Community Cats Coalition

11/21/2025

11/21/2025

TNR Tuesday:

Preventable Suffering Begins in the Home

Most people hear “spay and neuter” and immediately think of feral cats, colonies, and TNR teams out in the cold. But the truth is this:

Preventable suffering begins in the home.

Indoor cats still need to be spayed and neutered.
Outdoor pet cats especially need to be spayed and neutered.
Because the majority of the cats we trap didn’t come from the wild—they came from someone’s unfixed pet.

Here’s what people don’t realize:

Indoor cats escape.

Windows get left open. Screens pop. Cats slip through legs at 2 AM.
One unaltered indoor cat outside for a single hour can change an entire neighborhood.

Behavior issues push cats outside.

Spraying, yowling, roaming, aggression—it’s all tied to hormones.
Too many families “let them be outdoor cats” when the behavior gets bad, and that’s how colonies start.

Medical issues are real and dangerous.

Unspayed females face pyometra, uterine infections, and mammary cancer.
Unneutered males face testicular cancer, abscesses, and constant fighting wounds.
None of this should ever happen. It is preventable suffering.

Outdoor pet cats spread serious diseases.

When owned, unaltered, free-roaming cats mix with community cats, they spread illnesses that devastate colonies and overwhelm rescues:
• FIV (Feline Immunodeficiency Virus)
• FeLV (Feline Leukemia Virus)
• Calicivirus
• Feline Herpesvirus (FHV-1)
• Chlamydia felis

Fights, mating, shared bowls, grooming contact—even just walking through a colony can expose dozens of cats.

And they also spread parasites, fungus, and internal infections that explode through colonies:

These are things we all are treating every single day:
• Ringworm (highly contagious fungal infection)
• Coccidia
• Giardia
• Roundworms
• Tapeworms
• Whipworms
• Lungworms
• Fleas (which bring anemia, tapeworms, Bartonella)

A single outdoor pet cat can infect an entire colony, then bring those parasites right back into the home—and to other pets.

Free-roaming OWNED cats fuel the crisis.

Every year, we trap cats that turn out to be someone’s pet—pregnant, injured, sick, unneutered.
They mingle with colonies, spread disease, and create litters that end up suffering outdoors.

And here’s the hardest truth:

If every pet cat in Maine was spayed or neutered, we wouldn’t need TNR.

Shelters wouldn’t be full.
Fosters wouldn’t be overwhelmed.
Rescues wouldn’t be drowning.
And thousands of community cats wouldn’t be struggling to survive winter after winter.

It starts at home.
It starts with one appointment.
It starts with spaying and neutering the cats we love—before they become the cats we’re desperately trying to save.

Preventable suffering begins in the home. Let’s end it there.

11/21/2025

You just want a good home for your cat or kitten. But, there are people with ill intentions looking for owners just like you who are desperate to find a new home for their kitties. You owe it to these pets to do a little research before handing over them over to a stranger.

🔺 Be sure the cat is spayed or neutered and vaccinated. I know this is easier said than done, but it's THE MOST IMPORTANT THING for them. No matter where they end up in the future, they won't be reproducing. They won't get testicular or ovarian cancer. They go through heat cycles or yowling and spraying everywhere. It just needs to be done. Make it happen.

🔺 Charge a rehoming fee. It can be small. But a rehoming fee can deter the wrong kinds of people. You want a potential adopter who is going to put a little thought into this lifelong commitment, not someone who is going to grab a kitten on whim and stick him outside once the newness wears off. The fee can even be waived later if you feel the adopter is the right adopter for you.

🔺 Ask about living arrangements, they matter! The person interested in your pet may rent. Does their rental agreement allow pets? Will they have to pay an extra fee to add a pet and are they prepared to pay that fee? It is perfectly reasonable to ask to see a copy of the lease agreement. We have seen many instances where someone thinks they can sneak a cat in. Once the landlord finds out, that cat is usually put outside or rehomed yet again.

🔺 Ask about other pets in the home. Perhaps a senior cat should not be paired with an energetic kitten. Maybe it's fine. You need to be aware of the behaviors you're placing together to hopefully have a smooth transition and not a cat they need to return shortly after adoption.

These are just the high points, but there are lots of other things you could choose to do to help ensure the safety of your pet: Can they currently afford a pet? Can they afford an unforeseen emergency vet visit? Will the cat be indoors or outdoors? How do they plan to acclimate the new cat with their other animals and what is the plan if it doesn't go well? Request to visit for a home check. Check vet references. Etc., etc., etc.

Safe rehoming is possible if the cat is already vetted and you ask the right questions! Otherwise, ask for guidance from a shelter or rescue.

11/21/2025

11/21/2025

11/21/2025

11/20/2025

Auntie Leigh feeding the littles!!!

11/20/2025

We brought 15 kittens in to Cedarcrest Homestead Foster Tails & Kitten Rescue this week! Could not continue our rescue s mission without their help!

11/20/2025

A huge shout out to Leigh Collings Lampert of Cedarcrest Homestead Foster Tails & Kitten Rescue! Leigh is the director of this wonderful kitten rescue without whom we would not be able to save the amount of kittens that we are called about! She not only works a full-time job but runs this wonderful organization. She has taken in hundreds of kittens for us over the short 2 years that her organization was founded! She even takes her bottle babies in to feed on her lunch hour! That is true dedication! Kitten season is not over as much as we'd like to think it is, she took 15 kittens from us last week! This wonderful organization dedicates their time, energy, and finances, most of which comes out of their own pockets to help these babies in need. The kittens are fed very special food for their sensitive tummies, which is extremely expensive adding to their cost of running the rescue! Their funding is low. They receive no government help in any way. They, like us rely on the generosity of our supporters! They are also in need of Fosters and volunteers to work at the Kitten Kafe located in Salisbury Maryland. Please consider making a donation and if you cannot, please like and share! Reach out with a DM if you can foster! Https://www.venmo.com/u/cedarcrestfosters or https://www PayPal.me/cedarcrestfosters or by check: DM us! We thank everyone who supports us!