October 2013 by Joe Elmore

Audience: Executive Leadership

Video Length: 35 minutes

Feral Freedom return-to-field programs are quickly becoming the gold standard for community cat management in progressive communities nationwide. In Charleston County, South Carolina, animal organizations have implemented the Feral Freedom strategy as a collaboration of local organizations and animal control agencies, affirmed by ordinances created to reinforce this strategy to save more lives and reduce intake. This presentation given by Joe Elmore, Chief Executive Officer for the Charleston Animal Society, will explore all aspects of the comprehensive strategy, including data collection, analysis and trending. Legalities, community outreach, fostering adoption, and, of course, trap-vaccinate-alter-return to colonies and the field will also be thoroughly investigated. This talk was part of the Face-to-Face with Feral Freedom workshop brought to you by The Target Zero Institute and Maddie's® Shelter Medicine Program at the University of Florida.

Learning Objectives:

  • Evaluate shelter flow and formulate new plans to accommodate implementation of a Feral Freedom type return-to-field program.
  • Contrast the shelter-based program with programs that partner with outside providers, evaluate each, and select the best fit for their shelter.
  • Select the best model for the situation and develop and implement the program most effectively.

To download an MP3 file for playback on mobile devices, right click the scrub bar below and select Save Audio As.

Bio photo of Joe Elmore in a blue suit, speaking at an event

About Joe Elmore

Joe Elmore is currently the Chief Executive Officer for the Charleston Animal Society. He previously served as the ASPCA's Senior Director of Community Initiatives, acting as liaison to their Partnership in Charleston, SC. He was born and raised in the Deep South, is an alumni of the University of Alabama's School of Engineering and has led the turnaround of 4 nonprofit organizations as their chief executive. Joe led the recovery efforts of 9 hurricanes and various other disasters; in 1998, by appointment from the Governor, he led the restructuring of the Virgin Islands Emergency Management Council, the oversight body responsible for all emergency operations in the Territory. Joe has been recognized by the Governors of Washington and the Virgin Islands, has received the American Red Cross Tiffany Award for Management Excellence, and was awarded the U.S. Department of Defense Medal in Operation Desert Storm.