The Community Cats Podcast

Peter Wolfe is a cat initiatives analyst at Best Friends Society and a blogger at Vox Felina, where he seeks to fill the void of TNR research and other issues affecting community cats. He says diving into the detail of arguments for and against community cats advocacy helps him in his work at Best Friends, such as proposing policy and giving conference presentations. To access the Community Cats Program Handbook Peter mentions at the end of the episode, visit bestfriends.org/ccphandbook.

Mike’s been an integal part of Massachusetts' animal welfare efforts for 22 years.  He has extensive experience managing situations where community cats — and potentially their caretakers — have been exposed to rabies, and recounts several challenging situations he’s faced, including one where an entire colony needed to be quarantined for six months after exposure to a rabid raccoon. As a result, he’s a huge proponent of microchipping community cats so that their vaccination information can be accessed in necessary situations. He’s also trying to get animal control officers more engaged in their town’s TNR efforts:  “they should be learning from the people in the community doing the work.”   For more information please visit mass.gov.

Interview! Taryn Breuer, President, Friends of Jeannette Hunt Animal Shelter (NE)   Taryn describes how rural Blair, Nebraska needs its resident cats to help keep rodents from getting into the grain farmed there, but also needs an active TNR effort to keep the numbers of cats in check.  Participating in the MRFRS Mentoring Program was the catalyst (pun intended!) to upping Blair’s TNR game: after starting with just 150 or so cats in its first year, the program Taryn chairs has now fixed 4000 cats in just four years. The kitten population is under control, as well — down from 85 last year to only 15 in 2016.  She talks about the benefits of transfer cages, of keeping your equipment in top condition, and the secret of trapping during Nebraska’s stern winters:  microwave your bait until it’s very hot and wrap it in a towel until you get to your trapping location.   For more information please visit blairanimalshelter.org.

Interview! Diane Blankenberg, Chief Executive Officer and Principal Consultant for Humane Network Imagine being on the ground trying to rescue owned and community cats after Hurricane Katrina, as well as the recent flooding in Louisiana.  Diane Blankenberg describes her amazing experiences working with Alley Cat Allies to help reunite people and their cats, including working at a “cat rescue camp” as well as assisting with TNR following these crises.  She describes how, after Katrina, some owned cats were so traumatized that they appeared initially to be ferals.  Community cats, says Diane, “have amazing survival instincts; after the recent floods many of them stayed in trees until they could be returned to their colonies."   For more information please visit humanenetwork.org.

Interview! Mike Phillips, President, Urban Cat League, and Community Outreach Coordinator for the New York City Feral Cat Initiative Even though he had lived in Manhattan for decades, Mike didn’t know there were street cats in New York: "I had no idea because I lived on the 43rd floor,” he observes. In 1999, he got bitten by the community cats bug while helping deal with a 75 cat colony living behind the historic San Remo building on Central Park West.  That colony no longer exists, proving “that 100% number proves how effective TNR can be.”  He then got involved with — and was President — of Neighborhood Cats, teaching TNR workshops all across New York’s five boroughs.  He describes some of the unique challenge cat advocates face in New York: mass trapping is hindered by the lack of large spaces for holding and recovery of cats, and the need to make multiple calls to access needed service   For more information please visit urbancatleague.org.

Interview! Tammy King, Founder, Mayport Cats (FL)   Mayport Village, a fishing village near Jacksonville, Florida, had become a popular place for people to “dump” cats, both healthy and sick.  Enter Tammy King, who brought her persistence and compassion to address the problem. Originally dealing with 200-250 cats, the population is now down to 30-50 and, Tammy notes, “I invite people to come out here and all you’re going to see are eartips.” She moved on to help address the Community Cats more broadly across the Jacksonville area — “I spent a lot of time in dumpsters” — and was able to impact 4600 cats over a two-year period.  Her organization, Mayport Cats, helps and rehomes for cats who need extended medical care, as well as disabled and hard-to adopt cats.   For more information please visit mayportcats.com.

Interview! Amanda Arrington, Director, Pets for Life Program at The Humane Society of the United States Amanda’s childhood interests in both animals and in social justice have led her to a career overseeing a groundbreaking program to help not just pets, but people in underserved areas.  She leads he innovative HSUS “Pets for Life” initiative, which is active in 34 communities across the US where there are high poverty rates and little to no access with services for pets. This work is done in a grass roots format, going door to door and street by street to find out what’s needed for each community member. The aim is not to “educate” according to Amanda, but to share information and offer services; when you do, she says, “ the majority of people make the right decisions” regarding their pets.   For more information please visit humanesociety.org.

Interview! Cheryl Ann Fernandes, Regional Shelter Care Representative, PetLink   Drawing on Cheryl Ann's diverse, 25-year career in animal welfare, she and Stacy have a wide-ranging discussion about the challenges of being an urban animal control officer, the persistent challenge of “compassion fatigue” for all of those working in the field, and the innovative idea that microchipping can save the lives of not just pets, but community cats. She explains that, from a colony keeper’s perspective, if you can microchip the members of your colony,  you can identify which cats have had the vaccinations and treatments they need. This may reduce the risk of these community cats getting picked up and stuck in “the system”. Making chips and scanners financially and widely accessible is part of her current role as a shelter care representative at Pet Link.   For more information please visit petlink.net.

Interview! Merritt Clifton, Journalist and Founder, Animals 24-7 News It would be challenging to find someone with more experience in the animal welfare field than award-winning writer Merritt Clifton. From his childhood ambition to “starting a kitty farm” to taking census of homeless cats during his family’s travels, he’s dedicated his life and work to humane outcomes for all animals. He was an early proponent of spay/neuter in the 70’s when, he notes, “cats were basically a friendly outdoor animal or ‘easily tamed wildlife.”  He documented the rise of high volume spay/neuter programs, which had their original start in South Africa and England and spoke at the first “no kill” conference in the mid 90’s. He makes a fascinating case why he’s not 100% pleased with the term “community cat."   For more information please visit animals24-7.org.

Interview! Andi Kola, Founder Lumen LS, Broward County, Florida   Andi is a man on a mission… a mission to eliminate euthanization of cats in his home area of Broward County, Florida and beyond.  He recounts his efforts to work with local animal control officials as well as Country Commissioners to pass ordinances mandating return to field programs that have improved live release rates from 50% to 87%.  And uses a project- and statistics-based approach to his work, lauding the benefits of public/private partnerships, and focusing on the different categories of cats that require different solutions to their challenges.. He founded LumenLS with the goal of moving past the stories of individual cats and focusing  on the ability to end premature death and suffering for animals. He observes, “There’s a solution out there for just about everything.”   For more information please visit lumenls.org.

Interview! Linda Gage, No More Homeless Pets Network Specialist, Best Friends Animal Society Linda outlines the myriad resources that the No More Homeless Pets Network offers to small organizations around the country: ideas on how to get a Community Cats program started, marketing tool kits, grants and financial aid and the opportunity for sharing ideas and connecting with other groups currently engaged in the same activities. “There’s no need to reinvent the wheel,” she observes. “A lot of groups are doing this really well.” She works with both urban and rural groups, each of whom have their own challenges. “People have a pre-conceived notion about what’s best for a cat they see outdoors.  When I see that mindset change, I get excited.”   For more information please visit fcnmhp.org.

Interview! Ollie Davidson of Almond & Olive   Ollie has two passions:  animal welfare and music. He and his musical partner, Natalie Alms, are about to drop their debut album, and are donating a portion of its sales to the Jackson Galaxy Foundation.  Ollie met Jackson (who also plays music in his spare time) a few years ago and they’ve kept in touch given their shared interests.  Ollie has played a number of professional roles in the animal welfare world, involved with programs, shelter operations, managing volunteers and digital marketing.  He discusses the importance of “balance” to avoid burnout among staff and volunteers, the challenge of having a non-profit’s board and staff aligned as to the organization’s goals, and his ‘fantastic looking” backyard colony of cats.   For more information please visit facebook.com/almondolivemusic.

Interview! Kelley Bollen, Owner and Director of Animal Alliances Consulting Firm Kelley earned a Master’s in Animal Behavior, has taught at Cornell Veterinary School, and now consults with both pet owners and shelters to improve life and outcomes for companion animals. She and Stacy talk all things behavior, and how to make life for cats happier and healthier.  Kelley offers some useful tips to help Stacy’s rotund cat slim down, a number of great ideas for providing more enjoyment and enrichment for a kitty [play some bird song CD’s!] and tackles the always-problematic issue of litter box avoidance.  She notes that she frequently feels like a detective when trying to narrow down the reasons why a cat is eliminating inappropriately.  About covered boxes, she notes, "How do you feel when you have to go into a Porta-potty? That’s what a covered box can be for a cat.”   For more information please visit animalalliances.com.

Interview! Bonnie Geisler, President and Founder, Felines and Friends Foundation (VT) Bonnie’s utilized partnerships with many different organizations to contribute to the success of the Feline and Friends Foundation, which has helped 2000 cats in just three years, in one of Vermont’s poorest countries. She borrowed her game plan from NY’s renowned Neighborhood Cats, built a relationship with an open admission shelter to handle the friendly cats and kittens her group finds, and partnered with a supportive veterinary practice to provide surgeries and health care. She proposes that TNR is not just for cats but for the community:  both the caretakers who love the cats, and the “non-cat” people who want to see the local feline population reduced. “We’re making our communities more livable for everyone.”   For more information please visit fffvt.org.

Interview! Cameron Moore, Project Manager, Target Zero Given Cameron’s contribution to a diverse number of game-changing initiatives, she and Stacy have a wide-ranging conversation about a number of topics related to TNR, abandonment and adoption programs, and helping communities get the support they need to get to the goal of zero euthanasias for healthy dogs and cats.  Cameron discusses “community cat diversion”:  the retraining of people to stop bringing outdoor cats to shelters and, rather,  to spay/neuter/vaccinate them and return them to their outdoor homes. She also stresses the importance of removing barriers for cat owners to get their pets fixed:  “it’s on their to-do list, but things get in the way.”  “Cats are part of our landscape...we need to do what we can to help them and the people who take care of them.”   For more information please visit target-zero.org.

Interview! Sherri Gustafson, Spay/Neuter Community Liaison for the Massachusetts Animal Fund Sherri serves as the Spay/Neuter Community Liaison for the Massachusetts Animal Fund, which provides a voucher program for low income pet owners. This program focuses on three main priorities: S/N support for municipal shelters, providing vouchers for low income pet owners, and providing TNR opportunities for community cats. She and Stacy also discuss Animal Control Officer training, rabies control within feral colonies, and emergency funding for issues such as animal hoarding.   For more information please visit massanimalfund.com.

Interview! Pamela Krausz, Founder and Executive Director of Vermont Companion Animal Neutering   Pamela is a founder and the executive director of Vermont Companion Animal Neutering (VT-CAN), a low cost, high volume spay/neuter clinic. As a stationary clinic with a mash-stlye component, VT-CAN performs approximately 3,200 spays/neuters per year in central Vermont, with an additional 2,000 per year as partner to the Felines and Friends Foundation in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom. Pamela has extensive experience working with barn cat populations, a common situation in rural areas. She discusses certain challenges related to this type of cat community, including the misconception that barns are healthier places for stray or abandoned in-tact community cats than shelters. Pamela also discusses the challenge of retaining veterinarians for S/N clinics, the Spay the Mom program, and grant writing.   For more information please visit vt-can.org.

Interview! Heidi Colonna, Curriculum Development Manager for the Humane Society of the United States and Board Member with Association of Professional Humane Educators Heidi was volunteering at a local shelter in 1994, which compelled her to choose animal science and public policy over a potential business degree. She discusses her focus on ‘preventable people problems’ and believes education and awareness are key to changing attitudes about all aspects of animal welfare. She and Stacy discuss an array of subjects including past mentors, community cat education through literature, relationships with schools, and the importance of providing engaging activities for school age children. Heidi also outlines an array of education opportunities the Humane Society Academy has to offer, including online trainings and the Certified Humane Education Specialist program.   For more information please visit humanesociety.org.

Interview! Kaleel Sakakeeny, Founder, The Other Me Coaching After experiencing the passing of a companion cat, Kaleel’s initial interest in animal communication led him to a deeper study of this intuitive practice. In his discussion with Stacy, he explains the premise of animal communication, including the quieting of the mind to facilitate a connection with the animal client. A relationship coach as well as animal communicator, Kaleel volunteers at Gifford Animal Shelter and is a strong advocate of using interspecies communication to create stress-free environments for shelter cats, community cats, and all animal companions.   For more information please visit theothermecoaching.com.  

A graduate of Cornell’s College of Veterinary program, Sarah is the Program Director for Target Zero, a national initiative focused on assisting financially struggling shelters. She discusses the ways in which this program helps subsidize fixed income pet owners across the country, allowing spay and neuter opportunities that result in drastic decreases in shelter intake. The Community Cat Diversion Program, implemented by Target Zero, prioritizes updating antiquated ordinances and codes through communicating with and educating elected officials. Sarah and Stacy also discuss the debate over the definition of an ‘abandoned’ cat, and ways to determine abandonment. Sarah’s passion and commitment is clear as she shares her views and experiences.   For more information please visit target-zero.org.