February 9, 2021
ACTION ALERT: 
Tell your delegate to vote NO on S.B. 1390 and support a work group to develop a balanced approach to unowned cats
Photo: Courtesy of the American Bird Conservancy

The Virginia Senate has passed SB1390, which would legalize the release of unowned cats into the environment under programs known as trap, neuter and return (TNR). TNR allows people to release feral cats into the environment without addressing the harm that does to cat welfare, human health and avian and other wildlife. SB1390 is now before the House of Delegates. Contact your Delegate as soon as possible and urge them to vote NO on SB 1390.  

ASNV opposes this bill for these reasons:

  • Unowned cats kill more than 1.7 billion birds and more than 6 billion other animals each year in the United States.  They have a devastating effect on ecosystems and are the second-leading cause of the 30% decline in bird populations in the last 50 years.  
  • Scientific studies have shown that TNR programs do not reduce feral cat populations as TNR advocates claim.
  • Unowned cats in the environment are a human health hazard: they can spread disease to other animals and to people, with rabies and toxoplasmosis being particular concerns.
  • The lives of the released cats are short and brutal: releasing them to face starvation, weather, cars, predators and disease is inhumane.

A better approach than making TNR legal in Virginia would be for the House of Delegates to defeat the bill and direct the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources to analyze the science and develop a consensus bill that involves input from all interested parties and appropriately balances the interests of those who want to protect public health, cats and native wildlife.

You can identify your Senator and Delegate here: Who's My Legislator? 

Special note to people in Virginia House District 28, who are represented by Delegate Joshua Cole:  Please contact us at [email protected]. Delegate Cole is a member of the House Agriculture Subcommittee that will consider SB1390, and we could use your help in convincing him to oppose the bill.

Thank you for your consideration.

-Audubon Society of Northern Virginia
Photo: Courtesy of the American Bird Conservancy






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