Shelter Chief Thinks Every Cat Congregation is a Managed Colony

The head of San Angelo's Animal Shelter isn't constrained by city ordinances.  Shelter Chief Morgan Chegwidden wrote in an e-mail:

I think it’s splitting hairs to distinguish (1) spontaneously occurring cats not dependent on a human for a source of food and (2) registered colonies.

I understand the ordinance has a specific definition but we’re observing any where that cats congregate – I’d call that a colony. A colony can simply mean a group of one or more community cats.

She gets to call any collection of cats a colony, even though there are very different steps spelled out for group 1 vs. group 2.  

The city can handle group 1 any way it wishes but it is required by city ordinance to contact the community cat sponsoring organization for problem ear-tipped cats in registered colonies (group 2).  That did not happen when Morgan went to City Council in July 2021 for $5,000 to handle "problem community cat colonies."  City Council awarded her the $5.000 requesting a public information campaign and staff report back the effectiveness of the $5,000 expenditure.   

City of San Angelo Animal Control ordinances state in the definitions section:

Free-roaming community cat. A cat that is abandoned, stray, lost or feral and cared for by a free-roaming community cat caregiver pursuant to this chapter.

Free-roaming community cat caregiver. A person who, in accordance with the trap-neuter-return-maintain program defined in this chapter:

(1)  Provides care, including food, water, and shelter where possible, makes provisions for appropriate vaccinations, and medical care to a free-roaming community cat; or

(2)  Has temporary custody over a free-roaming community cat.

A free-roaming community cat caregiver shall not be considered the owner or keeper of a free-roaming community cat.

Free-roaming community cat colony. Any number of cats that congregate, more or less, together as a group and are managed by a free-roaming community cat caregiver. While not every cat in a colony may be feral or stray, any cat that congregates with free-roaming community cats is deemed part of a free-roaming community cat colony.

Animal Services leadership has long viewed ordinances as optional and "the red tape way" of doing things.  It's amazing leaders get to split ordinances into ones they follow and those that are optional.

It's worse when City leaders lie about the history of the community cat ordinance and omit important communications that directly counter their false narratives.  Following city ordinances isn't splitting hairs and should not be optional for city leaders and staff.