BRICK – The township’s Trap Neuter Return (TNR) program is going strong thanks to the efforts of a number of loyal volunteers.
John Talty, who chairs the committee, explained that sometimes a resident calls the hotline to say they have been feeding a cat on or near their property. It’s not legal to feed wild animals but the cat is hungry. “We look at the situation and if we think it is a good fit to do, then we approve them for a colony.”
“They agree that they will feed him on a daily basis and provide water on a daily basis and they will provide him with some kind of shelter which can be something as simple as a cooler that has a hole inside of it with straw,” he added.
Talty noted, “when you think about it, squirrels live all winter long, possums, raccoons all find places to stay warm. Cats are very smart and very resourceful. When they have an easy place to eat and drink and lay their head, they can be very happy.”
After the cat’s basic needs are met, they arrange to trap the cat and bring it to a designated veterinarian that specializes in low-cost neuter services.
Talty said, “we go to East Coast Spay & Neuter in Toms River. They have been doing spay and neutering services for cats and dogs and that is all they really do. Once the cat goes there, they put him/her under and do a spay or neuter. We also bought a supply of (microchips) so each cat that is part of the TNR program gets chipped with a unique number assigned to that particular cat of that particular colony. They trim one of the ears just a tiny bit and that lets anybody there know that the cat has already been fixed.”
The committee also includes Township Business Administrator Joanne Bergin who serves as secretary, Councilman Perry Albanese, Doreen Gesslein, Catherine Daly, JoAnne Lambusta, Zack Prawdzinski (A-Academy), Scott Smith and Kathy Sojka.
Sojka is a relatively new member of TNR. She explained that there are quite a high number of cats who get spayed or neutered every month. “We make sure they have a caretaker to see them and monitor them.”
She said Mayor Lisa Crate “is very supportive and is an animal lover too. We try and get donations. September was our food drive at our municipal building. We did pretty well. The food we got lasts less than a month for a caregiver.”
She added that the township has a Christmas tree program at town hall “where all organizations can come in and decorate it. We did a cat tree last year. We had pictures of actual feral cats that we take care of. They are so beautiful. They would be a great pet for anyone but through no fault of their own they are living outside.”
“We typically have meetings every four to six weeks,” Talty added. “We have minutes that are taken and put on the website so people can see what we are doing and what we are about. It has really grown. We have been pretty active for the last four or five years. It has grown to the point where we have more people helping and we’ve formed sub-committees.”
He noted that Sojka and another member “go out and ask for food that is distributed to the caretakers of these feral cats. It is a nice opportunity to work with some really nice people. I was asked to sit on the committee and I said ‘are you sure I’m the right person?’ And they said ‘why did you ask that?’ And I said, ‘because I don’t have a cat.’”
“I never owned a cat. I’m a dog person but I do have a love for animals – especially these cats, no matter how they found themselves to be feral. It probably wasn’t a good story,” he added.
Talty remarked, “the fact that people want to take them under their wing and feed them on a daily basis and make sure their water bowl is filled and to give them a little house to live in when they needed it, especially in the winter – it is very kind that people want to do that.”
He added that he was happy to facilitate the program. “The program wouldn’t exist without some wonderful people. We have some who are subject matter experts about cats, how to trap them, if you don’t think you can trap your own cat. We can send people out who volunteer their time who will trap your cat.”
The committee which was formed in accordance with Township Ordinance Chapter 98. Animals Article XI. Management of Feral Cats. The ordinance outlines the definition of feral cat colonies; sponsorship of colony TNR programs; sponsor duties, feral cat caregiver responsibilities; colony cat requirements; disposition of colony cats; enforcement.; and nuisance complaint investigation.
For more information about the Brick TNR program, call 732-262-4618 or email bricktnr@bricktownship.net
