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Noah’s Ark Expands Services for Pets By Peggy Werner oah’s Ark Animal Sanctuary, 111 N. 1st St., has a vision that reaches far beyond its organization. It’s involving local residents in pet overpopulation reduction efforts and teaching people to become better pet owners. It’s also recruiting volunteers to free up staff for expanding shelter programs. Noah’s Ark recently teamed up with PAWS of Rockford to offer the community a Trap, Neuter/Spay and Return (TNR) program in response to Winnebago County Animal Services’ decision last year to stop accepting live trapped feral cats. The county still accepts strays in cat carriers, as well as owner surrenders by appointment. Stephanie Lauer, executive director of Noah’s Ark, says PAWS provides traps and advice for trapping cats and Noah’s Ark provides the services of neutering or
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spaying and vaccinating feral or barn cats before returning them to the outdoors. The “Return to Field” program began Feb. 23 and is specifically for outdoor cats that are not adoptable as pets. The program helps to curb the cat population and the spread of disease, Lauer says. “We’ve teamed up just in time for the spring kitten season, which began mid-February and will continue through June, when hundreds of kittens will be born before a brief slowdown until more births in the fall,” she says. Feral cats are conditioned from birth to live outdoors because their mothers teach them how to hunt and their coat and body composition changes with the seasons. TNR is a humane approach to addressing a community’s cat overpopulation. It improves the lives of cats, addresses community concerns and complaints
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about cats, and reduces breeding cycles and disease. Cats who have been through the program have their ears “tipped,” a cut made on the ear while the cat is under an anesthetic. The healed cut signifies to people that the cat is a stray, but has been altered. There’s also an expanding program at Noah’s Ark to help animals find forever homes. Noah’s Ark recently announced an expansion of its foster care program through its Facebook page and website, noahsarkanimals.org. Individuals can foster a cat, kitten, puppy or dog until the animal is old enough to be adopted or there is room in the shelter. “The more foster parents we have, the more animals we can help,” says Lauer. “It’s always our goal to help the most animals we can.”
