A QUICK fix solution is being offered to property owners annoyed by straying cats.

Mornington Peninsula Shire has a new four-step system to reduce the number of cats prowling outside their owners’ properties.

The cat traps supplied by the shire can also be used to get rid of unwanted stray cats.

The “start-to-end service cat trapping program” is designed to remove cats “safely and humanely”.

The four steps start with asking the shire for a cat trap.

If approved, a cage will be delivered “at a time suitable for the resident” (stage 2).

If successfully deployed, the cage containing a cat will be collected within 24 hours (stage 3) and taken to the Community Animal Shelter in Mornington “for observation” (stage 4).

Trap can only be set from Sunday to Thursday evenings and collections must take place 8.30am-3.30pm Monday to Friday.

The shire identifies a cat as trespassing or wandering any time it is not within its owner’s property.

A news release issued by the shire last week said that captured cats would be scanned for microchips to trace their owner.

The animal shelter’s lost pets list would also be checked for cats matching the trapped animal’s description.

If both lines of inquiry draw a blank, a picture and description of the cat will be placed on the shire’s website at mornpen.vic.gov.au/lostpets.

The future of unclaimed cats will be decided after eight days and a temperament test and vet check.

Cats that pass the tests will enter the shire’s adoption program or be placed with a rescue group for rehoming.

The shire says nearly 200 unclaimed or surrendered animals have been given new homes through its animal management programs.

Rehomed animals are vaccinated, desexed, microchipped and treated for fleas and worms. Shire residents are given free registration for their new pet.

Last year, more than 70 animals found new homes through rescue groups and 130 found new homes through the shire’s adoption program.

To organise a cat trap or report a lost animal, call the shire’s environment protection unit on 5950 1050.

Details about pet rescue groups and animals available for adoption are at petrescue.com.au/groups/10803.

First published in the Southern Peninsula News – 28 May 2019