Community cats living outdoors present complex welfare challenges. Trap-neuter-return programmes and colony management approaches aim to balance population control with individual cat welfare.
Community cat welfare involves genuine tensions between individual cat welfare and population management. TNR programmes improve welfare for existing cats by preventing unwanted litters and reducing fighting, while slowing population growth. However, outdoor cats still face significant risks, and programmes work best when combined with robust adoption pipelines for socialisable cats and caretaker education about colony health management.