A proposed change to Maryland regulations could mean the end of Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) and Shelter-Neuter-Return (SNR) programs in Maryland. The new proposal to expand the definition of “custodian” to include people who provide care or sustenance places unfair burdens on caregivers and threatens to shut down the state’s many successful TNR programs. <a href=”http://getinvolved.alleycat.org/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&page=UserAction&id=403”>Maryland residents, you have the chance to speak up on behalf of TNR programs and oppose changes that would shut them down.</a>
This new regulation would function as a punitive law, punishing caregivers who are Good Samaritans, responding altruistically to the presence of outdoor cats. Caregivers are not “owners” or “custodians” and should not be treated as such. Furthermore, cats are cared for by entire communities, not just one person, hence the name, “community cat.” In reality, this new definition would ultimately increase the number of unvaccinated, unsterilized cats in the state, as it discourages TNR programs and individuals from providing initial care to community cats.
<a href=”http://getinvolved.alleycat.org/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&page=UserAction&id=403”>Maryland Residents: Take Action!</a>