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Noem signs amended trap-neuter-return bill

A feral cat with a tipped ear, indicating it was neutered in a trap-neuter-return program.
Brocken Inaglory
/
Creative Commons
A feral cat with a tipped ear, indicating it was neutered in a trap-neuter-return program.

Gov. Kristi Noem has signed a bill aiming to help control the feral cat population.

Supporters of Senate Bill 172 say capturing feral cats, spaying or neutering them, then releasing them is a humane way to control the cat population.

Groups in Huron and Sioux Falls have tried establishing trap-neuter-release programs. But under current state law, this practice is considered animal abandonment, which is illegal.

The bill originally included dogs, but House lawmakers amended it to exclude them over concerns of the dangers of packs of feral dogs.

Krystal is the local host of "Morning Edition."