Thanks for your post. You've inspired me to file a formal complaint against the Feral Cat Coalition at the Attorney Generals office.
(What the FCC advocates [re-releasing the cats after being spayed/neutered without providing shelter] is illegal, which is why I just filed this complaint against them)
COMPLAINT:
I am reporting the non-profit organization "The Feral Cat Coalition" acting in an illegal and duplicitous manner by encouraging people to violate ORS 147.360, violating ORS 147.360 themselves, or knowingly giving false information regarding ORS 147.360 to the public.
The Feral Cat Coalition is an organization that supplies vetrinary services. As part of their ordinary conduct of business they encourage individuals to violate ORS 147.360 and supply false information to consumers as to the potential illegality of their actions.
The oregon animal abandonment statue, ORS 147.360, says simply: "A person commits the crime of animal abandonment if the person knowingly leaves a domestic animal at a location without providing minimum care."
It defines "minimum care" to be food AND shelter, and specifically excludes crawl spaces and other impromptu "shelter" as being adequate. It defines "domestic animal" as a non-equine or bovine animal "possessed by a person".
The feral cat coalition is telling consumers, in their literature and otherwise, that it is legal to re-abandon animals after you have possession of them without providing adequate shelter. Their online application clearly contemplates the abandonment of the animals in their possession after they are neutered or spayed, and makes no mention of any requirement to provide adequate shelter for the animals after they are abandoned. In fact quite the opposite - they clearly infer that no crime will be committed so long as the individual feeds the animals after they have been abandoned, when in fact the law requires shelter to be provided as well.
http://feralcats.com/Caregiver_application.html
I believe this misrepresentation is intentional deceptive conduct associated with the provision of a service as prohibited by 646.608(1)(u).
The application linked above clearly gives the impression to the consumer that it is legal to abandon the animal after it is in the possession of the consumer without providing adequate shelter, something that is clearly illegal under ORS 147.360. Either intentionally or through negligence the Feral Cat Coalition is supplying consumers with misleading information concerning their potential legal liabilities.
It is my belief that the Feral Cat Coalition has full knowledge of the fact that once you have full custody and control of an animal it is illegal to not provide adequate shelter for than animal. It is also my belief they are intentionally misinforming the public of this fact to increase the use of their veterinary services. It is my belief that members of the feral cat coalition actively encourage and assist individuals in the abandonment of cats after those cats are in the custody and control of the individual and the feral cat coalition in violation of ORS 147.360.