Greenwich Selectmen Move Closer To Voting On Proposed Feral Cat Ordinance

GREENWICH, CT — The Greenwich Board of Selectmen this week once again examined a proposed ordinance aimed at controlling feral and stray cat problems around town, and there have been several changes to the language since September's discussions.

The issue was first brought up to the Board of Selectmen in August, as residents complained about feral cats, notably in Old Greenwich, ruining property and overpopulation areas. First Selectman Fred Camillo has said it's an issue seen all over town, not just in Old Greenwich.

According to the proposed ordinance, which now also covers stray cats, within one year of the adoption of the ordinance, a keeper of feral cats within Greenwich shall register with the town's animal control officer.

Following registration, the animal control officer shall provide information to the keeper regarding the proper care and management of feral cats. Once that happens, the keeper is responsible for caring for the feral cats "so as not to cause any nuisance or public health hazard."

Within six months of the date that a keeper of feral cats receives care and management information, the keeper must provide for the sterilization of such cats, the proposed ordinance states, which is a new addition according to Town Attorney Barbara Schellenberg.

No person shall refuse to surrender any feral or stray cat to the animal control officer or her agent when requested to do so, the ordinance continues.

Notably, the most impactful revision to the ordinance states that "the animal control officer, in her discretion, as deemed necessary or advisable, may impound any feral cat and/or employ the TNR-V protocol for any feral cat."

The ordinance defines TNR-V as trap, neuter, release, vaccinate, and it is "a method of humanely trapping feral cats for the purpose of sterilizing them, vaccinating them against rabies, and then returning them to their colonies."

"That addresses an issue of concern that was raised by members of this board and the animal control officer who basically were in favor of getting rid of the provisions dealing with required impoundment and euthanasia," Schellenberg said. "What we have learned is that this TNR-V protocol is the preferred protocol and in fact the protocol that is currently used by the animal control officer to deal with the problem of feral cats. In Greenwich, they don't have the means of impounding all these cats. It's just not feasible."

Should any feral/stray cat damage property other than that of the owner/keeper, the owner/keeper shall be fined $60 for each violation, the proposed ordinance says.

The full proposed ordinance can be found in the Oct. 24 Board of Selectmen agenda packet.

Selectperson Janet Stone McGuigan said she was "on the fence" and she wondered if Greenwich Animal Control could handle the issue without an ordinance.

"I don't want to introduce an ordinance that isn't going to fix - pun intended or not intended - what's going on right now," Stone McGuigan said.

She also pointed out there are only penalties if damage occurs to property, and no penalties for feeding feral cats, "which I think is what causes the nuisance in the first place."

Camillo said TNR-V would play a major role in fixing the problem.

"To me, you have to have something on the books because this is going to continue to happen; one wants to be fining anybody and sometimes that creates another burden for us," Camillo said.

Greenwich Animal Control Officer Suzanne Carlin said her office has made strides in fixing the problem and trapping cats, but she agreed with Camillo.

"I think it's important to have something on the books if we're pressed," she said.

Old Greenwich resident Pam Petito, who brought the issue to the forefront in August, asked if the town could get outside help in trapping more cats to stay ahead of the problem.

"It seems like we need to go the next step to get more help, either more vets, more volunteers or part-time employees -- something to help get this more under control," she said. ""It's slowed down, but they're still there. While we're on top of it, it would be great if we could nip it in the bud and really catch as many as possible now before the winter and maybe we'll get lucky and put an end to it."

Camillo said he's spoken to outside organizations, as has Carlin.

"We're very welcoming of that," Camillo said. "If we don't have any more help on this, we're going to be constantly behind on the issue."

Carlin explained that the problem of feral/stray cats is being seen around Connecticut and the country.

Another Old Greenwich resident, Heidei Shafranek, thanked those involved for crafting the ordinance. She wondered if the town could incentivize outside veterinarians to help out with trapping and caring for cats.

"Hopefully one of the silver linings that may come out of this is we'll find a way for cooperation with outside organizations and maybe cooperation with vets, whether it's incentivizing or not, to stay on top of this in the future," Camillo said.

The selectmen did not take any action, and will instead wait until the next scheduled meeting before taking a vote. Once a proposed ordinance is approved, it will move on to the Representative Town Meeting for closer examination and a vote.