Call or Text Us: 254-776-7303
CommCAT
Community Cat Action Team
CommCAT is ABC's busy and successful Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program.
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TNR is the humane process which calms troublesome reproductive behaviors and reduces the outdoor cat population. CommCAT provides access to affordable vet care, TNR coaching, and trap loans to create happier, healthier, calmer neighborhoods and keep outdoor cats from entering shelters where positive outcomes are unlikely,
How TNR at ABC Works
1. Rent a Trap from ABC
2. Trap the Cat
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Text or call us at 254-776-7303 to confirm trap availability. Squirrel-size traps are not cat safe and will not be accepted.
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Pick up the trap at ABC with a $50 deposit (per trap for one week of use). If you like, the deposit will be returned when the trap is returned to us, or you can choose to apply the deposit toward the cost of care, or donate it to help the clinic's community work.
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Sign the Trap Rental Agreement and go through a quick orientation, if needed.​
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Cost of Care:
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Cat Neuter: $35
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Cat Spay: $45
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Rabies Vaccination: $15
If you need financial support, ask staff if funds are available prior to services when you rent the trap.
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Cats in traps do not need an appointment, but they will be eartipped. If you don't want an eartip for a cat, schedule an appointment to bring the cat in a carrier or crate.
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Use a predictable feeding schedule to increase the likelihood of swift trapping success. Don't overfeed prior to trapping. Fast the cats for a few hours if you can.
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Pick a discrete area near where the cats normally eat.
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Set the traps on grass or another surface that will not get hot or on a blanket or sheet.
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Ideal Prep: Prior to planned trapping, place a spoonful of food just inside the unset trap to help the cat be comfortable with the trap.
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Check traps often (within 15-30 minutes) after setting them. Don't leave cats unattended.
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When you trap an eartipped cat, release it or set it aside if you have more than one trap or it keeps going in after the food.
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Kitten Tips:
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Kittens can receive surgery and rabies vaccines at three pounds or 12 weeks of age, so plan trappings for them. Although they are quite small, they recover from surgery great. This also prevents many that go into heat to begin reproducing around four months of age. If in doubt on size, text a good photo to ABC, 254-776-7303.
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Female cats go into heat while they are still nursing kittens, so act quickly and trap with determination. Ask clinic staff about the trapping process for a mother with unweaned kittens.
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Don't take pediatric kittens away from nursing mothers.
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Mother cats have better survival rates than humans caring for kittens. They usually move their kittens two to four times before they are weaned. Allow her to care for them. Learn more at Waco Animal Guide.
3. Transport the Trapped Cat
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Cover the trap with a sheet or towel to calm the cat for their time near humans and the car ride.
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Bring the cat in the trap; do not attempt to open or transfer the cat to a carrier, or try to separate two cats that may have been trapped at once. We will separate.
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Bring trapped cats in Monday through Thursday between 7:15 am and 5:00 pm (avoid Thursdays from 3-4 pm). No trapped cats on Fridays without special clinic management approval.
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Cats in carriers or crates require appointments.
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You may bring up to five trapped cats in at a time without special approval.
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To avoid an extra trip to return the trap, bring your own cat carrier with you. The cat will wake in the carrier, so you can release the cat on the morning after surgery from the carrier.
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If you aren't certain you've gotten all the cats in your area, including the shy ones that don't allow you to see them, review our Advanced Trap Tips and/or ask to chat with ABC's TNR experts.
4. Return the Morning After Surgery
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Return to the cat's outdoor home where it relies on knowledge of food, water, shelter, predators, traffic patterns, and familiar cats and humans.
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Continue trapping right away for the shyest cats that won't allow themselves to be seen by you, or return the trap to the clinic quickly (they are urgently needed by many others in our community).
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If you need to keep the trap(s) longer than a week, text or call us at 254-776-7303.
We have a limited trap bank, so fees will be charged for traps returned after a week unless you communicate with our team. There is a two-week maximum rental. You can loan again later. -
Maintain: This is a critical part of TNR. A new cat without an eartip will roam into your area and need to join your group at some point. Act fast to prevent a litter that will set you behind. ABC has limited resources to support litters that can be prevented. Assume that the new cat is there to stay, is likely a female, and is already in heat. Trap within one week of seeing a new cat that may be scouting your location for it's next reproductive cycle.
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Prepare to adjust your feeding amounts up or down to meet the needs of your cats. Seasons, numbers of cats, activity levels, etc. will affect how much food they need.
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Thirty minutes of food, twice a day is the nationally recognized feeding guideline. If your cats have eaten the food in less than 30 minutes, leave a little more at the next feeding. IF the cats have food left after 30 minutes, reduce at the next feeding. remember, outdoor cats are resourceful survivors and will find additional food sources.
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Avoid leaving food available after dark, as this brings interactions with wildlife that have other food sources and environments better suited for them. This reduces spread of disease and perils for pets and people, and reduces risk from other members of the area food chain.
Request Assistance
Having trouble trapping a cat? Our team would love to discuss trapping tips and offer assistance. Reach out to us today at 254-776-7303 (text, or call).
Address
3238 Clay Avenue
Waco, Texas 76711
Call or Text
254-776-7303
General Hours
Mon - Fri
7:15 am - 5:30 pm
Surgery Patient Check-In
Mon - Fri
7:15 am - 8:30 am