Things are looking up for feral cats in Jersey City?s 07306 zip code. That?s because the area, currently overrun with unowned cats, has been selected as the focus of a 250-cat targeted spay/neuter project, to be jointly administered by Liberty Humane Society and Neighborhood Cats. The project is made possible by a grant from PetSmart Charities?.

In the coming months cats in the target area will be humanely trapped, spayed and neutered, and returned to their original locations. Spay/neuter services will be provided by the People for Animals clinic in Hillside, NJ. The cats will also be vaccinated against rabies and ?eartipped? ? under anesthesia the tip of the left ear is painlessly removed, to permanently mark the cat as being ?fixed?. The whole process is called Trap-Neuter-Return or ?TNR? and is the best way to gradually reduce the numbers of outdoor cats while improving overall health and eliminating the mating behaviors that create public nuisances, like pungent tomcat spray and late-night caterwauling.

The city?s 07306 zip code accounts for one of Liberty Humane Society?s highest intake rates of feral and stray cats, with 143 kittens and adults turned in over the past year. TNR for this targeted project will be concentrated in the area?s northeast section as far west as Tonnelle Avenue and with Lincoln Highway marking the southern border.

Residents in the target area can report the locations of unneutered colonies by contacting our Jersey City Feral Cat Hotline, (201) 351-7772 or by emailing info@neighborhoodcats.org. Community members can also receive training from Neighborhood Cats to become feral cat caretakers ? a sort of kitty guardian angel ? to make sure their colonies are properly fed and sheltered. Anyone interested in fostering a kitten or friendly cat rescued from outdoors during the TNR project may inquire about Liberty Humane Society?s foster care program; visit the shelter at 235 Jersey City Blvd. or email volunteer@libertyhumane.org.








ABOUT LIBERTY HUMANE SOCIETY
Liberty Humane Society (LHS) is a non-profit animal shelter and welfare organization based in Jersey City, New Jersey. Aside from providing care, treatment, and adoption placement for thousands of homeless animals each year, Liberty Humane Society offers public programs designed to support responsible pet ownership and decrease the number of homeless pets in our community. Through partnerships with national organizations and regional groups, Liberty Humane Society puts progressive ideas to work to improve the lives of local companion animals, both inside and outside the sheltering system. For more info, http://libertyhumane.org/

ABOUT NEIGHBORHOOD CATS

Neighborhood Cats is one of the nation's leading advocacy groups for feral and stray cats. Based in New York City, the organization manages a city-wide Trap-Neuter-Return program involving thousands of cat colony caretakers and offering training, equipment, discount spay/neuter, winter shelters and trapper incentives. Neighborhood Cats has also produced many of the leading educational materials on feral cats in the animal welfare field, including The Neighborhood Cats TNR Handbook and How to Perform a Mass Trapping video. Through its own work as well as partnerships with local and national animal welfare groups, Neighborhood Cats continues to improve the lives of feral and stray cats everywhere. To learn more, visit www.neighborhoodcats.org.

ABOUT PETSMART CHARITIES

PetSmart Charities, Inc. is a nonprofit animal welfare organization that saves the lives of homeless pets. More than 400,000 dogs and cats find homes each year through our adoption program in all PetSmart? stores and our sponsored adoption events. PetSmart Charities grants more money to directly help pets in need than any other animal welfare group in North America, with a focus on funding spay/neuter services that help communities solve pet overpopulation. PetSmart Charities is a 501(c)(3) organization, separate from PetSmart, Inc.