Tag! You’re Home! Reunification of Pet Cats With Their Owners Using a Community Engagement Approach: A Community Case Report

Return to Owner (RTO) percentages for cats in shelters are reported as low as 3%. However, the percentage of recovered pet cats located within their own neighborhoods is much higher. Loudoun County Animal Services, an open-admission shelter with an annual intake of 2,300 animals (46% cats), developed the Tag! You’re Home! Program (TYHP). This program encourages finders to return un-microchipped healthy social adult cats to their neighborhoods with a collar containing the shelter’s contact information. Finders can return them for intake after 5 days. Between 7/1/2022 and 12/31/2023, 476 stray cats were admitted, 253 (53%) of which were adults. Of the 32 cats enrolled in TYHP as an alternative to intake, 31% were confirmed RTO via owner contact, 31% did not require additional services, 19% were brought back for intake, 13% were kept by finders, and 6% were rehomed by finders. For the cats admitted, the adult RTO rate was 28%. Cats returned to owners through the shelter were found a median of 0.27 km (interquartile range 0.07–2.5), or approximately 2.7 city blocks, from home. Over 80% of TYHP cats did not require shelter intake, with a 31% confirmed RTO rate. The TYHP reduced the intake of adult stray cats by 9% while maintaining similar RTO rates.