Fund a TNR (Trap Neuter Return) program for HRM cats

We request municipal funding for a Trap, Neuter, Return program to control the growing cat population in HRM.   
NOTE:  IN ORDER FOR HRM TO ACCEPT A PETITION, IT MUST SHOW THE PERSON'S CIVIC ADDRESS. SO TO THOSE WHO WISH TO SIGN, PLEASE ADD YOU ADDRESS IN THE COMMENTS SECTION, OR BETTER YET, SIGN THE HARD COPY (ON REAL PAPER) BY PHONING SONYA AT 469-MEOW OR EMAILING katsonya@accesswave.ca

The city of Halifax and the surrounding areas are inundated with thousands of stray and feral cats.  The problem is that there are too many animals for the existing shelters, and the cats can multiply faster than we can rescue them.  The result is hundreds of thousands of kittens being born outside each year.  More than half of these kittens will die, and of the remaining 50%, most will never be rescued and end up growing into feral cats, since they have little or no socialization from humans in the critical first 8 weeks of their lives, when they form impressions of the world.  Cats are domesticated animals, meant to be kept as pets, however when they are abandoned or lost, they can revert to their wild or feral state.  This makes them less adoptable and most shelters euthanize feral cats.  Trap and Kill methods of animal control have proven unsuccessful world-wide.  If has been proven that if you remove all the cats from an area (either by euthanasia or other methods, such as sanctuary or rescue), this would create a vacuum which allows new cats to move into the area and begin the cycle again.  If you employ the TNR method to a colony of cats, the returned neutered cats maintain a stable colony size since they cannot reproduce, and eventually the colony size should diminsh through attrition. 
TNR involves several aspects to be successful - first you trap all the cats and take them to a vet for medical care.  Each animal should be tested for Feline Leukemia and FIV, to ensure they are not carrying a fatal contagious virus which may be spread to owned pet cats and other strays.  If they test positive for either of these diseases, we would have to opt for humane euthanasia of the cat, as a public health measure.  If the cat passes the test for disease, then we would proceed to have the cat spayed or neutered and subsequently, fully vaccinated for upper respiratory infections and Feline Leukemia and Rabies.  Each feline is also treated for fleas and worms, to give them a healthy start.  After a few days of observation post surgery, the cat is returned to it's original location.  We do not recommend relocation of cats, since they are territorial creatures and are unlikely to survive if dumped in a strange location.  Tame kittens and cats do not necessarily have to be returned to their outdoor lives, as long as there is space in a shelter or adoption program, they may be placed in a home.

In summary, if we do not begin a TNR program for cats in HRM, citizens will continue to have nowhere to turn when they require assistance.  Currently the only 2 shelters in town, the Metro SPCA and the BideAwhile, are not set up to handle feral cats, so callers are turned away, left to deal with a back-yard problem that can quickly escalate beyond a manageable scale.  Healing Animal SCARS is a private animal rescue that enables citizens to obtain lower-cost veterinary services for feral cats and encourages TNR as the only effective method of humane animal control for cats.
Please sign this petition if you agree that a TNR program to spay and neuter cats is desperately needed and to show that you approve spending municipal funds for that purpose. 
Sincerely,
Sonya Higgins
Healing Animal SCARS
469-MEOW
katsonya@accesswave.ca
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/NS28.html