San Francisco Changes Feral Cat and Kitten Policy

San Francisco’s SPCA and Animal Care & Control recently changed the trap, neuter and return policy for feral cats and kittens. This policy encouraged volunteers to trap feral mothers with new kittens, bring them to an animal shelter to be spayed or neutered, and then put the kittens up for adoption. Instead, the shelters now advocate leaving feral cats alone until their kittens are weaned, which they say protects the wild mother cats from the stress of living in a shelter. Some animal volunteers are against the new policy, saying that it puts the kittens at greater risk of starvation and death. We’ll talk about the policy change, and its effects on San Francisco’s feral cat population.