1) INTRO
Our strategy toward this project was to first give consideration to local community groups that are supportive of felines and for which there was a shared interest within our group. Cats are of particular interest because of the unique nature of their relationship with humans; cats are a domestic companion, but they maintain an autonomous nature of their own in the wild.

2) SELECTED COMMUNITY: MERRIMACK RIVER FELINE RESCUE SOCIETY
After looking at many community groups we have settled on working with the Merrimack River Feline Rescue Society.[1] The MRFS distinguishes itself through the extent to which there programs have been developed.

Programs include:
• Adoption Program - 2 adoption centers in Salisbury and Danvers. Homeless cats and kittens and special needs cats. Approximately 1,000 cats are adopted out each year by the MRFS.

• Offsite Adoption Events - hosted by partnering pet shops.

• Foster Homes - 30 volunteer foster homes where cats and kittens can live until permanent housing is found for them. 300 cats are currently cared for by foster homes.

• Barn Relocation Program - a program for relocating feral cats into barns (run out of their Salisbury location); there are approximately 30-50 participating barns.

• Feral Program - 30 dedicated volunteers for 12 feeding stations in the Newburyport waterfront and industrial park.

• Danville Feral Cat Sanctuary - sanctuary for feral cats and special needs cats with feline leukemia. Housing approximately 60 cats in indoor and outdoor environments.

• Trappers Network - support network for volunteers that trap feral cats across the state.

• Spay Neuter Program - vets donate clinic and services to spay, neuter and vaccinate cats two times a month.

• Friends of Animal Low Cost Spay Neuter Certificate - discounts for low income people to get their cats spayed or neutered.

• Volunteer Program
The MRFS functions through donated time, funding and services. Funding for the organization is entirely derived from individual donations and grants provided for by partnering businesses. The shelter currently operates on 300,000 dollars annually. There are currently 5 salaried part time employees that operate the day to day matters. The majority of work hours are donated by various kinds of volunteers which include:
- helping with help care at all locations
- cat care
- adoption counseling
- foster homes
- feral cat trappers and feeders
- administrative help
- help with fundraising

3) FERAL CAT COLONIES
Of particular interest are the Feral Cat Programs offered by the shelter. The problems associate with feral cat colonies center on population control as opposed to an issues of abuse which are more typical of animal care. We will be focusing on aspects of how the feral cats structure their colonies and how this feeding program tries to work within this system.

We are interested in understanding better the feral cat colonies relative to the insertion of these programs initiative by MRFS including feeding stations, a sanctuary (Danville), barn relocation, spay/neuter efforts including trapping processes.

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[1] MERRIMACK RIVER RELINE RESCUE
Location: Salisbury
63 Elm Street (Route 110 East) Salisbury, MA
978-462-0760
http://mrfrs.org/feral_prog.html

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