LTC 323-2020 Thank you letter from the Animal Welfare CommitteeDocuSign Envelope ID: 904ADE5B-C924-472B-A91 F-87CD0944B09C
M IA M I B E A C H
NO. LTC# 323-2020 LETT ER TO COMMISSION
TO: Mayor Dan Gelber and Members of the City Commission
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DATE: September 17, 2020
SUBJECT: THANK YOU LETTER FROM THE ANIMAL WELFARE COMMITTEE
The purpose of this Letter to Commission is to provide a copy of a thank you message submitted by the
members of the Animal Welfare Committee to the members of the City Commission for expanding the budget
for the Trap, Neuter, Vaccinate, and Release (TNVR) Program during their July 17, 2020 Finance and
Economic Resiliency Committee meeting.
The City of Miami Beach (CMB) funded a TNVR Program via the PetSmart Charities grants
from mid-year 2012 through 2019 which totaled $288,855. Since then PetSmart Charities
has moved on and is working with other municipalities, in the hopes that the CMB program
is strong enough to stand on its own. Miami Beach currently has a population or
approximately 15,000 cats, and this grant allowed for the TNVR of approximately 1/3 of the
cats (5,137). This assistance has been crucial as per the Humane Society, female cats can
breed 3 times a year and have an average of 4 kittens per litter. In seven years, one
unspayed female cat and her offspring can produce 420,000 cats.
Current costs associated with TNVR are $20 to trap and $80 for the surgery. In addition, the
City also works with Soße Cats, an education-based organization that helps the City of Miami
Beach residents care for and control the City's homeless community cat population, with the
TNVR task. The City has supported Soße Cats in managing a Registered Cat Feeder
Program since its inception in the Summer of 2017. The Registered Cat Feeder Program
has helped educate, support, and organize those individuals that are kind enough to care
for the homeless community cat population. This program counts on the Registered Feeders
to not only feed and provide fresh water to the cats, but to also make the City/Sobe Cats
aware of any cats that have not been spayed/neutered (noted by a snip in the cats left ear),
so that they can work with that Registered Feeder to educate on TNVR options and
techniques.
Given all of these details, the Animal Welfare Committee would like to thank the Mayor and
City Commission for expanding the budget for the TNVR program during their July 2020
meeting. While the current need is much higher, this increase will provide for approximately
1,000 cats to be spayed or neutered while the Committee works with City staff to identify
potential programs to offset such costs." :~;WY questions or need additional information, please feel to contact me