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Volunteer urges Depot Bay to convene work session on community cat overpopulation
Summary
A longtime volunteer with Central Coast Humane Society outlined a countywide community-cat overpopulation problem and asked Depot Bay council to schedule a focused work session to consider coordinated responses, including public education and ordinance changes.
Lisa Spence Bennett, a former volunteer with Central Coast Humane Society, told the Depot Bay City Council she wants a formal work session to address a growing population of unowned "community cats" and to present policies other communities have used to reduce abandonment and animal suffering. "With this assistance, we trapped and neutered over 800 cats in Lincoln County in 02/2024," Bennett said, adding that CCHS has performed trap-neuter-return on more than 1,500 community cats over three years.
Bennett told the council that CCHS began this year with a backlog of 376 community cats; by June the group had trapped 162 of those animals and the backlog had grown to 508. "We have a cat overpopulation problem in Lincoln County," she said, and asked council members to host a focused conversation with CCHS and city staff so the city can review options before taking action.
The request drew questions from council members about enforcement and capacity. One council member noted the city passed an ordinance last year intended to discourage abandonment and asked whether the city has the manpower to enforce it. Bennett and other speakers described many people who feed or care for community cats as low-resourced residents who are trying to keep animals alive. Bennett said her preferred approach would combine community awareness, services such as low-cost spay/neuter options, and targeted ordinances rather than relying solely on enforcement.
Council members did not deliberate the proposal at length during public comment but indicated staff would follow up. A council member asked whether staff could gather the group and report back; Bennett offered contact information for herself and Barbara Perry, the CCHS board president.
Why it matters: Elected officials can use a work session to evaluate cost, enforcement capability and partnerships with local nonprofits. Bennett emphasized that trap-neuter-return has reduced euthanasia and suffering where it is well funded and coordinated, but she said the county should not assume trapping alone will solve the problem.
Bennett urged a prompt start to the process and said she would bring examples of ordinances and community programs used elsewhere. Council members said staff would reach out to Bennett to set up the requested conversation.
