus on the trap and desex portion and do not include a colony management aspect. In some instances, a receiving shelter will return a cat to where it was found; in other cases shelters are completely bypassed – a person takes a free-roaming live-trapped cat in for desexing, then returns it to where it was found.
Advocacy and opposition
TNR as a method of managing free-roaming cat populations is controversial. Global attitudes towards these cats vary from those who see them as pets to those who target them as invasive species that need to be eliminated.
Organizations that oppose TNR include: The Australian Academy of Science: "reviews across many studies show that TNR is not effective: it does not minimise cat populations, it does not stop cats from killing wildlife, and it encourages people to dump unwanted cats." The National Wildlife Federation: "As a wildlife conservation organization, the National Wildlife Federation doesn’t support Trap, Neuter, Release/Return programs simply because they don’t work to minimize the negative impact of feral cats on wildlife populations. Feral cats are primarily responsible for the 1.3-4 billion birds and 6.3–22.3 billion mammals killed annually by domesticated cats in the United States and perpetuating feral cat colonies is incompatible with sound, science-based wildlife conservation." PETA does not endorse TNR, citing research finding it is not an effective intervention, along with data finding short life expectancies and inhumane living conditions for feral cats. They think that "You can’t be an animal advocate and support trap-neuter-release. It’s not about you. TNR makes humans, not cats—and certainly not wildlife—feel better, convincing themselves that they’re doing good. If you care about animals, you can’t logically support leaving cats outdoors to roam or dumping them on the streets through trap-neuter-release programs. Life on the streets is no life at all for cats—and for the wildlife they hurt and kill, it’s a death sentence." The Wildlife Society opposes TNR programs because it "undermines the work of wildlife professionals and severely jeopardizes the integrity of native biodiversity." American Bird Conservancy opposes TNR programs: "Unfortunately, TNR programs have been shown to fail to reduce feral cat populations while simultaneously maintaining feral cats on the landscape, where they contribute to wildlife and public health risks. [...] Scientific evidence regarding TNR clearly indicates that TNR programs are not an effective tool to reduce feral cat populations. Rather than slowly disappearing, studies have shown that feral cat colonies persist and may actually increase in size" In a review of TNR programs, RSPCA Australia concluded that "as a long term strategy, in most of Australia, TNR is difficult to recommend" [...] Since resources for cat control are limited, resources in and around towns and cities would be better spent on education, increased community awareness about responsible cat ownership, targeted desexing programs particularly for low-income earners, and better laws and regulations. For remote Australia [...] the most cost-effective and humane option is likely to be targeted and ongoing lethal control" The Canadian Veterinary Medical Association states that TNR "is ineffective at reducing cat population sizes over reasonable time frames (e.g., less 10 years), with removal strategies such as high-volume adoptions, relocations and euthanasia being more efficacious" The Australian Veterinary Association's policy on cat management in Australia does not support TNR: "these programs cannot be supported as a generalised and key strategy in the management of cats" The Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative opposes TNR programs because they "do not appear to be a durable solution to the problems of abandoned cats which have a significant impact on biodiversity and the well-being of wildlife. Therefore, in a wildlife health perspective, the maintenance and nutritional support of these colonies are not recommended. We must also add that even with some external support, stray cats from these colonies are often in a suboptimal health, which also represents a welfare issue." The American Ornithologists' Union: "The American Ornithologists' Union strongly opposes programs to maintain feral cat colonies [and] urges local, state and federal wildlife agencies, public health organizations, and legislative bodies to ban and eliminate feral cats colonies through humane capture of feral cats" The American Society of Mammalogists: "We specifically oppose the creation or continuance of Trap, Treat, Vaccinate, Alter, and Release (TTVAR), Trap, Neuter, and Release (TNR), or related programs that manage feral or free-ranging cat populations." The Association of Avians Veterinarians "Supports reducing the numbers of stray cats through humane capture (with placement in homes where appropriate) by local health departments, humane societies, and animal control officers [and] supports actions by governmental wildlife agencies, public health agencies, and public and private organizations to ban or eliminate cat colonies on public lands in a humane manner and discourage feral cat colonies on private lands." The International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council: "The IWRC supports the humane removal of feral cat and dog populations, including feral cat colonies, through the rehabilitation and adoption of suitable animals into domestic environments and humane euthanasia of animals that cannot be rehabilitated and rehomed." The National Environmental Science Program Threatened Species Recovery Hub (TSRH): "The evidence from numerous trials carried out in a range of countries show that TNR does not reduce the overall population size of urban ferals (owned, stray) cats because of continual immigration from outside the colony. Desexed cats that are returned to the area where they were caught continue to hunt, so their impacts on wildlife are unabated." The Centre for Invasive Species Solutions: "There is extensive evidence that these TNR programs are not capable of effectively reducing feral cat or stray cat populations even at a very small or localised scale." The australian Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water has the objective to "Continue to discourage TNR" in its Threat abatement plan for predation by feral cats (2024) because "trap-neuter-release (TNR) programs do not stop individual cats from hunting wildlife or spreading disease, nor do they improve the welfare of released cats, and may not lead to overall reduction in the cat population or impacts. In general, TNR is therefore not recommended." The Australian Wildlife Society: "Free-roaming cats are regarded as one of the biggest threats to biodiversity and therefore the Trap Neuter Release approach should be considered an unacceptable practice. Trap Neuter Release schemes are illegal in Victoria under the Domestic Animals Act 1994 and should be considered illegal throughout the rest of the country."
Organizations that support TNR include: