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DRAFT <br /> <br /> <br />so was the final significant stage of the county’s strategic plan for managing pet overpopulation. <br />It has been through the implementation of this plan that animal intakes and admissions have <br />been dramatically decreased. <br />The task force held 13 public meetings between December 2013 and July 2014. Many of these <br />meetings were “listening sessions” for partners in the community, cat caregivers, wildlife <br />advocates and experts, and the general public. There was considerable discussion of issues <br />and viewpoints, but a shared enthusiasm to address the problem of free-roaming cats more <br />directly in a humane and responsible manner. <br />Many other communities are addressing the issues of free roaming cats as well.3 Orange <br />County’s task force studied the different methods and approaches of these areas when forming <br />the strategies and goals that are recommended in this report. It is apparent that this is one of <br />the most significant issues currently facing communities throughout the country, and a true <br />frontier for the field of animal services. <br /> <br />2. Problem <br />As a major concern for animal welfare and companion animal management, free-roaming cats <br />are a multifaceted problem in Orange County and in communities and jurisdictions across the <br />country. They drive the annual cycle of shelter operations, but their impacts are also felt on <br />community health and livability and human co-existence with wildlife. These and other facets <br />are part and parcel of the prevailing bond between people and cats in our communities and <br />culture. Improved management thus will require changes in this bond. <br />It needs to be stressed that free-roaming cats do not form a homogeneous population. Rather, <br />there are several different groups that together impact our county. These include: <br />“Loosely owned” cats: It has long been recognized that the bond of cats and people in <br />contemporary society differs from dogs in its looser nature. Testimony during task force <br />meetings indicated that many families have one or more inside cats but also sometimes <br />feed and provide less substantial shelter for one or more outside cats that they do not <br />claim as their pets. These cats are not owned in a traditional sense, but are also not <br /> <br />3 As referenced in Managing Community Cats: A guide for Municipal Leaders, published in 2014 by the <br />Humane Society of the United States for distribution through ICMA.