OCEAN CITY – The Police Commission is forwarding a favorable recommendation to the Mayor and City Council to change the management of town funding for feral cat veterinarian services from local cat coalitions to Animal Control.
During Monday’s Police Commission meeting, the discussion of adopting an animal control ordinance in regard to feral cats and the allocation of city funding to control the health of feral cats in Ocean City was continued.
Traditionally, Ocean City has allocated funds to local Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return (TNVR) cat coalitions. Currently, there is $4,500 included in Fiscal Year 2016 Operating Budget for TNVR groups. The budget is scheduled to receive final approval next week.
Last month the commission held a meeting with Dr. Andrea Mathias of the Worcester County Health Department, which had requested the Town of Ocean City consider adopting an animal control ordinance similar to Worcester County that would define ownership of a feral cat.
Worcester County’s ordinance defines an owner of a dog or cat as “any person have the right of property in an animal or any person who keeps or harbors and animal or has it in his care or permits it to remain on or about any premises occupied or controlled by him for more than two weeks.”
The ordinance also states, “The provisions … shall apply to the County but shall not apply within the corporate limits of the Town of Ocean City… ”
“I have reviewed the County Code on animal control, and honestly it is much more comprehensive than what we have. We don’t really have anything about cats. It is mostly related to dogs,” City Solicitor Guy Ayres said on Monday. “The council sets aside money to fund the different groups who go out and feed the cats and provide vaccinations.”
According to Ayres, the county’s definition of owner would make the property owner of where the feral cats gather the actual owners. However, unlike county property owners, the majority of Ocean City property owners are not full-time residents.
“Opposed to the county, the majority of our [property] owners are not here, so if you have a property owner that resides in Pennsylvania and they only occupy the property in the summer and feral cats end up on their property in December for two weeks, they are now the owner of the cats? I don’t think any judge would uphold that,” Ayres said.
Mayor Rick Meehan pointed out the purpose of the town’s funds is to vaccinate and neuter/spay feral cats and not to feed them.
“Well that is what they are doing,” Ayres said of the cat coalitions. “Whether they are spending their own money on that and spending the money earmarked to spay/neuter I don’t know, but you are financing this group that is going out to feed these cats.”
Meehan recommended the town appoint a designated veterinarian to conduct veterinarian services to feral cats trapped by the cat coalitions, as well as Animal Control, therefore the funds are traceable.
“The first step would be an accurate accounting of the funds,” he said. “We choose a veterinarian, and those organizations can take cats that are trapped in Ocean City to that veterinarian to be spayed or neutered. There is no magical answer to this or it would have been resolved years ago, so I would like to see us at least take that step to clarify the immediate issue in regards to the funding.”
Meehan made a motion to forward a recommendation to the full council to have Animal Control manage the $4,500 to care for feral cats caught in Ocean City. The town will designate a veterinarian and when cat coalitions trap a cat and take them to the veterinarian to receive services they are to notify Animal Control. Once the services are completed, the vet bill is to be sent to Animal Control for payment.
Councilman Dennis Dare interjected the question of where the cats are to be released comes into play.
“There are two people who set traps, the animal organizations and Animal Control. If the cat organization sets a trap on their property or with permission to be on private property … the organization should be able to return the cat to that property since they have permission,” Dare said. “When Animal Control sets a trap, it is because of a complaint … I say if Animal Control has a complaint they trap the feral cat, and it goes to the Worcester County pound where it is held. If somebody, such as the cat coalition, wants to claim the feral cat then they can claim them.”
Meehan amended his motion to add Animal Control will be responsible in coordinating the release location of feral cats.
Dare was initially not in favor of the amendment because he felt that it was unclear when it comes to the two cases of feral cats trapped by cat coalitions or Animal Control.
Cymek offered arranging a meeting with Animal Control to discuss its opinion of where feral cats should be released. Dare agreed and the commission voted unanimously to approve the amended motion.