1. Presents Neighbor Relations & Public Outreach With: Sheila Massey, Founder Morris-Jumel Cats – New York City Mike Phillips, President, Co-Founder of Urban Cat League

2. This workshop will offer: Approaches on how to build support for TNR within the community. Methods that have helped solve “people problems” involving feral cat colonies.

3. No Magic Wand…

4. Morris-Jumel Cat Colony Locations Enhancing Neighborhood Relations © 2014 Sheila Massey NYC Landmark © 2013 Sheila MasseyNYC Correctional Facility © 2014 Sheila Massey Grady Tate © 2013 Sheila Massey Mia, bodega cat © 2013 Sheila Massey

5. 2 Key Elements won support: Visible feeding stations forced public interactions. Being a people-advocate, not a cat-advocate. © 2014 Sheila Massey Enhancing Neighborhood Relations © 2011 Sheila Massey Mr. McMagee © 2011 Sheila Massey

6. Visible Feeding Stations TNR in action = opportunity Open, happy to discuss. Forget biases. Nothing in life is 100% consistent. Three-sentence spiel. Get name, contact info Focus: what’s in it for them? © 2014 Sheila Massey Enhancing Neighborhood Relations

7. Goal in these Encounters Goal: That they trust me, not that they like the cats. Talk to everyone as an ally. Find something to agree on. Serious: “Program of the Mayor’s Alliance for Animals”. Knowledgeable, capable person performing community service. © 2014 Sheila Massey Silver Daddy, ©2009 Sheila Massey Silver Daddy © 2009 Sheila Massey Enhancing Neighborhood Relations

8. Be a People-advocate Take their cat-complaints seriously. Don’t defend the cats. Offer solutions. Position self as helpful neighbor, not cat-advocate. There is no conflict: what we do helps people. TNR+M controls cat and rat populations. Most people are self-serving; they will go along with something if it makes sense and benefits them. © 2014 Sheila MasseyEnhancing Neighborhood Relations

9. TNR Caretaker as Community Helper Toxoplasmosis Cornell article Rare burgers and raw veggies Cats use garden plot as a litter box Solutions for gardeners Feral cats killing birds “Let’s document it (pix, dates)” “Bell” the friendly ones © 2014 Sheila Massey Coco Bean © 2011 Sheila Massey Enhancing Neighborhood Relations

10. Recap…. Remember goal and message. Don’t try to convince anybody of anything. Laissez-faire attitude. Who cares what they think. Their prerogative to dislike cats. Own it (why you do TNR). Stay with YOUR facts, your scripts. Ask for info / their help. Everybody knows a piece of the puzzle. Disarming. “Deep bench” for community cats. © 2014 Sheila Massey Courtesy of Philipp Rassmann Enhancing Neighborhood Relations

11. NYPD - Humane Law Enforcement Makes friends with the NYPD Monthly meetings at the local precinct “Community Council” http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/home/precincts.shtml Attend Public Safety Committee Mtg. of your Community Board http://www.nyc.gov/html/cau/html/cb/cb.shtml Same principles apply - serious, grounded; TNR as public service Hide the Catnip! Enhancing Neighborhood Relations © 2014 Sheila Massey

12. GOOD: Opportunity to teach; opportunity to positively resolve nuisance complaints; support and participation of the neighborhood BAD: Difficult to resolve complaints; low support & cooperation; cats might be criticized but you are still able to implement TNR and care for the cats UGLY: You or the cats are threatened and/or harmed The Good, Bad and Ugly

13. TNR diminishes the nuisance behaviors. Yowling while mating, Foul smelling marking of territory Fighting over mates and food AND NO MORE KITTENS!! Common Complaints :

14. Focus on the Person

15. Learn Negotiating Skills Careful of body language Learn to read people Be Approachable

16. 2 1 3 4 5 6 Property can change hands. Be flexible and be prepared to move shelters or feeding stations 7

17. Large Cities are full of diversity Gender differences Cultural differences Class differences How to get the TNR message through communication blocks? Language translators Cultural awareness Use animal-friendly person from that community Dealing with Differences:

18. Public Outreach to People Who DO Have Compassion for the Cats When You Do Have a Receptive Ear - Spread the Word About TNR “Expand the circle of Compassion” Albert Schweitzer Carry support literature. Recruit more people to do TNR. Include everybody on the team, no matter how small the contribution. Be “proud” about your involvement in serving the community. Give feral cats a “seat” by attending community forums. Be Patient: Make contact first, THEN make TNR converts.

19. What’s Success?

20. Table Visuals: Double-sided in Spanish! Have Literature Handy to Share

21. Show Bird Lovers This Video from Alleycat.org http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DTawDmrMxU Save the Birds

22. Questions:

23. See Resource Sheet!