The setting is a suburban park created on the grounds of what was once a large citrus farm. About four years ago, for exercise, a girlfriend and I had started walking through the park each evening.

One night, about halfway through our walk, I noticed a cat precariously balanced on the edge of one of the park’s garbage barrels as it rummaged for food. At that time I was the owner of seven cats, my heart went out to this poor homeless, hungry creature. The following evening I took a small bag of food and dropped it in the area where I had spotted the cat. This time, though, there were about five cats wandering about looking for food.

As we continued our nightly park visits I became aware of a substantial number of feral cats throughout the route we walked. The count of cats we regularly saw grew to dozens. They were all ages and colors. Some were kittens but most were full grown. Most, if not all, were homeless and hungry, and a few were probably sick.

I began to lug much more food each evening to feed these poor, yet regal animals. Quickly, they began to assemble each night in anticipation of their feeding. Some would venture pretty close as the food was laid on the ground – most were more wary and held back until the food was down and we backed away.

It quickly became obvious that something needed to be done to stem the continual growth of these colonies of cats. The park had other budgetary priorities, though they did recognize the benefit of cats to the park’s animal hierarchy – mice and rats have never been a problem there. Thankfully they did not have an eradication policy for the cats. I determined that the local Humane Society couldn’t really deal with the adult feral cats – if caught they would be put down (“euthanized”). The kittens had slightly brighter prospects. If caught young enough to be domesticated, they were placed in an already huge population of adoptable cats. If not soon adopted they too would be put down.

Not knowing where to start, I obtained a couple of humane traps and set out to (eventually) trap all of the cats. The plan was to have them all neutered and then return them to the park. I soon caught three of the cats, had them neutered, and released them back into their park colony, but it quickly became apparent that my limited trapping resources and neutering funds would be stretched too thin to complete the job – at least over a reasonable span of time.

Dealing with such a large number of feral cats led to other problems. Not all veterinarians would work with feral cats. Those that do usually require appointments, but there is no guarantee you’ll capture the necessary cats the preceding night. And, not the least significant issue; neutering is fairly expensive – as much as one hundred dollars (or more) for females, slightly less for males. The situation was becoming very discouraging. I wasn’t sure where to go for assistance, or even if there was any assistance available.

Fortunately, following numerous enquiries, I was given a phone number for an organization called AzCATs – Arizona Cat Assistance Team. I contacted them and explained the situation at the park. It turns out we were a perfect match for the services they provide. Their primary goal is to assist with the Trapping, Neutering, and Return (TNR) of feral cats in colonies that are regularly monitored and fed.

We were able to arrange a trapping session at the park within a few weeks. AzCATs would provide traps and assistance with catching the cats and then transporting them to a veterinarian the following day. I told them there were about thirty cats to TNR. They told me not to feed the park cats the night before we were to trap.

It was an amazing sight when the AzCATs representatives arrived – obviously seasoned professionals for the task at hand. They drove up in a van full of traps (at least twenty), blankets, food and various other tools-of-the-trade. After a quick survey of selected areas in the park they told me I was probably dealing with at least sixty or more cats (which turned out to be more accurate than my estimate). With efficiency reflecting their experience they quickly prepared the traps and set them throughout the park.

Within fifteen minutes we began to hear traps tripping. After a couple of hours every trap was filled. You have to experience cat trapping to appreciate it – but it is a challenge to outsmart these wild creatures in their environment. And you sense a distinctive thrill when you finally snare a particularly elusive cat.

We loaded the traps into the van and off they went with AzCATs. The following morning AzCATs transported the cats to a vet. A day later, now no longer capable of multiplying, they were bought back to the park and released. Though sore and probably still somewhat traumatized, the cats all scurried out of the traps and back to their regular hiding spots in the park. The next night they were all in attendance when I returned for their regular feeding session.

AzCATs continued to work with us until we had every single park cat fixed – a total of over ninety!!! We could not have done this without them!

We continue to go daily to feed the park cats, check their water, and watch for any new cats that have been dumped by their irresponsible owners. After four years of feeding and trapping the park cats, this has been the first year we haven’t seen a new kitten in the park! Due to an apparent disease a few years ago the number of cats we regularly see is down to about thirty five. But the number is now stable and the cats are safer, more healthy, and well fed than they ever would have been without TNR and assistance from AzCATs.

This is yet another example of how TNR’ing really does work!!