The Caring Hands Humane Society of Newton, Kansas (“Caring Hands Humane Society”), is hereby authorized to conduct a Trap-Neuter-Return program (“TNR Program”) in the City in the following manner:

(a)   Definitions.  For the purposes of this article, the following terms are hereby defined as follows:

Caregiver means a Person who is registered with the Caring Hands Humane Society to provide assistance with the TNR Program through the provision of food and shelter for Feral Cats while At-Large in the City, and through providing accommodations and assistance in the trapping and return of such Feral Cats.

City Law Enforcement Officer shall include any member of the Newton Police Department designated as an Animal Control Officer.

Ear-tip means a mark identifying a Feral Cat as having been trapped, sterilized, vaccinated and returned through the TNR Program, specifically by the removal of approximately three-eighths of an inch off the tip of the cat’s left ear in a straight line while the cat is anesthetized.

Feral Cat means any free-roaming cat that displays avoidance behavior, lives in a colony and has no apparent Owner.

(b)   The TNR Program shall be carried out in the following manner:

(1)   Caring Hands Humane Society shall recruit Caregivers in selected portions of the City who are willing to provide assistance on the Caregiver’s Property to provide food and care for Feral Cats, to assist Caring Hands Humane Society in Humanely trapping cats on the Caregiver’s Property for the purposes of the TNR Program, and to permit Caring Hands Humane Society to release such Feral Cats back onto the Caregiver’s Property.

(2)   The Caregivers must agree in writing, as a condition of participation in the TNR Program, to abide by all of the requirements and regulations of the TNR Program as approved by this Ordinance, and to follow the direction of Caring Hands Humane Society as to best practices so as to minimize as much as reasonably possible the creation or maintenance of any nuisance or unsanitary conditions, and to minimize impacts upon nearby Property Owners and residents.  Caring Hands Humane Society shall have the complete right and discretion in the selection of Caregivers into the TNR Program and in the discharge or discontinuance of any Caregiver from the TNR Program; provided, however, that the Caring Hands Humane Society shall not utilize any Caregiver who is or has become disqualified from participation by virtue of the provisions below.

(3)   Before being released, Feral Cats captured by Caring Hands shall be medically evaluated and treated, sterilized, vaccinated and ear-tipped.  Previously captured and released Feral Cats which have been re-captured may be immediately released unless they are in need of medical care or need to be re-vaccinated.  Caring Hands Humane Society shall have complete discretion to make the following decisions as an alternative to the release of a captured Feral Cat:

(A)  To euthanize or otherwise Humanely dispose of a Feral Cat deemed too ill or injured, or deemed to be too dangerous to be released; or

(B)  To retain for adoption a Feral Cat deemed appropriately Domesticated or capable of domestication.

(4)   If a City Law Enforcement Officer in the exercise of his or her lawful authority determines that a cat in the possession of a Caregiver or the Caring Hands Humane Society should be impounded as provided under the Newton City Code or otherwise by law, then the further handling of such cat shall be subject to the lawful orders and directions issued pursuant to that impoundment authority.

(5)   Should it be determined by Caring Hands Humane Society that a cat captured by Caring Hands is a Stray Cat owned by an identifiable Person, Caring Hands Humane Society may return such Stray Cat to such Owner; provided, however:

(A)  Caring Hands Humane Society shall report the same, including the name and address of the Owner(s), to the City’s Animal Control Officer; and

(B)  Caring Hands Humane Society shall be entitled to charge the Owner a reasonable fee for the care and boarding of the Stray Cat as a condition or precondition to its return to the Owner, upon proof of current rabies vaccination.

(6)   Caring Hands Humane Society shall create and maintain a registry of all Feral Cats which have been captured and then released, which registry shall include a photograph of the Feral Cat and other identifying information, the date and place of capture, the date of sterilization and vaccination, the date and place of release, and such other information as Caring Hands Humane Society deems appropriate and useful for the program.  Such registry shall be available at all reasonable times for inspection by or on behalf of the City.

(7)   The Caring Hands Humane Society shall maintain a registry of the name, current address and other contact information of each Caregiver participating in the TNR Program, which registry shall be available at all reasonable times for inspection by or on behalf of the City.  The Caring Hands Humane Society shall give prompt notification to the Newton Police Department of each Person who is added to the Caregiver registry, and shall likewise give prompt notification of the removal of any Person from such registry.

(8)   The Caring Hands Humane Society shall promptly remove from the Caregiver registry and discontinue participation by any Person who:

(A)  Voluntarily withdraws from the TNR Program;

(B)  Is removed by Caring Hands Humane Society from the TNR Program for such reasons as the Caring Hands Humane Society deems appropriate;

(C)  Is removed by Caring Hands Humane Society from the TNR Program at the request and direction of the Chief of Police of the City for failure to abide by requirements and regulations of the TNR Program as approved by this ordinance; or

(D)  Is disqualified from participation in the TNR Program due to the conviction of such Person in the Newton Municipal Court for any violation of the City’s Animal control ordinances.

(9)   The Caring Hands Humane Society shall prepare such reports to the City Governing Body as may be requested from time to time to enable the governing body to evaluate the effectiveness of the TNR Program.

(Ord. 4891-15; Ord. 4987-19; Ord. 4998-19; Ord. 5038-21)

To the extent that any actions taken by the Caring Hands Humane Society, its officers, employees, agents and Caregivers, which are authorized under this Article, and which would otherwise constitute a violation of any provisions of Chapter III of the Newton City Code, such Persons are hereby granted an exemption from such provisions as to such authorized actions.

(Ord. 4891-15; Ord. 4987-19; Ord. 4998-19; Ord. 5038-21)