Heath Dept sent me letter about my ferals! Need advice

Hi fellow rescuers,
I've been feeding 2 feral cats in my back yard for over 4 years. The same two. Other strays come and go, but these two were always in my backyard. They are both neutered, one of them has been to the vet this past winter and had his shots, and is very healthy. We live in a town home with a fenced in backyard, it is in a complex with 60 houses.
I received the following letter from the North Bergen NJ Heath Department, dated 7/1/14,

Dear sir /Madam,

Complaint filed with this office regarding stray cats being fed. This must be stopped, as this is not permitted by the North Bergen Township Law, and poses many health risks to yourself as well as your neighbors.

Failure to stop will result in court summons and all fines. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

Sincerely,
Jeanine Bunero
Public Health investigator
North Bergen Health Dept


I want to call them and say the 2 cats are my outdoor cats. ( not sure if I have to provide records?), which I do not have, except for vet visits. What I am most afraid of is Animal Control coming in and taking the cats. Has anyone experienced this before? Or has advice for me. Thank you guys. I am very upset and worried.

I'd provide copies of their vet records to prove they've been neutered and vaccinated (can you get the second cat up to date on shots asap?) In many counties, feeding, vaccinating, etc., automatically make you the legal owner. Is there anything about that on the county / township website? You should also check whether you're liable for cat license fees and if there's a limit to the number of pets you can have in that twshp.

Thank you for your advice! I am going to call my vet on Monday for the records of the one cat. The other cat is much harder, as he is very feral and extremely skittish, I don't know if I can catch him. Hopefully the Heath department will just let this go after I provide some records. I went on our town's website and the only information provided was that Animal Control was in charge of the strays. I will have to call on Monday morning to find out more.
A little more worrisome though, obviously one of the neighbors complained about my 2 Ferals. If the town doesn't do anything, I am afraid whoever complained will take matters into their own hands.

I had a similar worry a few years ago when a next door neighbor threatened to "take action" because I was leaving dry food out for my feral on my porch during the day. She saw a baby groundhog on my porch and was concerned that I was attracting wildlife to our properties (which is silly, because there is a patch of woods around us and there will always be wildlife such as groundhogs coming to munch on our lawns).  If you have veterinary records and rabies certificates for these cats, then they are legally your cats, period. You tell the authorities that these are your two outdoor cats that you've had for four years. It would be good if you informed your neighbors that it is illegal for them to shoot, harm, or poison your cats, and you will take legal action if any of them harm them in any way. You might also speak with your local police and inform them of the situation. Have you ever used a humane trap on the cats, like when you got them to the vet to be neutered? If you have, then you can rest easy about neighbors or animal control trapping them--ferals will almost never go into a trap a second time. If there are concerns about this, you can email their pictures to your local animal control and animal shelter so they have them on record should your cats be brought in.

It would be good if you could find out which neighbors complained, and have a frank conversation with them about how you are caring for your cats. The neighbor who threatened me two years ago has not bothered me since. I have told her that if my cat ever does anything he shouldn't on her property, to let me know, and I will clean it up. Communication is the key, whenever possible.

Good luck, and let me know what happens. 

Thank you MsAimee for your great advice. I contacted the animal organization I used to work with, they seem to think that the best way is to just leave food down, directly on the ground. With no evidence of feeding. I do not like that idea, because I am more worried about the cats being caught by Animal Control, than me getting fines. If I can legally claim the cats are my own, I wouldn't have to worry about either. I have to find out if my town allows cats being outdoors, that would be key. And then I will contact the Health Dept with records

How is it that the cats were caught to be neutered and vaccinated? Did you trap them with a humane trap? This is the method Animal Control uses to catch feral cats. If you've trapped them in a humane trap before, they very likely will not go into one again. Feral cats have a very long memory about traps once they've been trapped and will avoid them even if they're starving. I know this from experience, as well as from reading up on the subject, as I have a feral tom I've been trying to re-trap, unsuccessfully,  for two years. If Animal Control is unable to trap them with a trap, then they will be unable to catch them at all, because the ferals won't allow themselves to be grabbed by someone unfamiliar.

Is there a place by your town house that is your property--a front or back porch, or somewhere near your door where you can feed them? The police in my neighborhood told me I can leave food out on my porch if I want to because it's my property and I do whatever I want on my property. I don't understand how these so-called ordinances about not feeding stray cats are even legal if you are feeding them on YOUR property.

The other option is to get them on a feeding schedule--sunset and sunrise--or some time convenient for you--so they only come when you're out there and you don't have to leave food out.

It would be helpful if you could talk to your neighbors and find out why they are complaining. Are the cats making noise or spraying on their property? Some people just hate cats for no reason. Maybe you could hang up a flier in a common area of the housing complex with the cats' pictures on it, stating that they are your cats, and are vaccinated and neutered, and that you would be willing to answer any concerns they have. Depending on the kind of neighbors you have, this could either work well or create more problems by drawing more attention to yourself.  

Will either of them come into your house?

Another option is to build an enclosure, depending on how large your back yard is and whether the HOA will allow it.  Just a thought ...

Thank you guys for your great advice. The enclosure isn't an option, as the town home association wants all the homes to look uniform. We aren't even allowed to put a window AC up in the front windows. I went and met with an animal rescue organization located in my town. I was told that North Bergen Township does not allow cats to be outdoors. They advised me to call the health Dept and tell them that my 2 cats got out, and I have been trying get them back indoors. They think that the town will make me license the cats, which wouldn't be a problem, and that they would leave me alone after. I was also told that the town has been ticketing people for feeding Ferals, but that it's been towards people who are feeding on public streets and areas, not like me, in my own private backyard.
I also did research as far as Animal Control goes, the town contracts out, and it specifically said that the Animal Control Officer does not pick up or deal with " crocodiles, alligators, whales ( really!), and feral cat colonies". I guess that means they won't be actively going around trapping feral cats. Tomorrow I will be calling the Health Dept, to see if I can resolve this. I will ask them which of my neighbors complained, I doubt they will tell me.

msAimee I really like your idea of putting up pictures of the 2 cats, and leaving my phone number for my neighbors to talk to me. I will likely do that if I can't resolve this with the Health Dept. Thanks again for your advice and help!

Ps, one cat was trapped using the humane trap, the other was very sick when I got him, I was able to just grab him and put him in the carrier. He is the friendlier of the two, at least to me and my boyfriend. I have never seen him approach anyone else. I was able to grab him last night and put a breakaway collar on him. That should at least save him from being captured if animal control comes.

Update- I contacted the Humane Society and they gave me some very good info. They gave me the contact info for a NJ animal lawyer who deals with this type of thing all the time, she might be able to help me research my town's ordinance. also if I wanted to pursue my town adopting a TNR program. I am speaking with my local animal organization again tomorrow, I know they've had a meeting with the town previously and was denied a TNR program. Only issue is, do I want to call ore attention to myself at this point? Would my cats be in danger because I am starting something with the town? Will know more tomorrow.

Good luck and thank you for sticking up for your ferals.

I'm wondering if it is possible to get collars and tags on them?  I know that would be difficult with ferals, but it would show they are "someone's cats".  I haven't had issues like this in Union County, but I have had a rescue organization tell me they were thinking of catching one of my (indoor outdoor) cats, a rehabbed feral who tends to wander, because she doesn't have a collar and they thought she was a stray.  just a thought.

Man I hope you get around the issue. What a crummy neighbor.

Vibes for you tomorrow.  I will be thinking about you!

Sorry Kittyglitter, I missed that you already got at least one collar on, good for you.  Best of luck with the lawyer and all.

I'm in Bergen county myself, and the animal shelter in Teterboro has someone informed about ferals, TNR, and is in charge of the trap rentals. I'd recommend talking to her. Call the shelter between 8:00 am and 4:30 (I know she's there most of the week). Just say you have a question about feral cats, and they'll direct you to her.

There are a number of places here adopting TNR. Our block has many homes caring for ferals. And even the ones that don't care for cats are happy with their garbage cans no longer being raided. The local skunk had relocated as well. Everyone is content with it.

Honestly, make it sound like you're trying to help everyone. They deter nuisance animals, like mice, raccoons, possums, skunks, etc. They have controlled population, they are vaccinated. It'll be beneficial to the entire town, whether they like cats or not. If you go about it the right way, it shouldn't be a big deal.

That said, I am surprised North Bergen is that far behind with all this. TNR has been growing over here. Just tell them all the other towns are doing it, and its been great for them. Lol Its not like they have to pay for it. It just means they get to ignore annoying nosey neighbor's complaints. ;-)

Hi everyone!
I must of missed the last few posts from July of last year, I never got email notifications about them and I thought no one posted anything! That is why I never updated. Another person on the site has a similar problem and private messaged me, she said I never posted about what happened to the cats. Thanks everyone for your great advice and well wishes!
I found out 3 of my neighbors all got the same letter from the health dept, ( who knew so many of my neighbors were feral friendly) and they all ripped them up. Apparently there is an old cranky lady in our complex who really hates cats, and she's the one making the complaints. We all take care to NOT leave traces of food after a feeding, and it's been 8 months with no complaints!
Unfortunately with the TNR program, our mayor Sacco had a meeting with the local animal organization. He listened politely and dismissed them. He refuses to admit North Bergen has a feral problem. Sigh. That is the fight we have to keep battling. ASTRAEL I really like your idea about approaching it like we are helping everyone! I will try to get my animal organization to get another meeting with our Mayor, he IS up for reelection in May, lol.
Again, thanks for all the support and good vibes you guys have given me! [emoji]10084[/emoji]️[emoji]10084[/emoji]️[emoji]10084[/emoji]️

Thanks for the update.  I am so happy to hear the kitties are all safe.  Keep working with the mayor.  Maybe he won't get reelected!

Hi Kittyglitter,

Thanks for the update. How nice to know that there are other neighbours who feed the cats as well as you. It might be a long battle getting your town to take responsibility for the feral cats, but just keep at it and you'll get there in the end.

Glad to hear your cats are safe for now.