One of the things that we are really proud of at The Bitty Kitty Brigade is our Trap-Neuter-Return program. When we take in orphaned or abandoned kittens from situations where unfixed cats remain on the property, our TNR team works with the community members to assess, trap, and spay and neuter the cats before returning them to the property if feral, or networking them to rescues if friendly.

We know that the BEST way to help these cats and kittens is to stop the reproduction cycle. Prevention is just as important as rescue. When we TNR the cats in your community, we’re helping to reduce the number of kittens born outdoors. We cannot rescue or adopt our way out of the overpopulation problem. The answer is spay & neuter.

Until recently, we were able to benefit greatly from Animal Humane Society’s Community Cats Program which allowed feral cats to be spayed and neutered for free. Recently, AHS implemented a $75 fee per cat for surgery, with a limit of 10 cats per month to be scheduled on the same day. This will be a SIGNIFICANT hit to our program! In addition to paying $750 for the 10 spots, we will need to seek out additional partnerships to fulfill our need. This will cost $70-$100 plus a 2-hour round trip drive, or $100-$120 locally.

We got together to look at the options for the future of our TNR program.

1. End the program

2. Severely limit the program to education and support due to lack of funding

3. Continue with the work we are doing and fundraise.

We immediately ruled out ending the program. We KNOW this is important work and is essential to curtailing the cat population crisis we are suffering. There are very few organizations in the area doing TNR, and while there are many independent trappers working very hard, they will be even more impacted by the sudden fees which they frequently pay out of pocket.

We are driven to continue putting an end to the cycle of unwanted kittens, but WE NEED YOUR HELP. The needs for our TNR program at our current rate of trapping is $20,000 for one year of spay/neuter for the properties from which we take in orphan kittens or are asked to assist. We would love to connect with community members, businesses, companies, etc., who also feel passionately about this, and raise beyond that so that we can extend the help to others in our community.

80% of kittens born each year are born outdoors to community cats, and these kittens die in high numbers due to the current circumstances. Together, we can prevent this suffering by spaying and neutering community cats.

The Bitty Kitty Brigade is a foster-based rescue for orphaned neonatal kittens in the Twin Cities, MN and surrounding areas.

The Bitty Kitty Brigade provides care for kittens ages 0-6 weeks who are without mothers and not yet eating on their own as well as for families where the mother cat is present but unable to feed on her own. We utilize foster caregivers for all stages of care, from bottle-feeding to weaning and beyond.

Our trap-neuter-return team seeks to end the cycle of unwanted cats and kittens by humanely trapping and sterilizing community cats and returning them to their communities.

Community Cat Care: Fix the Felines

By Bitty Kitty Brigade

Community Cat Care: Fix the Felines

Trap-Neuter-Return: Humane control for healthier cats and communities