Antioch Animal Shelter in Antioch, California’s, Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program may be brand new, but it already has the most important tool for success: the support of the community! Just a few months ago, Officer Cat Cottle flung the shelter’s doors wide open to the help of local TNR advocates. Together, they have saved the lives of every single community cat that has come into the shelter since November 2017.
“It’s been such a relief since we started TNR,” says Cottle. “We’re not holding community cats for any unnecessary length of time. We can just do a quick assessment and get them back to their outdoor homes. That’s much less stress for the staff and, of course, for the cats.”
Officer Cottle has been craving those lifesaving results since she began working at the shelter as a volunteer five years ago. Usually understaffed, the shelter often struggled to care for all its animals, especially community cats. Cottle noticed there were many local rescue groups active on social media and wondered why the shelter hadn’t connected with them. So, when she was hired as a full time ACO in October 2016, she started reaching out.
In late summer 2017, Cottle took things a step forward and finally opened the shelter up to TNRincluding local TNR advocacy groups PAWSitively Saving Animals from Euthanasia (S.A.F.E.) and Homeless Animals Response Program (H.A.R.P.). Together, they developed a TNR system that officially began in November 2017. Every time community cats are brought into the shelter, Cottle calls TNR advocates to pick them up, take them to a veterinary clinic for spay/neuter, vaccination, and eartipping, then return them to their colonies in their outdoor homes. All of the over 30 community cats who have come into the shelter so far in 2018 have gone through this program.
Cottle’s biggest advice to other shelter staff and ACOs: Even if you’re skeptical, just give humane options a shot.
“Don’t turn away the people who are trying to help you,” says Cottle. “With TNR, I know a lot of people struggle to get their shelters to cooperate. But it helps so much for the cats and community. You’ll see it works, just try it.”
Alley Cat Allies’ Alice Burton, associate director of Animal Shelter & Animal Control Engagement, hosted a presentation for the Antioch community in December 2017, and Cottle was happy to make Antioch Animal Shelter the venue. To support the shelter’s new move toward saving more cats’ lives, Alley Cat Allies staff taught residentsand Antioch’s police chief and mayorall about community cats and TNR. Now, one of Cottle’s biggest goals is to spread that education further across the community.
“Just like Alley Cat Allies came here to inform us about the benefits of TNR, we’d love to connect more that way with the community and teach them the importance of spay and neuter and vaccination,” says Cottle. “That’s the best way to improve not only the shelter animals’ lives, but the community’s perspective on animals, including community cats.”
Alley Cat Allies thanks Officer Cottle for her dedication to improving her shelter and for opening her doors for all of us to help save cats’ lives.