In Virginia, pet owners are required to provide companion animals with “adequate feed, adequate water, adequate shelter that is properly cleaned, adequate space, adequate exercise, adequate care, treatment and transportation and veterinary care when needed to prevent suffering or disease transmission” (VA. It has even been argued that the 'return' step of TNR itself constitutes re-abandonment of a cat.įor example, in Virginia, feral cats fall under the definition of companion animals and therefore caregivers could potentially be charged with abandonment. If a person is deemed the owner of a cat there is a possibility they could be charged with abandoning the cat by leaving them outside. However, the law does not always differentiate between feral and pet cats, which can cause legal complications.

While caregivers love their feral cats, they often do not view the cats as “theirs.” Many people refer to feral cats as “community cats” because the cats live outside among human neighbors and are not owned by anyone in the traditional sense. One municipality may make a specific exception in their feeding ban for those who feed feral cats, while another just a short distance away may explicitly prohibit the feeding of feral cats. Furthermore, there is no consensus on these laws. This leads to confusion about important questions of whether caregivers “own” feral cats and whether they can be held liable for any damages the cats may cause.

Only 14 states and the District of Columbia have laws that even use the phrase “feral cat.” Many laws affecting outdoor cat group caregivers are at the county or town level and may not even address feral cats at all. Most people wouldn’t think about the legality of their actions before stepping in to help cats in need, but unfortunately there are issues that can come up when caring for feral cats such as ownership, civil liability, feeding bans, and leash laws.įeral cat laws can be confusing and convoluted, especially when considering that there are no federal laws regarding Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR).

These caregivers will often spay/neuter the cats and provide food and shelter. There are many compassionate people who find cats living outside in their neighborhood and immediately act to help the animal.

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