Who We Are and What We Do
Feral at Heart is a 501c3 nonprofit animal welfare organization in Reno, NV, whose mission is to improve the lives of feral and community cats through Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR).
TNR is the humane solution to addressing the community cat populations. TNR stops the breeding cycle through sterilization, addresses community concerns, reduces complaints about cats, and improves the overall wellbeing of existing community cats. We help provide TNR services for the Reno/Sparks community.
In addition to TNR, Feral At Heart intercepts young kittens from the streets before they turn feral. These kittens are socialized, sterilized, vaccinated, microchipped, and adopted into loving homes.
In 2023, Feral at Heart trapped 356 cats. 190 of those cats were fixed and returned to their colonies, 110 were adopted into homes, and 56 were transferred to other organizations.
In the year 2022, Feral at Heart accomplished 337 TNR’s and an additional 95 kitten adoptions.
Our Goal
To improve the qualify of life for existing feral cats through sterilization, vaccinations, and vet care.
To reduce the numbers of kittens born into feral cat colonies, thereby reducing colony size and the overall number of homeless cats in the community.
More cats on the streets= more starvation, injuries, illness, disease, low quality of life, more kittens brought into local shelters= overpopulation in the shelters = higher euthanasia rate
To get as many feral kittens off of the streets as possible and into loving homes
To provide education and resources for the community to empower them about TNR and caring for feral cats in their neighborhood.
How It All Started
My name is Rachel. I am the founder and President of Feral At Heart.
I have always had a love of cats that was passed down to me through my mom and my grandma.
I started fostering cats through the local SPCA when I was 11 years old as well as volunteered with my grandma to clean kennels and socialize with cats at the shelter.
Fastforward to 2010, feral cats began flocking to my front porch at an apartment complex that I lived in. At a very young 20 years old, I quickly earned the title as “The Cat Lady” by residents who would knock on my door on a weekly basis and tell me which bush the latest litter of kittens were born in.
In that summer alone, I was able to TNR (Trap, Neuter, Return) around 30 adult cats, and took in about 50 kittens that were adopted out through the Nevada Humane Society.
It was then, that I learned about the dire need of TNR services for our community cats.
This is where my passion for feral cats began.
Skipping along to December 2021, when the name Feral At Heart was born-
I was sitting in a tree house deep in the Amazon rainforest on a Breathwork Retreat, surrounded by a small group of people during a “Mastermind” activity.
During this activity, I explained to the group about my passion for helping cats and what I do to help them on a daily basis (TNR).
I shared my hopes and dreams of a future organization with the group aka “the Masterminds”, and we put our heads together to support and share ideas on HOW I can achieve my goals and make this dream become a reality.
One of the first things on my "To Do List" was to create a social media account, so when I flew back home on Christmas Eve, that is exactly what I did.
By the following December (2022), I received my 501c3 nonprofit status, grew my social media following to 1.3K followers, and saved over 330 cats along the way.
My work with feral cats is truly only possible with the support I receive from all of you!