The Jefferson City Council has heard from representatives on how best to deal with the feral cat issue in town.

The potential solution that’s been discussed is known as Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program. Last month, the Council heard about the benefits of TNR from Associate Director of Animal Shelter and Animal Control Engagement Alice Burton with Alley Cat Allies from Maryland. She said TNR helps to reduce the cat population, improve the cat’s life, become better neighbors and are calmer.

However, last week the Council heard about the concerns of TNR with the Iowa Wildlife Center Executive Director Marlene Ehresman. She said cats are the most invasive of introduced non-domestic predators. She stated that cat bites contain bacteria that can lead to dangerous health issues if not treated and free-roaming cats are a threat to the ecosystem. She told the Council that wildlife specialists are trained to humanely administer euthanasia and that gunshots are an acceptable method.

City Administrator Mike Palmer says while the Council has heard both sides of the TNR program, but it could take a little more time until a decision is made.

“It’s going to be a lot of Council input on this one, don’t want to put anything in front of them that they’re not fully informed on. They’re going to be wrestling with this for another few months at least. I always encourage people to do their own research on it too to see what’s adequate because it’s still an open question.”

The issue of feral cats came to light in April of 2018 after the City suspended its service of offering live traps to residents and removing live animals from a private property in town. At that time Mayor Craig Berry said they were reviewing the City’s policy on feral cats, which could take about 18-months to complete.