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Feral Cat Laws by State 2023
- In the absence of a state or local feral cat law, courts and juries may not be willing to assign rights or responsibilities to feral cat caretakers. It is possible, then, that individuals who care for feral cats in these places would not be required to comply with any of the requirements imposed on animal owners, nor would they be responsible for any damages caused by the animals’ behavior.
- Further, feral cat caretakers in such jurisdictions may have a difficult time protecting feral cat colonies from animal control agencies and the actions of private citizens.
- Intentionally killing a cat is a criminal offense in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, regardless of ownership.
- Further, feral cat caretakers in such jurisdictions may have a difficult time protecting feral cat colonies from animal control agencies and the actions of private citizens.
- Intentionally killing a cat is a criminal offense in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, regardless of ownership.
State | Covered by Law | Additional Details |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | No | |
| Alaska | No | |
| Arizona | No | |
| Arkansas | No | |
| California | No | |
| Colorado | No | |
| Connecticut | Yes | - Feral cats kept in residential or commercial areas must be registered with the town's animal control officer. - Feral cat keepers must sterilize and vaccinate the cat against rabies. |
| Delaware | Yes | - Delaware’s animal cruelty laws protect all cats from abuse, whether they’re owned or unowned or live indoors or outdoors. - Shelters and caretakers of free-roaming and/or feral cats should "trap-neuter-vaccinate-return" to reduce stray cat colonies. |
| Florida | No | |
| Georgia | No | |
| Hawaii | Yes | - Caretakers of feral cats must register with the contracted rescue group and establish a "trap-sterilize-return" process. - Rescue group responsibilities: Register caretakers of feral cats and maintain records, submit an annual report to the Department of Health. |
| Idaho | No | - According to Idaho Animal Code, property owners are responsible for the control of feral cats on their property. |
| Illinois | Yes | - Feral cat colonies shall be permitted and feral cat caretakers shall be entitled to maintain and care for feral cats by providing food, water, shelter, medical care, and other forms of sustenance, provided that the feral cat colonies are registered with and approved by a sponsor who is registered and approved by the Cook County Department of Animal and Rabies Control. |
| Indiana | Yes | - Community cat caretakers may provide food, water, shelter, and medical care for community cats, and are bound to follow the following Community Cat Program guidelines: - Trap cats for spay/neuter, ear tipping, and vaccination for rabies by a licensed veterinarian. - Return cats to where they were captured. - Provide adequate food and water every day. - Provide adequate shelter for the number of cats in the colony. - Seek assistance for any injured or ill cats. - Contact Indianapolis Animal Care Services to help find another caretaker if they can no longer properly care for your community cats. - Help community cats maintain a good neighbor status. - Report acts of neglect, cruelty, abandonment, or abuse directed against any cat(s) to the Mayor’s Action Center. |
| Iowa | No | |
| Kansas | No | |
| Kentucky | Yes | - Any person with feral cats on his premises must make a reasonable effort to capture or vaccinate the cats. |
| Louisiana | No | |
| Maine | No | |
| Maryland | Yes | - Anti‑cruelty laws protect every cat regardless of the owner. - Feeding, sheltering and/or otherwise caring for free-roaming cats shall not be deemed a public nuisance condition unless it disturbs the peace, comfort, or health of any person residing in the area. |
| Massachusetts | No | |
| Michigan | No | |
| Minnesota | No | |
| Mississippi | No | |
| Missouri | No | |
| Montana | No | |
| Nebraska | Yes | - Caretaker permit rules for cats colonies: - Colonies cannot have more than 20 adult feral cats at an address that is zoned residential. If such a colony is composed of more than 10 adult feral cats, the permit holder must reduce the number of such cats to 10 prior to the renewal of the permit. - There can be no more than 30 adult feral cats at an address zoned commercial. If such colony is composed of more than 15 adult cats, the permit holder must reduce the number of cats to 15 prior to the renewal of the permit. - Feral Cat Colony Caretakers must have the ability and desire to actively work toward decreasing the number of feral cats in a colony through humane trap/neuter/return (TNR). - Colony caretakers must provide daily care for the animals by providing fresh food and water. - Failure to reduce numbers of cats within the colony via trap/neuter/return (TNR) can result in the revocation of one's permit. |
| Nevada | No | |
| New Hampshire | No | |
| New Jersey | No | |
| New Mexico | No | |
| New York | Yes | - Feral cats are considered companion animals and therefore cannot be treated as wildlife or wild animals, nuisance or otherwise. - Caretakers are responsible for cat colonies. |
| North Carolina | Yes | - A feral cat caregiver is any individual registered to feed/water feral cats and/or feral cat colonies within the jurisdictional limits of the city, after having completed proper registration as defined by the following administrative and operational requirements: - No location established to feed/water a feral cat or feral cat colony shall be located within 100 feet of any residentially-zoned district. - A standard trap-neuter-release (TNR) form shall be provided by local SPCA shelter to all feral cat caregivers so as to register the cats and shall be filed at the shelter. - Adoptable cats/kittens shall not be returned to the colony. Cats/kittens with health issues (such as rabies or feline distemper) shall not be returned to the colony. - Photographs of all feral cats/kittens shall be taken. The information shall be input into the existing SPCA records. |
| North Dakota | No | |
| Ohio | No | |
| Oklahoma | No | |
| Oregon | No | |
| Pennsylvania | No | |
| Rhode Island | Yes | - Any person providing care or sustenance to feral cats for an uninterrupted period of sixty (60) days or longer shall be deemed the owner of said cats. - Programs for spaying/neutering are reasonable and effective means of reducing the population of abandoned or stray cats, and for eliminating the practice of euthanizing homeless cats, except those for whom euthanasia is an escape from suffering or a necessity to protect people and/or other animals from vicious behavior. |
| South Carolina | Yes | - Caretakers of feral cats are exempt from any provision of law regarding the feeding of stray animals, requiring permits for the feeding of animals, requiring the confinement of cats, or limiting the number of animals a person can own, harbor, or have in their custody. - A feral cat caregiver has the same right of redemption for feral cats as an owner of a pet cat, without conferring ownership of the cat on the caregiver. |
| South Dakota | No | |
| Tennessee | No | |
| Texas | No | |
| Utah | No | |
| Vermont | Yes | - Vermont law will recognizes that it is in the best interest of a community cat and shelter to put the cat through a TNR (trap, neuter/spay, return) program and return it to its outdoor home as quickly as possible. - Caregivers are not the legal owners of community cats. |
| Virginia | Yes | - In Virginia, feral cats fall under the definition of companion animals and therefore caregivers could potentially be charged with abandonment. - In Virginia, pet owners are required to provide companion animals with adequate food and water; adequate clean shelter and space; adequate exercise and care, including treatment, transportation, and veterinary care when needed to prevent suffering or disease transmission. |
| Washington | Yes | - Ordinance that promotes the utilization of Trap-Neuter-Return |
| West Virginia | Yes | - Feral cat colonies shall be permitted and caretakers shall be entitled to maintain them. - Feral cat colonies shall be under the sponsorship of appropriate approved TNR (trap, neuter/spay, release) programs. - Caretakers are responsible for the following: - Registering the feral cat colony with the administrator of the TNR program. - Vaccinating the colony for rabies; providing food, water and shelter for colony; removing kittens from the colony to foster homes; delivering annual reports on colony; and more. |
| Wisconsin | No | |
| Wyoming | No |
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- Michigan State University College of Law
- CT.gov
- Hawaii.gov
- Humane Society of the Palouse
- American Legal Publishing
- Indy.gov
- ASSOCIATION OF FISH & WILDLIFE AGENCIES
- The Beltsville News
- Nebraska Humane Society
- Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals
- South Carolina State House
- Alley Cat Allies
- West Virginia Legislature