Watkinsville

I am one of the non-profit's founders (received 501c3 status in 2007) and the original mission was to TNR and care for the community cats on the University of Georgia property and remove any tame cats and kittens for adoption. As the only TNR group in the area we soon were asked to help beyond campus and our mission is now summed up as: "Cat Zip Alliance/Campus Cats is an all-volunteer group with no paid employees, so you know your donations go directly to covering vet care, food, and supplies. Our broad mission is to promote humane and effective community cat management through our Trap-Neuter-Return-Monitor (TNR), barn cat, and adoption programs in order to keep community cats out of animal control facilities. On a smaller scale, we care for the community cats that live on and adjacent to University of Georgia property every day. On a larger scale, we loan out traps, conduct TNR workshops & trapping training sessions, and provide the resources someone might need in order to manage community cats in their own backyards or place of business, serving Athens Clarke County and surrounding counties in mid- and NE Georgia." My personal interest in this endeavor is as a professional wildlife biologist/ornithologist with many years of inventory and monitoring experience. I am a strong advocate for the humane and proven technique of TNR as the best solution we currently have for reducing community cat populations and subsequently reducing conflicts with wildlife but, believe just as strongly that there needs to be standard protocols established for TNR.