Cats Indoors

FROM FILE URL
CONDUCTING A CATS INDOORS! CAMPAIGN IN YOUR COMMUNITY
Funded by The Pet Care Trust
Convincing cat owners, decision makers, and the general public that all cats should be indoors or under direct control when outdoors is an immense undertaking. However, with the right tools and a strong coalition, much can be
accomplished.

To support your efforts, ABC has developed many educational materials, including a brochure, fact sheets, posters, print, radio, and TV Public Service Announcements
(PSAs), an Educator's Guide for Grades K-6, and two Power Point presentations. Most materials can be downloaded from the Web site:
www.abcbirds.org/cats/catsindoors

Thousands of groups and individuals are conducting Cats Indoors! Campaigns in their area or state. This activist guide highlights a few initiatives, and offers tips on how to conduct a Cats Indoors! Campaign in your area.

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SUCCESS STORIES
Local Education Campaigns
The Humane Society for Seattle/King Co., Progressive Animal Welfare Society, Seattle Audubon Society, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Seattle Animal Control, King County Wildlife Program, and ABC formed the Puget Sound Cats Indoors Coalition. A new brochure was produced using local information and resources. The brochures are being distributed to the public through festivals, veterinarians, and animal shelters.

Local media has covered the issue. Action: Find local partners and conduct an education campaign in your area.

State-wide Campaigns
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FFWCC) and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Nongame Wildlife Program (MNDNR) are conducting state-wide Cats Indoors! Campaigns. Part-time coordinators have distributed
thousands of brochures and posters to veterinarians, humane societies, animal control agencies, wildlife rehabilitators, and nature centers throughout their state. The FFWCC also produced their own brochure, Impacts of Feral and Free-Ranging Domestic Cats on Wildlife in Florida. The MNDNR issued a state-wide press
release and distributed the TV PSA to major TV stations. Both agencies have Web pages on cats and a link to ABC's Cats Indoors! Web page.

Action: Encourage your state wildlife agency to adopt the
campaign, distribute materials, publish articles in their
publications, and create Web pages on the issue.


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SUCCESS STORIES
Media Campaigns
Each year, ABC and Wild Bird Centers of America co-sponsor National Keep Your Cat Indoors Day on the second Saturday in May in conjunction with International Migratory Bird Day. A children's poster competition is held to help publicize the event, and to teach kids that it is better for cats and wildlife when cats are kept indoors. ABC issues national press releases announcing the event and the winners. The releases and posters can be viewed and downloaded from our Web site. To celebrate the day in Los Alamos, NM, campaign supporters produced a display for their local library, and got their county commissioners to pass a resolution
endorsing the day.

Action: Use these press releases to advertise the event and the issue in your area. Ask your county commissioners to pass a resolution endorsing Cats Indoors!
County Park Campaigns Populations of stray and feral cats can be a problem in parks and other natural areas because people abandon their pets there. If park managers
do not remove the cats immediately, the cat population can quickly explode, as happened in some Miami-Dade County parks in Florida. To deal with a growing problem, the Board of Commissioners strengthened the laws against abandoning and feeding animals, and authorized staff to humanely remove nuisance animals. Cat advocates, who fed cats in the parks for years, strongly objected. ABC, Tropical Audubon Society and others formed the Natural Areas Coalition of South Florida to support the new legislation. Cats from the park have been humanely trapped and are being kept in an outdoor cat sanctuary pending adoption. Cats are no longer fed in the parks.

Action: If stray and feral cats are a problem in your local parks, ask park staff and commissioners to pass and enforce ordinances that prohibit feeding and abandoning animals, and to enforce anti-litter laws. Volunteer to trap the cats and take them to a shelter. Educate the public on the cruelty of abandoning pets and the need to remove the cats from the park. Support the park's efforts in the media.

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SUCCESS STORIES
National Park Campaigns
Stray and feral cats were killing endangered Piping Plover, Least Tern, Black Skimmer, American Oystercatcher and other shorebirds that nest on the beaches of Cape Hatteras National Seashore. The National Park Service (NPS) hired a biologist to humanely trap the cats and take them to a local shelter. In partnership with The Nature Conservancy, they also hired a coordinator to conduct a Cats Indoors! Campaign for residents and tourists. Education materials were developed highlighting
local information on cats and birds, and were distributed with campaign brochures and posters to veterinarians, animal shelters, and public officials in communities along the shoreline. Staff visited area schools, and published articles on
the issue.

Action: If cats are a problem in a national park near you, encourage the park to conduct a similar campaign, and publicly support their efforts.
Local Ordinance Campaigns Complaints about cats getting into garbage, and spraying
prompted a campaign supporter in Viroqua, WI to bring up the need for a cat leash law at a city council meeting. The activist made copies of Cats Indoors! materials from ABC's Web site and gave them to every council member. She also circulated a
petition for signature. The public safety committee drafted the legislation, which was approved by the council.

Action: If there is a cat overpopulation problem in your community, ask your city or county commissioners to pass cat control ordinances. For more information, please see the fact sheets: Cat Licensing; Get the Facts About Cat Law; and The Importance of Local Cat Ordinances.


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Coalitions: The Sum is Greater Than the Parts
As you can see, whether you are working at the local or state level, establishing a Cats Indoors! coalition may be your first and most important step. Partnerships enable sharing the work, and help give your campaign more clout. Give your coalition a name to show backing, stability, and continuity.

Identify, inform, and ask for the involvement of groups and individuals with a natural interest in the campaign, such as conservation groups, bird and garden clubs, veterinarians, humane societies, animal control agencies, wildlife rehabilitators, nature centers, and state or local wildlife agencies. College students and faculty members, especially those in wildlife resources or environmental studies, may provide an excellent source for leaders and volunteers.
Humane societies may join your coalition because free-roaming cats are at greater risk of suffering and premature death. If your objective includes animal control legislation, the active involvement of humane societies is essential. However, if you are addressing the problem of people feeding stray cats, these groups may or may not help, or may be your primary opposition. However, you may be able to agree to
disagree on the issue of feral cats, but work together on the issue of cat owners
keeping their cats indoors, spayed or neutered, and never abandoned.

Coalition Ground Rules
Once your coalition is formed:
Establish and articulate goals, objectives, strategies, time lines, and budgets.
Agree on procedures for clearing public statements and communicating among partners.

Define and assign tasks.
Meet regularly and communicate through other means such as e-mail.
Acknowledge and thank coalition partners for their efforts during and after the
campaign.

Communicate with ABC to find out what’s going on elsewhere, but also to share your
good ideas with others.


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Develop Your Case - The Very First Step
Presenting solid and compelling data is the first step in altering entrenched beliefs and behaviors. ABC's Cats Indoors! education materials will support your effort. However, addressing this issue at local and state levels also requires
information specific to your situation. The following are some suggestions:
Identify the natural attributes of your community or state, such as species of resident and migratory birds, or threatened or endangered animals vulnerable to cat predation. Define specific problems in parks or beach areas; and document incidents of cat predation on wildlife. Many parks have an inventory of wildlife occurring there. Factor the economics of birding in your community or state into your local case for support.

Analyze cat overpopulation and related problems in your area. Become familiar with existing laws and regulations affecting cats and wildlife and how well they are working. Find out how many cats: enter local shelter(s) each year; are stray; are
reclaimed by owners; are adopted or euthanized; and how many nuisance calls are generated about cats. Build a catalogue of local stories, problems and case studies
that support your position.


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Campaign Components
Issue campaigns usually have four components:
Campaign Agenda: with education, policy, research, and action goals Communications: getting the word out Mobilizing the grassroots: letter writing, telephone calls, rallies.

Fundraising: covering the costs
Campaign Agenda
Campaign plans have to be realistic and reflect the resources activists can muster and their capacities overall to conduct local campaigns. Objectives may include elements of any of the previously mentioned campaigns. Keep in mind that you may need to respond to an initiative from another source, e.g. an animal control agency proposal to regulate free-roaming cats.

Whether appearing before a local parks authority or testifying before the state legislature, knowledge of how the public authority operates and the advocacy skills needed are vital. Coalition partners and grassroots manuals such as those listed here can be very helpful. Information from organizations who have experience in working with the decision making body also can be very useful.

Communications
The capacity to do public relations and media work to create public support is crucial. If a coalition partner cannot supply this essential expertise, grassroots organizing manuals including those referenced in this fact sheet provide good guidance. Media can include major news stories, opinion pieces, radio or television interviews, articles in group newsletters, or letters to the editor of local papers. Make use of the campaign print, radio, and TV PSAs available from ABC, and please share your press.

A word of caution: media coverage on this issue can be problematic. This issue can be emotional, and reporters may use it to pit cats vs. birds or else incorrectly reflect the conservation or cruelty issue. This is why it’s important to have compelling documentation about cat predation, hazards to cats who roam free (see Cats Indoors! materials), and to seek out reporters interested in conservation.

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Mobilizing the Grassroots
Decision makers can be swayed by the number of people they hear from and who
these people are. In addition to core support from coalition members, visits to
individual decision makers, and testifying at hearings, it may be useful to
organize letter-writing campaigns, phone call blitzes, and even rallies. The
bibliography includes guides for grassroots organizing techniques.

Fundraising
Many effective grassroots campaigns are run on very small budgets. Costs may
be incidental, e.g., postage. Fundraising can be labor-intensive. Seek out in-kind
and cash contributions and fundraising help from organizational partners. Many
grassroots organizing manuals offer excellent suggestions for small fundraising
activities, and fundraising events can also help build awareness of the issue.

Sources of Information for Organizing:
Following are resources on how to organize for change in your community which
can be found in libraries, book stores, the INTERNET, or from the organizations
listed.

Alinsky, S.D. 1971. Rules for Radicals: A Pragmatic Primer for Realistic Radicals.
Vintage Books. New York. 196 pp.
Bobo, K., J. Kendall, S. Max. 1991. Organizing for Social Change: A Manual for
Activists in the 1990s. Seven Locks Press, Cabin John, MD. 271 pp.
Also, please see the following web sites:
“The Virtual Activist”: www.netaction.org/training/
“The Foundation Center”: www.foundationcenter.org
“The National Database of Non-profit Organizations." www.guidestar.org

For more information, contact:
AMERICAN BIRD CONSERVANCY
CATS INDOORS! THE CAMPAIGN FOR SAFER BIRDS AND CATS
1731 Connecticut Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20009
Phone: 202/234-7181; Fax: 202/234-7182; E-mail: abc@abcbirds.org; Web si

Cats indoors and feral cats

Felines fatales
Cats indoors!

Christmas Bird Count

2009 / 2010 Washington State Christmas Bird Counts
Monday, December 14, 2009, through Tuesday, January 5, 2010
information@wos.org

Spotted Towhee and Steller's Jay

My suet, and bird feeders are taking a beating from the local Steller Jays. I did manage to sneak a peek at a Towhee yesterday. The Jays, I believe are chasing away other birds at my feeders. They have really dominated my feeders in the past few days.
I noticed a few ducks at the pond that looked like Canadian Geese.

Red-breasted Sapsucker

This bird flew in and landed right beside me on this tree trunk. He then flew to the backside of the tree line and was followed by another sapsucker. I was really lucky to get a photo.

Bird Books

The New York Times Book of Birds, Edited by Nicolas Wade, The Lyons
Press, c. 2001- Originally published title: The Science Times Book of
Birds.

Birding Washington, by Rob and Natalie McNair-Huff, A FalconGuide, The
Globe Pequot Press, c. 2005.

Backyard Birds of Washington, How to Identify and Attract the Top 25
Birds, by Bill Fenimore, Gibbs Smith, c. 2009.

A Birder’s Guide to Washington, by Hall Opperman with contributions
from WOS, American Birding Association, c. 2003.

Field Guide to the Birds of Western North America, National
Geographic, Ed. by Jon L. Dunn and Jonathan Alderfer, c. 2008.

Birds of Washington State, by Brian Bell, Lone Pine Publishing, c. 2006.

The Photographic Guide to Birds of the World, Ed. Dr. Andrew Gosler,
Mallard Press, c. 1991.

Sibley Field Guide to the Birds of western North America, by David
Allen Sibley, Alfred A. Knopf, c. 2003.

Smithsonian Field Guide to the Birds of North America, by Ted Floyd,
Scott & Nix - Harper Collins Publishers, c. 2008.

Western Birds, by Roger Tory Peterson, The Peterson Field Guide
Series, Houghton Mifflin, Co., c. 1990.

Birds of the Puget Sound, by Bob Morse Tom Aversa Hall Opperman, R. W.
Morse Co., c. 2003.

Thistle Feeder

I put out a thistle feeder, which was snubbed by my chickadees. I am hoping to see a finch or two but it seems rather late The chickadees have ravaged the back feeder twice in one weeks time and infrequently enjoy the side feeders.

Yelm’s Tree Board, Tree Program and Greenhouse

Why wasn’t the OAK planted in Yelm? The Yelm City Plan should NOW include Thurston County’s Conservation Ordinance.

YELM TREE ADVISORY BOARD
The City of Yelm is dedicated to protecting and enhancing its urban forest. In 1996 the City of Yelm created the Yelm Tree Advisory Board (YTAB). The Board performed a street tree inventory and evaluation, and created an ordinance for the protection of trees and vegetation in the City, and conservation during development. The City of Yelm has been a Tree City USA since 1996, and has been awarded the Arbor Day Growth Award for the years 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2005. The Tree Board also created the City of Yelm 5-Year Urban Forestry Strategic Plan, for 1998 – 2002. The plan was updated for another 5 years, resulting in the 5-Year Urban Forestry Strategic Plan for 2004-2008. The plan has been an invaluable tool for the City and the YTAB, insuring the care and maintenance of City trees, keeping the Tree Board active in the community, raising awareness of the importance of an urban forest, and seeking monetary support.
The Yelm Tree Advisory Board meets the last monday of every other month at 4:00 P.M. at the Yelm City Hall.

City of Yelm Tree Advisory Board Mission Statement

The Yelm Tree Board is empowered to:

Contribute to and maintain a comprehensive community tree management program for the care and establishment of trees on public property;
Promote proper tree maintenance;
Advocate no net loss of the community’s urban forestry canopy;
Make recommendations to the City Council concerning ordinances, rules, and regulations that pertain to trees on public and private property that best serve the interest of the community;
Obtain public testimony and/or input as deemed necessary;
Promote public education about trees;
Develop innovative and joint funding for an urban forestry program from a variety of sources.
Current Yelm Tree Advisory Board members are:
Shawn Batstone
Kristin Blalack
Glen Cunningham
John Graver
Ashley Hetzel
Tim Peterson
Rick Roberts

Kevin McFarland, City Forester
Nisha Box, Assistant Planner
TREE PROGRAM
ADOPT-A-TREE
Adopt-A-Tree is the Yelm Tree Advisory Board’s (YTAB) fund raising campaign. The YTAB is working closely with the City of Yelm to raise funds to help maintain and improve Yelm’s urban forest.

What is an Urban Forest?

The land in and around a community, occupied or potentially occupied by trees, is an urban forest. This land includes parks, public planting strips, and trees on private property. In general, the urban forest is made up of all the trees in a community.

A Separate Fund

All the money raised through the Adopt-A-Tree program goes into a special fund, dedicated solely to urban forestry programs in Yelm. 100% of all donations will go to such activities as the purchase of trees, plantings, corrective pruning, and public education on the proper care and maintenance of trees.

Recognizing Your Contribution

The City of Yelm and the YTAB know the importance of Citizen and Business Community support in making Yelm a livable community. To thank you for your support, Adopt-A-Tree donors will be invited to the annual Arbor Day Celebration, hosted by the City and the YTAB, where donors will be recognized with a Certificate of Appreciation.

A list of donors will also be published in the Nisqually Valley News (approx. 4,000 circulation.)

How to Donate

For more information on donating to the Yelm Adopt-A-Tree / Memorial Tree program, contact Yelm City Hall, 105 Yelm Avenue West/PO Box 479, Yelm WA 98597, 360-458-3835. Your donation is tax deductible and you will be given a receipt.

Note: Checks and money orders can be mailed or submitted at City Hall. Cash donations may only be accepted at City Hall.

MEMORIAL TREE PROGRAM
Trees provide community benefits, and are a source of beauty as we go about our daily lives. They also provide a living link to our past.

Special People or Occasions

The Memorial Tree Program encourages tree donations to honor, memorialize, or celebrate a special person, place, or event. Examples include:

Births
Celebrate a special day
Weddings
Anniversaries
Memorials
New Buildings
Congratulations
Thank You
Graduations
Just Because
Reunions
Arbor Day
Special Achievements
For the Beauty of…
Location

Memorial Trees will be planted on City of Yelm property, including available spaces in parks, rights-of-way, or near City buildings. The City Forester will consult with City departments, to determine the best site for posterity.

Maintenance and Guarantee

Your donation covers all costs for planting and aftercare. Your tree will come under the regular care of the city staff. The City will provide mulching, watering, staking, pruning and other maintenance as needed. Trees which fail to thrive for any reason within five years of planting will be replaced.

Recognizing Your Contribution

All donations will be entered in Yelm’s Memorial Tree Register, kept at City Hall. This will record, for future generations, the person or event being celebrated, the date of the donation, and the donor. All donors will also receive a Memorial Tree Recognition Certificate.

Memorial Tree donations are accepted any time of the year, and a tree will be planted during the appropriate planting season. Your contribution of $50 or more, will cover the cost to plant and care for a tree normally at least 1.50 inches in diameter. In addition, donations of any amount may be earmarked for future tree projects. Donations are tax-deductible; please consult your tax advisor.

Your Memorial Tree will serve as a long term living memory to the past, growing in stature and beauty with each passing year, and improving our quality of life. There is no better investment in our surroundings.

NEIGHBORHOOD TREE GRANT PROGRAM
Imagine the City of Yelm as a city where every street is lined with trees. Since 2001, the Yelm Tree Advisory Board has offered free trees to citizens and neighborhoods within the City Limits of Yelm, who would like to beautify their streets with trees. Trees soften the hard edges of a city landscape, beautify neighborhoods, and clean the air of pollutants. Planting trees now ensures our children a greener city in the future. In its short lifespan, the Neighborhood Tree Grant Program has already provided 63 trees in 3 neighborhoods, at no cost to the recipients.

General Application Requirements:

Area for planting must be in City of Yelm, City-owned right-of-way, in the planting strips along the street, or the entrance into a development.
Streets must have a lack of trees, or a need for more.
Recipients are to sign a pledge and maintenance agreement to ensure proper care. A spring maintenance training may be required.
Applications must be submitted to the City of Yelm, Community Development Department.
Yes, it’s that easy!

As trees need to be planted in the Fall, newspaper articles and requests to submit applications for trees begin to appear in the Nisqually Valley News, and the Hawthorn Herald, around September and/or October. Once you see the notices and/or ads to apply, you should talk to your neighbors, distribute flyers, or make phone calls to find out how many people would like to beautify their streets with trees. Then submit an application.

Once applications are submitted, the Tree Board will schedule an inspection of all potential sites. They will then identify those neighborhoods that are to receive trees. Planting locations must be approved by the City of Yelm, and the Yelm Tree Board. The City will notify you of any changes to your request. You will receive an award letter from the Yelm Tree Advisory Board if you qualify to receive trees. Trees will be delivered to your site and City staff and Tree Board Members will be there to help plant the tree(s)! Neighborhood volunteers, or property owners are responsible for watering and maintaining the trees. This contribution is your “match” to the project.

YELM AVENUE HAWTHORNS
The YTAB and the City of Yelm have identified the Hawthorn Trees gracing Yelm Avenue as the first area to benefit from funds raised by the Adopt-A-Tree program. Originally planted in 1936, these trees have long been an important part of the City. Unfortunately, many of the Yelm Avenue Hawthorns are in poor health, suffering from the ill effects of improper pruning and/or disease. The Hawthorns will need special care over the next few years to bring them back to health. In addition, some trees will need to be removed and replaced with more resilient strains of Hawthorns.

Greenhouse
YELM TREE NURSERY & GREENHOUSE
The City of Yelm’s Tree Nursery and Greenhouse is a 4500 square foot area, located on the southwest corner of the Public Works Facility site. The construction of the nursery was a one-year special project, funded by a grant from the Department of Natural Resources under the Urban & Community Forestry Program, and contributions from the City of Yelm in 1999-2000. Horticulture and agriculture students from Yelm High School worked with City staff and other community members to install a watering system and then set young trees in the nursery to gain size and strength before being set out in plantings. Since that time, the nursery has been the home of many of the trees used in our Neighborhood Tree Grant Program, as well as many trees planted in our City parks and public rights-of-way.

Most certainly not a Kestral, but a Bohemian Waxwing

This wasn’t the Kestral I thought it to be, but a Bohemian Waxwing that landed in my rose bramble! He may have been looking for left over hips. The cardinal like plume and red/white spotted wings gives him away, even though he wears a mask.

According to the Seattle Audobon, this Bohemian Waxwing has not been recorded in the West Cascades. Well, he showed up in Thurston County today, folks!

“In some years they extend farther west into the Columbia Basin (Cle Elum and Ellensburg), and can rarely be seen west of the Cascades.”

I dunno? Did I see a rare bird in the West Cascades?

My bird had an orange head with orange breast and red and white spots towards the edge of his wing tips.

Many tweeters have been so helpful in identifying the four European Starlings today.

Yelm Community Wildlife Habitat

Yelm Backyard and Community Wildlife Habitat

Quail, Flicker, Grey Squirrels

A large number of quail are living in the briars and were seen in the field.

A flicker has visited on several days in the backyard and was heard in a tree towards the Southern most side. Usually, flickers are noticed on the Northeastern side only.

Squirrels are attacking my bird feeding station and the suet feeder. I moved the suet feeder so that it would be more of a challenge for them. There are three grey squirrels and a two large nests here.

I found a chestnut buried in the dirt. It was a rather large chestnut, too. I wonder when it was buried as the chestnut was still tender on the inside. I can’t imagine a squirrell packing that chestnut all the way over here to bury it. I have not noticed any nearby chestnut trees. I will have to investigate.

A flock of unidentified birds were visiting this week. Medium sized grey wings, black spotted/orange-red spotted breast, and usually are seen in the trees undercover. About 20 of them were feeding on the lawn after the dog and I took a walk. I’ve noticed this type bird in the bushes/trees earlier, but it has never come out of the tree line.

There have been flocks of European Starlings that are flying noisily from tree to tree.