How one Metro Detroit city is using feral cats to keep rats away

A metro Detroit city is tackling two problems at once with a program aimed at helping reduce the feral cat population and keeping rats away.

Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud said the city is working with Friends of Animals of Metro Detroit and using a “multi-faceted approach” to reduce the numbers of feral mice and cats.

The city uses a trap-neuter-return program to reduce the city’s feral cat population long-term, then returns the sterilized cats to the city to help address the rodent and rat population.

The castration trap and return program is a way to reduce the feral cat population. In the program, feral cats are trapped outdoors, spayed/neutered, vaccinated, ear-tipped, and returned to the location where they were found.

“TNR is the most humane and effective way to stabilize and ultimately reduce outdoor cat populations. If feral cats and their offspring are left unsterilized, they will continue to reproduce, potentially introducing thousands of unwanted cats into the community. According to Michigan Humane.

Michigan Humane said these programs stabilize feral cat colonies, eliminating or reducing roaming, spraying/marking by males, fighting, and mating encounters.

Hammoud said that the program returned 115 cats to the neighborhood after sterilizing and neutering them. He said the city has seen a 15% decrease in the number of rat complaints year over year.

Alley Cat Allies He has tips on how to care for feral cats during the colder months.