On October 16, 2010, the National Feral Cat Day celebrates its tenth anniversary. Launched in 2001 by Alley Cat Allies, National Feral Cat Day is a national campaign designed to educate people about feral cats and promote humane programs for these precious felines.

A feral cat is a cat who is born and raised in the wild, or who has gotten lost or been abandoned and reverted back to living in the wild to survive. A feral cat is a domestic but un-socialized cat and therefore in most cases is not adoptable. One exception to this is if a feral kitten is rescued early in life. Our youngest, Jaidyn Gingerbread, was rescued from a feral colony when she was five weeks old.

Most feral cats taken to shelters are euthanized. As an alternative to needlessly killing innocent cats, many communities have adopted more humane and less costly programs like Trap-Neuter-Return (also known as Trap-Neuter-Release and TNR) to manage and care for feral cats.

Feral cats are not new. In fact, they have been living among people for many years. When they are part of a managed TNR colony, their lives improve greatly since they no longer face the various stresses associated with the mating and pregnancy. Plus, TNR helps control feral cat population, as well as cat overpopulation in general.

Every year for National Feral Cat Day there are events scheduled across the nation. Some events planned for this year include:

• Fundraisers like car washes, cookouts, food drives, garage sales, walkathons and hikes, and various other fun and game activities
  
• Low cost, or free, spay and neuter clinics, vaccinations, and flea treatments for feral and stray cats
  
• Educational programs on feral cats and TNR
  
• Adopt-a-thons
  
• Low cost microchipping

This is just a small sampling of events planned to celebrate the 10th Annual National Feral Cat Day. In Marshfield, MA, Meow Manor has a Yankee Candle fundraiser going on until October 15, 2010, with proceeds going toward helping feral kittens that are unadoptable due to medical issues. In Woodruff, SC, there will be a Helping Community Cats Workshop along with a food and supply drive. I wish I could list all events planned, but there are far too many. To finds local events in your area, please go to: National Feral Cat Day Calendar of Events.

For more information about National Feral Cat Day, or to register your NFCD community event, please visit Alley Cat Allies.

Urban Tails: Inside the Hidden World of Alley Cats -- Buy from Amazon

Community Approaches to Feral Cats: Problems, Alternatives, and Recommendations -- Buy from Amazon


© Melissa Knoblett-Aman