[BCNnet] Cats Indoors campaign

[Judy Pollock]

This is an update from the Cats Indoors campaign which may be of interest to
anyone thinking of doing something similar here.

Dear Cats Indoors! Campaign Supporter: It’s been a while since the last
campaign
update, so there’s a lot to tell you. But first, I want to let you know that
there will be a change in the format of this year’s national children’s poster
competition for National Keep Your Cat Indoors Day on May 10. Instead of a
nationally publicized competition, we encourage you to consider your own local
or state-wide poster competition. We feel that the opportunities for publicity
are better at a local level, and more local competitions will allow for far
more winners than we have been able to select previously. If you do decide to
go ahead with a local competition, please contact me for a sample announcement
and press release. We’ll be happy to receive the winning poster, and will
select a national winner from among the winning posters we receive from each
local competition. You may also want to get your town or county officials to
pass a resolution endorsing National Keep Your Cat Indoors Day, such as the
one
passed by Los Alamos County, NM. Please contact me for a sample resolution. 

Veterinarian Outreach Campaign: Thanks to a grant from the National Fish and
Wildlife Foundation, we are mailing to 11,400 small animal practice owners who
are members of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA).
Veterinarians will receive a cover letter, brochure, return envelope/order
form, and a small 4-color poster to hang in their waiting or exam room. In
addition, a full-page color ad will appear in the March 15 issue of AVMA’s
Journal. Both the poster and the ad have been endorsed by the Association of
Avian Veterinarians and the Alliance of Veterinarians for the Environment. To
help measure success of this outreach effort, a Web page has been designed for
veterinarians to sign a pledge supporting keeping cats indoors at:
www.abcbirds.org/vets. If you are a veterinarian, please take a moment to sign
the pledge and let us know if you would like to receive the new poster for
your
practice.

College Campus Campaign: College campuses are well-known for stray and
feral cat
populations. We are launching a campaign to reach college students on how they
can make their campus cat and wildlife friendly. A full-page ad will appear in
the April issue of Conservation Biology, and an e-mail notice will be sent to
hundreds of student environmental and animal welfare groups on the
Internet. To
help measure success of the student campaign, a special Web page will be
advertised where students can sign a pledge of support and download campaign
materials at: www.abcbirds.org/campus. If you are a college student, please
sign
the pledge and help publicize the campaign on your campus.

New Jersey Campaign: Thanks to a grant from the Geraldine R. Dodge
Foundation, a
state-wide New Jersey Cats Indoors! Campaign has been launched, led by New
Jersey Audubon Society (NJAS). NJAS has hired a project manager, Brian
Vernachio, and is distributing thousands of Campaign brochures, posters and
other materials through its nine nature centers, state Audubon Chapters, and
mailings to veterinarians and animal shelters. NJAS will also host a Cats
Indoors! Web page with downloadable materials. Special media attention will be
focused on coastal areas where stray and feral cats are a problem for nesting
shorebirds such as Piping Plover.

Kentucky Campaign: A Kentucky state-wide Cats Indoors! Campaign is getting off
the ground. I recently gave a slide presentation at the Kentucky Wildlife
Rehabilitators Association annual Conference, and met with staff of the
Kentucky Dept. of Fish & Wildlife Resources (KDFWR) and Kentucky Dept. of
Parks. KDFWR is incorporating parts of the Power Point slide presentations
(downloadable from the Web site) to reach 80,000 5th and 6th grade students
throughout the state, and the Salato Wildlife Education Center is distributing
brochures to visitors. The Kentucky Audubon Council ran an article on the
Campaign in its newsletter which was sent to all of its members, along with a
copy of the Cats Indoors! brochure. The Kentucky Ornithological Society will
distribute brochures at its Spring meeting. 

Martin County, FL Pet Law Passed: It took several years of hard work and many
meetings, but thanks to the efforts of some very tenacious people, including
Susan Beattie of the Wildlife Rehabilitation and Refuge Center, and Dan
Martinelli of the Treasure Coast Wildlife Hospital, Martin County, FL recently
passed a law prohibiting pets from roaming off their owners properties unless
restrained. After Ms. Beattie brought the problem of so many free-roaming cats
to the county commissioners, the county formed a Task Force with
representatives from the wildlife rehabilitation community, the local Audubon
society, Conservation Alliance, SPCA of Treasure Coast, the Humane Society of
Treasure Coast, and veterinarians to make recommendations on controlling the
estimated 20,000 to 30,000 stray and feral cats in the county. The group
disbanded after a year of un-resolved conflicts between wildlife groups and
Trap/Neuter/Release advocates, but the task force members did all agree that
pets should be prohibited from roaming off their owner’s property. When asked
what she would recommend to activists working for similar laws in their
communities, Ms. Beattie said, "Don’t ever give up, or give in."



Judy Pollock
Evanston (Cook)
bobolnk@ix.netcom.com