PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Tanya Copeland, Co-founder and President of Bronx Community Cats
2:55:36
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117 sec
Tanya Copeland, representing Bronx Community Cats, presented the organization's achievements in spaying and neutering cats in the Bronx, emphasizing the urgent need for more accessible and rapid spay/neuter services. She highlighted the disparities in pet care between boroughs and called for innovative solutions to address the high number of unfixed cats in the Bronx.
- Bronx Community Cats fixed over 3,600 cats in 4 years, with a record 1,138 in 2023
- 30% of animals fixed monthly are owned cats, showing a shift towards helping pet owners
- 40% of pet owners in the Bronx have unfixed cats, compared to 7% in Manhattan
- The organization stressed the importance of quick, high-volume spay/neuter services for maximum impact
Tanya Copeland
2:55:36
Hi.
2:55:37
My name is Tanya Copeland, and I'm the cofounder and president of Bronx Community Cats.
2:55:41
We're based in the 14th council district, and we would like to thank council member Sanchez for supporting and recognizing our work through discretionary funding.
2:55:51
In the last 4 years, we fixed over 36100 cats, including a record, 1138 in 2023 alone.
2:56:00
Sorry.
2:56:00
Including including a record 11382023 alone.
2:56:07
We were able to accomplish this with the team of diverse and motivated volunteers, primarily utilizing services provided by the ASPCA, as well as in seeing smaller private clinics.
2:56:19
In response to the alarming number of friendly, socialized cats that we're finding in our tracking projects, we decided to allocate more resources to owned pets.
2:56:30
Currently, 30% in the animals that we fix every month are owned cats.
2:56:36
When it comes to Speed Nuder, intensity matters.
2:56:39
And by that, I mean, it's not just the total number of cats that we're fixing, they have to be done the surgeries have to be done quickly in order to derive the most benefit from it, namely prevention of reproductive can serves.
2:56:54
The the brants can't wait another 3 to 5 years for another nonprofit clinic.
2:56:59
We really need innovative solutions immediately to address some of these issues.
2:57:05
40% of the pet owners in the Bronx still have unfixed cats, this is versus 7% in Manhattan.
2:57:13
A few of our volunteers have young children, including my cofounder who has two year old twins.
2:57:19
And so we're trying to envision a future where It's not normalized to see outdoor free roaming cats in large numbers, neglected animals, and we're hoping with the support of this council that we can see that to fruition.
2:57:33
Thank you.
Lynn C. Schulman
2:57:33
Thank you.