The tip of this felines left ear was cut off to signify that the outdoor cat has been spayed or neutered.LA PLATA, Md. (Nov. 4, 2016)—A cat crosses your path as you walk through your neighborhood, and you notice something strange about its ear: The tip is missing!
What does it mean? Is the cat injured? Ill? Aggressive?
Quite the contrary say leaders of Rescue Angels of Southern Maryland, a local animal rescue organization that works to help animals in need.
Instead, they say, a tipped ear on a cat means someone is taking care of that cat.
"A cat's left ear is tipped when someone has gone through the effort and expense of having that cat spayed or neutered before returning it to its outdoor home," said Rescue Angels President Jennifer Torney.
"These aren't stray cats or aggressive cats," she continued. "A tipped ear means someone is caring for that cat as part of a managed colony of community cats."
Community cats—also called feral cats—live throughout Southern Maryland in managed colonies. Caretakers, with the help of organizations like Rescue Angels, trap the cats in their colonies to get them spayed or neutered and vaccinated against rabies. Many also have their colony cats microchipped. While the cat is sedated for surgery, a veterinarian removes the tip of the cat's left ear.
The ear tip is just one part of a process called trap-neuter-return or TNR, and it is a humane way of handling groups of community cats while preventing the birth of new kittens.
"It's a lot of work to care for these cats properly," Torney said. "They didn't ask to be homeless. Many of these cats have been left behind by people, or they are unaltered cats that have been allowed to roam.
"As a community, we need to take responsibility for them, the right way—the humane way."
The alternative to TNR is to either relocate or to trap and kill the cats. These are ineffective methods of coping with feral cat colonies, Greene-Smith said.
"Removing the cats from an area only creates a vacuum effect," she said. "Once one group of cats has been removed, another will move in to take its place."
This new colony is attracted by the same things that attracted the original colony: The availability of food and shelter. Relocating a colony of cats, Greene-Smith said, is a long process and should only be done as a last resort when the cats' lives are in danger. When necessary, Rescue Angels has relocated cats to barns, farms, backyards, and other places where they are safe and can help with rodent and snake control.
Members of Rescue Angels said they are hoping to educate the public more about ear tips because they are seeing an increase in the number of ear-tipped cats being turned into Animal Control and the Tri-County Animal Shelter.
"Feral cats don't stand a chance when they're turned into the shelter," said Rescue Angels Vice President Julie Greene-Smith. "They're among some of the first animals euthanized because there is often nowhere for them to go.
"We have a good partnership with Tri-County, and they know we are here to help, but we can only do so much. We have limited resources, and we get several calls each week for assistance with community cats."
Torney and Greene-Smith urged community members to leave ear-tipped cats where they are. "The outdoors is their home," Torney said.
Volunteers are always needed to help trap, transport, and care for community cats. "We can't do this work alone," Torney said. "It's really rewarding to see our ear-tipped cats that we have helped. They're happy, snuggled up nice and warm in the winter shelters we've built for them."
Neutered cats are less likely to fight for territory, and they are less of a nuisance because they are no longer looking for mates. "They will then enjoy the company of other cats, and this is what helps them survive very cold winters," Torney explained.
Torney and Greene-Smith say community members with questions about community cats should contact a rescue organization like Rescue Angels of Southern Maryland rather than turning the animal into a shelter.
"One of our main missions is to educate the community about TNR and feral cats," said Greene-Smith. "We can help people living in Southern Maryland trap cats and get them spayed or neutered. We can also help them learn how to care for a colony of cats."
The list of residents looking for TNR help is long, Greene-Smith said, so patience is appreciated as volunteers work through the list. "We are an all-volunteer organization," she said. "Our volunteers all have full-time jobs, but we're working as hard as we can to make a difference in our community."
For more information about TNR or to volunteer or donate, contact Rescue Angels by email at rescueangelssomd@gmail.com or leave a message at 844-966-7276.
Rescue Angels of Southern Maryland is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to changing the lives of animals in need in Southern Maryland. The organization rescues animals from undesirable situations, provides needed medical care, and helps them find loving homes. The group's successful TNR program is helping to limit the population of feral cats in Southern Maryland and to reduce the number of cats euthanized in shelters.
For more information, visit the Rescue Angels website at www.rescueangelssomd.com/.