National Feral Cat Day is a holiday observed annually on October 16th. As the name of this holiday suggests, it is a day designed to raise awareness about stray cats and to implement Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) programs across the United States. People throughout the country use this day to help keep feral cat populations at manageable levels.

Current estimates indicate that there are approximately 70 million feral cats in the U.S. alone. That number is nearly equal to the number of cats owned by Americans. Often, these feral cat populations suffer due to a lack of food and medical care, and from being struck by automobiles. However, everyone can help prevent this by observing this holiday.

The History of National Feral Cat Day

National Feral Cat Day was first introduced to the public in 2001. Its purpose was to raise awareness about “community cats” (the term given to stray or feral cats) and to promote the use of Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) programs. These programs help prevent feral cat populations from spiraling out of control. The popularity of this holiday has increased every year since its creation and has helped prevent millions of cats from being born on the streets.

Some Important Facts About Feral Cats

We wanted to delve deeper into the plight faced by feral cats, so we conducted some research on the subject. Once we had the information, we couldn’t resist sharing it with everyone reading this article. With that said, please check out the following facts for more information about feral cats.

• Feral cats are domestic cats that are not socialized to humans. Many of them are born on the streets.
• Stray cats are domestic cats that have been separated from their homes.
• Many TNR programs have evolved into TNVR programs. TNVR stands for Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return.
• Approximately 70% of stray cats taken to animal shelters are euthanized.
• Almost 100% of feral cats taken to animal shelters are euthanized because they are not candidates for adoption.

Observing National Feral Cat Day

National Feral Cat Day can be observed by anyone who wants to get involved. All a person needs to do is volunteer for or donate money to an organization that participates in a TNR program. People can also spread the word about this holiday to raise awareness of TNR programs by using the hashtag #NationalFeralCatDay on social media.