(October 25, 2005)
In a development with great promise for Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR), The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) has announced it will be collaborating with Neighborhood Cats to create resources designed to help communities and caretakers across the country manage feral cat colonies. The announcement came on the eve of the 2nd Annual National Feral Cat Summit, held on October 15 in Philadelphia with HSUS as a sponsor. Already, Humane Society University, a program of HSUS, has opened enrollment for a new online course authored by Bryan Kortis, Neighborhood Cats' Executive Director, entitled "Trap-Neuter-Return: How to Manage a Feral Cat Colony." The comprehensive class covers all aspects of colony management, including community relations, food, shelter, trapping and more. For a complete overview of the course,
click here.

HSUS and Neighborhood Cats will also work together to create a detailed guide on how to successfully build a community-wide TNR program and will collaborate on other support materials for handling obstacles to feral cat management. This coming March, 2006, Neighborhood Cats will instruct a day-long workshop on Trap-Neuter-Return, presented for the first time at HSUS' Animal Care Expo, the largest gathering of shelter and animal care and control professionals in the world. This year's conference will take place at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, CA. In addition, HSUS will be replacing their former policy statement on free-roaming cats with a new statement supportive of TNR programs.

According to their recent press release, "The HSUS's renewed commitment through additional resources on TNR should encourage all members of the community - local citizens, veterinarians, animal shelters, policy makers, public health departments, and businesses - to work together towards a goal of non-lethal approaches to feral cat management. The group will soon be launching a feral cat resource center through its website at www.hsus.org/cats to help communities make TNR with ongoing management a reality."

"The importance of The HSUS's support of our work cannot be underestimated," said Bryan Kortis of Neighborhood Cats. "They are the largest animal welfare organization in the United States with many of the most respected leaders in the field. Their support and active involvement will ultimately mean feral cat caretakers and advocates will no longer be considered part of a fringe, questionable movement, but will instead be embraced as part of the progressive mainstream of animal welfare."

Neighborhood Cats applauds The HSUS for its visionary position and thanks all the caretakers and feral cat organizations who, with their years of hard work, have helped make TNR a blossoming reality. Congratulations!

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