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Volunteer calls for county support to revive TNR (trap‑neuter‑vaccinate‑return) efforts
Summary
A local volunteer described a volunteer‑led trap‑neuter‑vaccinate‑return (TNR) effort, said more than 200 community cats were treated by her group since April 2025, and asked the county to help by enabling partnerships, making traps available and sharing grant opportunities; she emphasized this would require little or no county funding.
Heather Green, a volunteer with the Troop County Animal Coalition, presented to the Meriwether County Board of Commissioners about a volunteer‑led trap‑neuter‑vaccinate‑return (TNR) proposal she said is needed to address community cat overpopulation.
Green said she lives on Highway 100 and works with volunteers to trap, transport and return community cats, and that since April 2025 her volunteer efforts have resulted in the TNR, vaccination and return of more than 200 cats in nearby counties. She described logistical needs — volunteer trappers, transportation to clinics, temporary holding, and volunteer training — and said existing partners (including a local spay/neuter clinic and regional groups) could provide discounted surgical services through grant funding. Green noted Merryweather County had a TNR program from 2017–2021 and emphasized that reinstating such a program could be accomplished primarily with grant funding and volunteer labor rather than direct county appropriation.
She outlined typical TNR operations: nighttime trapping, clinic transport in the morning, recovery overnight in traps and return the following day. She described clinical conditions common among community cats (upper respiratory infections, parasites, injuries) and explained the "vacuum effect" concept for why removal or relocation without sterilization leads to recolonization. Green offered to provide training and public education and supplied pricing information from clinics she works with for commissioners to review.
The board thanked Green for the presentation; no formal funding request to the county was made. Commissioners asked staff to note the proposal and consider how county animal services and partners might assist with traps, volunteer coordination or grant application support.
