About Us
Trap – Neuter – Return
Visit any neighborhood in Otsego County, especially at dusk, and you will most likely cross paths with a stray feral cat.
This is not a mere coincidence but a problem that has been plaguing Otsego County for decades.
Perhaps it began with feral barn cats wandering off their farmland, or perhaps someone’s unfixed pet cat getting lose and comingling with an unfixed stray. But no matter how it happened, it happened; and those strays mixed with other cats to this day thus creating what we have now, which is – a feral cat proliferation situation!
And it comes with all the associated feral cat problems: the screams of late-night cat fights, the stench of cat urine, cats born with infectious disease, or sick from malnutrition, and sadly, the occasional maiming or death resulting from motor vehicle collisions.
And with that being said, we are a group of Otsego County residents addressing the situation.
Founded in 2021 by dedicated cat-lovers Traci Dilello and Gina Colone, Friends of the Feral-TNR is a grassroots organization (now a 501c3 non-profit) that addresses the cat proliferation situation in the surrounding areas.
Our Vision
To create a compassionate community where all cats, regardless of their circumstances, live healthy, safe, and valued lives. Through the implementation of humane Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) practices, we aim to effectively manage and reduce the population of community cats, ensuring a harmonious coexistence between cats and humans. Our vision is to foster a world where every cat is treated with dignity and respect, leading to a sustainable, healthy ecosystem for both animals and people.
Our Mission
Our mission is to humanely manage and stabilize community cat populations through the implementation of Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) practices. We are dedicated to providing accessible spay/neuter services, educating the public about the benefits of TNR, and fostering partnerships with local communities to ensure the well-being of feral and stray cats. Our goal is to create a sustainable, compassionate environment where every cat receives the care and respect it deserves, contributing to a healthier and more harmonious community.
TNR is a non-lethal, humane approach to managing community cat populations. It addresses public concerns, reduces shelter intake and euthanasia, and improves the lives of cats and the communities they live in.
While a “Drop Trap” attached to a long cord can be used, the most popular (and humane) way feral cats are caught is with the more popular “Cage Trap.”
These traps measure about 14” by 14” and are about 40” in length which the cat a little freedom to move about in.
On the far end of the cage is a plate, known as a “trip plate” that the cat must step on in order to get to the bait (cat food). When the cat enters the trap, they unknowingly walk under a metal plate or mesh screen that is attached to the trap
above them.
Upon stepping onto the trip plate, it actuates the trap door which quickly swings down thus capturing the cat in the trap before it can turn around and run back out. The cat remains in the trap until it is transported to the veterinary service
where the cats are surgically sterilized, given rabi shots, have their left ear tip trimmed off to easily identify them as fixed, further treated if required, then returned to their locale (where they were trapped).
Sometimes kittens are personally taken in by whomever traps them as pets, other times the kittens are turned over to a registered animal rescue for adoption or fostering.
As mentioned, Friends of the Feral-TNR traps cats throughout Otsego County from, Oneonta, to Morris, to Richfield Springs, to Schenevus, and all points in beween.
Occasionally, when available and in coordination with scheduled trips to veterinaryservice providers, traps are lent out to its members who wish to trap feral cats loitering on their property.
(607) 221-3757
The trapped cats are then transferred to a staff member who participates in a three or four car caravan which takes the cats for their surgery then returning them to be distributed to the people who trapped them, or returned straight back to where they were captured.
The round trip takes anywhere from a couple of hours, if the veterinary service is local, to about a twelve-hour journey when dozens of cats are collected and which requires a specialized veterinary service over one-hunderd miles away.
As of now, associate membership on our Facebook page is over 700 and increasing. We are a corporate board of five members and own over a dozen traps, cage covers, and all the equipment and tools required for the caring of the cats once we trap them. That includes the recent acquisition a Tomahawk RC-100 radio- controlled device that enables us to select a particular cat in a group, or catch several cats in a single trapping.
Cat food, transportation expenses (gas), prescription medications for the sick cats, the occasional medical expenses involved in the treatment of injured cats, and spay/neutering fees take an enormous bite out of our funds and frequently leave us with nearly nothing thus requiring our five board members and volunteers no other choice but to pay the fees out of our own pockets.
We cover the entire county (1,016 square miles) and consisting of 24 towns and 9 villages.
To put it modestly, our mission is frequently overwhelming – and yet we prevail.
Other than our several annual fundraising events, our only other form of revenue is an occasional small, county grant, and you, our greatly appreciated generous cat-loving donors.
So please generously continue to contribute to and support our cause. Help us in humanely addressing the needs of the often forgotten, often elusive, but always in need and always loved, our feral cat community in Otsego County!