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Press Release
For Immediate Release: August 29, 2007
Contact: ELIZABETH PAROWSKI, eparowski@alleycat.org or 240-482-1984; FRANCIE ISRAELI, fisraeli@johnadams.com or 202-207-1134
October 16 is National Feral Cat Day
Poll Reveals Significant Gap between Public Opinion and Animal Shelter Policies on Killing Cats
(Bethesda, MD) August 29, 2007 – Thousands of concerned citizens and
volunteers across the United States will mark National Feral Cat Day 2007 (October 16)
with a series of events throughout the month, including community rallies, shelterbuilding
projects and leafleting campaigns seeking to raise awareness and end the killing
of cats by animal control agencies and shelters, Alley Cat Allies announced.
Meanwhile, a national poll by Harris Interactive found an overwhelming majority
of Americans believe that leaving a stray or feral cat outside to live out their life is more
humane than having the cat caught and “put down.” According to the poll –
commissioned by Alley Cat Allies, the nation’s most effective advocacy group on feral
cats – 81 percent of respondents would prefer to let the cat be, while 72 percent still
preferred to leave the cat outside to live out her natural life even if they knew she might
be hit by a car or die by other means.
“Too many people don’t realize that contacting animal control agencies to remove
outdoor cats means literally handing these animals an immediate death sentence,” said
Becky Robinson, president of Alley Cat Allies. “Feral cats are not a threat to humans,
but they are not socialized and cannot be adopted, so most shelters capture and kill them.
Not only is this practice cruel, it is also expensive and useless.”
Alley Cat Allies released a National Feral Cat Day “advocacy kit” that equips
individuals and groups with materials to educate their communities about the most costeffective,
non-lethal methods to control outdoor cats.
The advocacy kit includes promotional posters; sample print advertisements in
English and Spanish; brochures; and media outreach materials such as a sample letter to
the editor, press release and event advisory. Thousands of the kits were mailed in August
to volunteers in communities across the United States and internationally. Electronic
versions of the materials, as well as a calendar of related local events, are available at
www.NationalFeralCatDay.org.
National Feral Cat Day was inaugurated by Alley Cat Allies in 2001 to educate
the public about stray and feral cats and how trap-neuter-return (TNR) improves the lives
of outdoor cats.
During October and throughout the year, Alley Cat Allies and its allies conduct
special events, programs and workshops to educate humane societies and government
agencies on the basics of TNR, as well as empower residents to question their local
animal control policies and to implement TNR programs in their communities.
A two-day seminar will be conducted by Alley Cat Allies on Oct. 12 and 13,
when experts and activists from across the country will convene in Alexandria, VA to
learn how new initiatives can be launched to overhaul the current lethal policies in our
nation’s animal control shelters.
More information is available at www.NationalFeralCatDay.org.
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About Alley Cat Allies
Alley Cat Allies is the nation’s leading advocate for stray and feral cats. Their website is www.alleycat.org.
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