Streamlining your cat homing and the “Million Cat Challenge”. - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

Streamlining your cat homing and the “Million Cat Challenge”.Slide2

Bio

Working in animal welfare since 1989

Registered Veterinary Nurse

Former Animal Welfare InspectorCP Neutering Manager 2008-2012International Cat Care, Head of Cat Welfare 2012-2015Shelter Manager in UK and other countries.Currently Manager at Malta MSPCA

Ferals – since 1999.8000 trapped.Over 400 colonies or groups7000 ferals nursed/anaesthetisedMost trapping as a volunteerAuthored FAB Feral ManualTrained/taught in 24 countries to dateHands-on in 16 countriesUK TNR in London, Stoke, Hebrides, Wales, Cumbria, Sussex, Manchester, Cheshire.Currently not involved in mass TNRSlide3

I do not represent MCC but I am presenting today with their approval.

Having been working on projects that streamline cat care for some years, last year I discovered MCC which applies very similar principles and is very user friendly.

I will talk lots more about

feral cats and TNR in my feral sessionSlide4

Cats and Dogs?

I’m focusing on cats, but the skills and techniques are transferrable to dogs in many cases

I’m going to introduce you to the “Million Cat Challenge” and the five key parts of it.

There are lots of resources on the website www.millioncatchallenge.orgSlide5

Bigger shelters = more homes, right?

Occupancy and

shelter size does not increase adoptions. The pool of adopters determines the number of adoptions.Almost all UK charities are rebuilding SMALLER.Slide6

Case studies in the USA: Webinars

https://millioncatchallenge.org/resources/webinarsSlide7

Two case studies in Europe

Oak Tree Animals’ Charity, Cumbria.

2014 -

106 cats & kittens rehomed. 3.2 staff allocated (overall) to the cattery. (2-3 staff on duty a day). Return rate of 7%. Zero Hoarding cases dealt with. Longest stayer 5 years. 2015 – 123 cats and kittens rehomed, with the same staff ratio. Return rate of 6%. Zero Hoarding cases dealt with Longest stayer 6 years.

2016 – 186 cats and kittens rehomed. 1.3 staff allocated to the cattery with 0.75 staff on duty per day. Return rate 1.1%. 4 hoarding cases dealt with. Longest stayer 16 weeksSlide8

Two case studies in Europe

Oak Tree Animals’ Charity, Cumbria. –

2014 - 106

Occupancy on site around 45-50 cats2015 – 120Occupancy on site around 45-50 cats2016 – 186 Occupancy on site around 20 catsHow did this happen if we had less cats??Slide9

Two case studies in Europe

2015 –

39

cats rehomed, 4.3 Full time staff. Over 70% were kittens Longest staying cats 5 yearsOccupancy? 2016 – 32 cats, 4.4 Full-time staff. Over 70% kittensLongest staying cats 6 years> Occupancy?2017 –

63 cats homed 4.1 full time staff. Over 70% adult cats Occupancy? All LS cats rehomed and subsequent longest stayer 3 monthsSlide10

Two case studies in Europe

2015 –

39

Occupancy 40-50 cats on site, 20 group 2016 – 32 Occupancy 302017 – 63 cats Occupancy 6-10

All LS cats rehomed and subsequent longest stayer 3 monthsSlide11

Sydney Australia

“In

2016, we took a bold step,

virtually halving the number of cats accommodated at any one time in our adoption centre. We were nervous: what if it didn’t work? Even though this was an evidence-based decision, it still felt scary … but what happened over the next 12 months was that our Sydney shelter experience added to the US evidence that fewer cats with more space is good for the cats and good for adoptions. In 2016-17 we found loving forever homes for 902 cats and kittens, compared with 830 in 2015-16. What began as a trial is now in place as policy”. Slide12

Many organisations in the UK and USA have implemented changes, either by choice or from necessity, which have helped streamlining homing

In the USA the Million Cat Challenge is a drive to reduce the number of cat

euthanasias

across the USA by using rescue facilities in a more efficient way and avoiding warehousing of animals.The core strategy of the campaign is centred around five key initiatives that offer every shelter, in every community, practical choices to reduce euthanasia and increase live outcomes for shelter cats. Slide13

Streamlining and using MCC results consistently in:

Reduced URIs and other contagious illnesses.

Reduced

LoSMore LS cats being homedReduced stress-related conditionsIncreased donations at intakeFreeing up of animal carers to be rehomersReduced infrastructure costs and the ability to run smaller facilities (which may in turn enable rebuilds, refurbs and moves to happen easier).Slide14

Behavioural (or just husbandry) advice.

Education & Information (allergy testing, toxoplasmosis)

Helping with quick fixes which you would have had to do anyway if the animal came into your care

Offer support for outdoor cats to remain on site.Turn finders into fosterersUse a paper collar and try and locate an owner while the cat is still on site Home to Home

Alternatives to intake:Slide15

Schedule intake of cats to match the shelter’s ability to assure humane care and safe movement through the shelter system to an appropriate outcome for every cat.

Managed admissionsSlide16

Managed admissions

Schedule your intake appointments

Arrange intakes for vet-days

Don’t take animals in instantly (some 7% of waiting list owners change their mind and 15% rehome privately before admission)Ensure there is an intake interview Manage the waiting list regularly before it gets too bigEncourage 1st vaccination 5-7 days before intake of owned animals (don’t think that’s possible ? - around 70% success at OTAC and 80% success at MSPCA)Ensure admissions happen on a day senior staff are around.Managed admissions often leave a donation 7 times the size of a turn-up admission.Slide17

Encourage 1st vaccination 5-7 days before intake, of owned

animals

Despite lots of scepticism hurled at me when I introduced this, this has been successful in every case I have tried it

Sell the concept to the owners as a protective method (maybe in lieu of a donation).In some cases, stray finders will do it too if explained properly.Vaccine is already on-board at admission, was administered before exposure, and administered to an unstressed animalSome owners comply with 3 week wait and complete course.Not every owner compliant, not every animal arrives vacc’d but it does mean that your net herd immunity is very high – at our facility usually around 95% of dogs and 85% of cats have had at least one vaccine within the last 7 days at any time.Slide18

Communities take around 6 months to learn when an organisation goes from accepting everything to doing managed intake.Slide19

Match the number of cats cared for at any one time with the capacity required to support the Five Freedoms of Animal Welfare for all cats in the shelter.

Capacity for care:Slide20

Reducing occupancy per pen speeds up adoptions, reduces URI and ensures better detection of ailments.

ADCH

CoP

centres should be 2 max to a pen in theoryProviding evidence-based intake accommodation and resources helps cats become adoptable quickerPlan and utilise space but strategically reduce constant cat moves within the shelter.Use husbandry and pheremonal techniques.

Capacity for care:Slide21

Maintain and fix

obvious

breaches of the 5 freedoms

Be aware of indirect breaches of the 5 freedoms – for example, freedom from hunger and thirst may be affected if animals’ food or water is too close to litter trays.

Capacity for care:Slide22

Expand the pool of adopters by removing barriers to adoption such as cost, process, or location.

Smaller shelters are easier to build in better locations

Remove barriers to adoption:Slide23

B

uild new centres at smarter sites

Reduce need for Home Visits (

eg Street View + video of apartment + good interview is better than a HV)Tidy-up your centreRemove “silly” procedural rules (such as the “3 visit rule”)Restructure staff roles to make carers into adoption officersThink logically about adoptions near Christmas (after all, we don’t know peoples’ birthdays!)Look at BOGOF adoptions, free adoptions, delivering animals Encourage single cat adopters to consider adopting a social pair now, rather than trying to introduce another cat later.Discourage “workplace pet” or “our babies” mentalities among staff

Remove barriers to adoption:Slide24

Cats Protection, Newnham Court, Kent

Homing & Information Centre, 5 pens.

1 staff member daily, screens and tablets.

100 adoptions per year.Slide25

Sterilize, vaccinate, and return healthy un-owned shelter feral cats to the location of origin as an alternative to euthanasia.

Return to field (site)

if

needed:Slide26

Return to field (site) if needed but do it fast!

Begin to assess a cat’s ability to cope at the intake check.

Reassess daily for first week

Make a firm keep-or-return decision by the 8th day to allow you to RTF before it’s too late.Discuss the potential for the need to release with finders/surrenderers at the time of intakeEnsure you do a basic neuter/single vacc/eartip prior to any release.Do not keep for months and years before deciding its feral.Slide27

www.millioncatchallenge.org

Case studies, webinars, full details of initiatives

www.icatcare.org

– contact for more details of the Cat Traffic Light Assessment (TLA) and Lincoln Cat Score.Acknowledgements: Dr Julie Levy, Dr Kate Hurley.Acknowledgements: My teams at Oak Tree and MSPCA who embraced changes and made them work.