At a March 19, 2013, hearing, Cook County Commissioners made clear they had no intention to amend the county’s feral (community) cat ordinance. That’s great news for this thriving program!
Testimony at the hearing by PAWS Chicago and Tree House Humane Society showed that more than 17,000 cats had been neutered and vaccinated in Trap-Neuter-Return programs in Cook County since 2008. In neighborhoods where targeted TNR has occurred, stray and feral cat intake to the Chicago city shelter is down substantially. This data is yet more proof that TNR works.
Thank you to all who wrote to your Cook County Commissioners in support of the existing ordinance, and to the more than 100 advocates for cats who attended the hearing. Your voices were heard!