08/16/2026
Borrowed from a good friend and great TNR partner!
The ugly truth about "free" TNR
We hear it every week:
āCan someone come trap these cats?ā
"Why do I have to pay? These aren't my cats, I just feed them because I don't want them to starve."
We understand.
Most people donāt realize what goes into TNR they just think it should be āfreeā and that someone else can handle it.
But hereās the truth:
That āfreeā service youāre asking for?
It's only free to the person asking, never to the people doing the work.
Every trap, every can of food, every drop of gas costs someone. Appointment fees, Capstar, dewormer, tuna, cat food, gas, even puppy pads to line traps, none of it appears out of thin air.
Each āfreeā TNR job costs hundreds of dollars before we even count the hours of driving, feeding, cleaning, trapping, and returning.
And behind every āfreeā service are real people.
Volunteers washing soiled traps in their driveways.
Loading and unloading scared community cats before sunrise.
Skipping dinners and losing sleep to make sure those cats get trapped, fixed, vaccinated, and safely returned.
This isnāt a hobby. Itās hard, messy, emotional, draining, real work.
āFreeā doesnāt mean easy. It means someone else is paying the price.
Through their time.
Through their gas tank.
Through their weekend.
Through their heart.
So next time someone says, "Well, these aren't my cats", remember they aren't ours either. These cats didn't ask to be there. Someone let it get to this point, and now we can work together to make it right.
If you canāt trap, donate š°.
If you canāt donate, share š£.
If you canāt share, educate š.
Because, behind every "free" TNR is someone quietly spending their own time, money, and heart to make sure cats don't keep multiplying in silence.
Every cat matters. Every caretaker matters. Every dollar helps!
Author unknown
