Skip to content

Friday, Jan. 24, 2025

Does the city of El Paso allow cats to roam free only if they’re part of a trap-neuter-release program?


no

Cats that have not been through the city’s trap-neuter-release program are also allowed to roam freely under certain requirements, according to its animal ordinance.

The ordinance requires free-roaming cats that have owners to be vaccinated and wear vaccination tags. They must also be identifiable through collars, tags, microchips or identifying tattoos, or have an owner who can provide proof of sterilization.

Cats in the TNR program must have an ear “tipped,” the ordinance states, signifying it has been neutered or spayed and vaccinated by a veterinarian.

Free-roaming kittens over 8 months old and adult cats without an identifiable owner may be brought in a cage trap to the city’s Animal Services to be spayed or neutered and vaccinated through the Community Cats program, its website states.

Texas House Bill 3066, approved in 2023, protects people who introduce cats to TNR programs from being charged with abandonment or animal cruelty.

See a full discussion of this at El Paso Matters

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

About fact briefs

Fact briefs are bite-sized, well-sourced explanations that offer clear "yes" or "no" answers to questions, confusions, and unsupported claims circulating online. They rely on publicly available data and documents, often from the original source. Fact briefs are written and published by Gigafact contributor publications.

See all fact briefs

El Paso Matters is a member-supported nonpartisan media organization that uses journalism to expand civic capacity in our region. We inform and engage with people in El Paso, Ciudad Juárez and neighboring communities to create solutions-driven conversations about complex issues shaping our region.

Learn More

Be a Friend of facts

Help us fund more great fact briefs like this one.