Trap-Neuter-Return, cat rescue and welfare

Adopt a River Cat, Inc. provides a humane approach to reducing outdoor feral cat populations providing non-lethal population control through the use of Trap-Neuter-Return. Adopt a River Cat, Inc. provides stray cats and kittens encountered as a result of Trap-Neuter-Return activities veterinary services, foster homes and opportunity for adoption into homes.

Founded in 1997, Adopt a River Cat (A.R.C.) is a no-kill organization based in the Fox Valley area that is dedicated to the spaying and neutering of stray cats and kittens. Many of these strays have been abandoned for so long that they have become feral. In other words, they have adopted an extreme distrust or fear of humans, and as such cannot properly be rehabilitated as household pets. These homeless cats tend to form colonies, where they interbreed and soon a population explosion occurs. The traditional reaction, or solution, to this problem has been to trap and kill the cats, but as it is a very costly method, it is only done in spurts, and as such, barely makes a dent in the population while opening new opportunities for colony growth.

Over the last decade, A.R.C. has been committed to providing a humane alternative to this method, by placing adoptable cats and kittens into no-kill shelters, or by following the standards of Trap-Neuter-Release (TNR). This approach mandates that feral cats be trapped, sterilized, and returned to a managed colony where food, shelter and medical care is provided.