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URGENT: A Threat to Miami-Dade's Community Cats and the Volunteers Who Care for Them
- Noelle Barnes
- 17 hours ago
- 3 min read
A proposed ordinance sponsored by Miami-Dade Commissioner Regalado threatens the future of humane, community-based cat care in our county. If passed on May 20, 2025, this ordinance would make it illegal to feed or provide water to community cats (as well as dogs and peafowl) in any public space. Violators could face a $100 fine per feeding event.
This ordinance does not recognize what we at Community Cat Caregivers of Miami, Inc. have always known: well-fed cats are fixed cats. Criminalizing the volunteers who care for and feed these animals is not just heartless—it is counterproductive.
The Impact on Our Mission
Our organization exists to reduce the number of homeless cats in Miami-Dade through TNVR (Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return), education, and compassionate care. We build trust with cat colonies by consistently providing food and water—this trust is critical for safely trapping cats to get them spayed or neutered.
One unfixed female cat can have more than 100 kittens in her lifetime. If even half of those are female, she and her offspring can produce upwards of 300-400 kittens in just seven years.
There are over 300,000 homeless cats in Miami-Dade County. This number could skyrocket without the work of grassroots organizations like ours and the feeders who support them. In the last two years alone:
I’ve personally taken 12 female cats to be spayed and 5 males to be neutered.
We estimate our members TNVR efforts have helped prevent the births of over 10,000 new homeless cats.
We didn’t achieve this by accident. We did it because we built relationships with cat colonies and earned their trust by providing food consistently.
Say It Loud: Starve a Cat, Breed a Crisis!
Banning feeding breaks the essential bond between caregivers and community cats. When feeders are forced into hiding, TNVR efforts are disrupted, making it nearly impossible to humanely manage colonies. The result? More unfixed cats, more suffering, and an even bigger overpopulation crisis.
This is why we are calling on YOU—our members, supporters, and followers—to speak out loudly and urgently against this ordinance.
Take Action Now
Here’s a sample letter you can email to the Mayor and Commissioners. Feel free to personalize it with your story:
Subject: Oppose the Ordinance #250963 Criminalizing Feeding of Community Cats
Dear Commissioners, Commissioner Regalado, and Mayor Levine Cava,
Thank you for your ongoing service to our community. I’m writing on behalf of Community Cat Caregivers of Miami, Inc. to express strong opposition to the proposed ordinance banning the feeding of community cats, dogs, and peafowl on public and commercial property.
This ordinance is not only inhumane—it is ineffective, outdated, and dangerous to the success of ongoing TNVR (Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return) efforts. It punishes the very caregivers who are part of the solution, driving feeding underground and undermining years of trust-building with cat colonies that allow us to safely trap and sterilize these animals.
Feeding bans do not solve the problem. They make it worse. Starve a Cat, Breed a Crisis!
There are an estimated 300,000 homeless cats in Miami-Dade County. One unfixed female cat and her offspring can produce up to 400 kittens in just seven years. In the past three years alone, our organization and the volunteer feeders we support have prevented the births of over 10,000 new homeless cats—thanks in large part to responsible, monitored feeding and partnership with the County's TNVR program.
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Instead of criminalizing compassion, we urge you to support humane and effective solutions: TNVR, low-cost sterilization, monitored feeding, and public education. Global cities like Rome, Athens, Istanbul—and even Chicago—understand this. So should we.
Let’s lead with compassion and reason. Reject this harmful ordinance.
Sincerely, [Your Name]Community Cat Caregivers of Miami, Inc.
When addressing multiple commissioners and the mayor, we need to send individualized letters, or at the very least, BCC their email addresses to avoid violating the sunshine law.
Please send your letters today to:
Want to Attend the Meeting?
If the ordinance is not withdrawn, we plan to be attend the May 20th County Commission Meeting to speak out. If you’d like to join us and stand for the cats—and the people who care for them—please let us know. Together, we can make our voices heard.
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