Gimme Shelter!

 

Leo is a cat we rescued whose owner had died, and he is being fostered by Kim, who has three others I will be spotlighting soon.  An older gentleman wanted to 'foster' a cat to see if it would be a good fit, so Kim drove him from Honeoye Falls to Rochester and the man tried him out for the week.  Leo was terrified, so Kim had to pick him up and drive Leo back to her place this past Friday.  I think the man was so upset about Leo not eating and pooping all over, that he didn't want to try another.  We hope he comes around soon, because every cat has a different personality, and we have so many adult cats that need homes.  Leo still needs a home.

Here is a kitten that I have had for several months now.  Scooter is still a kitten, but he doesn't show well, I call him Mr. Grumpypants.  But he would love a home where someone could focus all their attention on him.  Here he is with Brady!

As I mentioned, I will be showcasing the kitties we have currently in foster care and hope to do this every week.  (Does anyone remember when I used to do this daily for many many years??)

I have a total of 20 shelters that are under my rescue in the Beechwood section of Rochester.  I've been doing this for over 30 years, and have fought a lot of battles trying to keep shelters for the cats from the inclement weather we have year-round.  So far this year we've had three shelters removed or destroyed, upon which we had to find another location.  One of the aforementioned spots actually doesn't have a shelter.  We snuck in a couple of totes at the first location during the dead of winter where we had a very bad cold snap and the house was vacant.  Looks like the slumlords are back and will be renting it out again so I need to keep an eye on those shelters because the last time they threw them out.  There are at least five cats there (Parsells Avenue) that have been depending on me for food for years now.

Of those, I stop at 13, my friend Esther stops at 6 - they are very close to her house, and my friend Tamera and her husband stop at one, just down the street from their house.

I can't tell you how much I appreciate them and the fact that they do this for me.  With my job, I would never be able to feed at all stops without them.  As it is, I have just enough time to get home and get ready to leave for work at 7:30 am. (another reason I feed early in the morning - 5 am.).  I also have a friend who traps for me when it's needed.  She is a huge help because I just can't do it anymore.  It's also very time-consuming from setting the trap, all in between, and getting the cat to the clinic to be on standby, which doesn't always happen.

I also appreciate Sheryl, who has been driving to my house from Chili every weekend (just about) for over 10 years now to go out with me to help.  I pay two others, Ann and Debbie, to help during the week.  I am so grateful to them also.

I guess my point is this:  I cannot keep doing this - it's getting to me... for many reasons.  Health, age, and financially.  Money doesn't come in like it used to, and it's actually dwindling at a faster rate than what's coming in.  I just ordered 10 bags from Chewy.  It costs me $190 with tax.  The cheapest food is Friskies at $15.98 per 16-lb bag.  Those 10 bags will last me just two mornings.  I have Chewy delivered to Esther - 8 16-lb bags per week at $170 per week.  If you add that up, that is what is going out, with not much coming in.

I am grateful to those that make monthly recurring donations.  They may not be great amounts either, but they make all the difference in the world when added up yearly.

If one person could take one of my spots, and another person takes another, and another... etc..., my life as I know it would be a happier one. 

On a better note, my little darling Baby Bea was adopted, but unfortunately, I just got word today that she is back to having a gut issue.  Her new mom will do everything possible for her.  I have forwarded all the vet info (she has been to FOUR different places with every kind of testing done for her known to man!) to her and they will get to the 'bottom' of it.  

Here are some very cute pictures of her in her new home:  (if you click on the pictures, you can zoom in on them)

Have a great day!

Everyone Needs a Kristin

I am fortunate enough to have a person named Kristin, who more than 10- years ago heard about me and had the ‘b*lls’ to drive downtown at 5 in the morning to follow me and see what I do out there with the cats.  She has been my rock ever since.  I now receive more texts, emails, and calls from people that need help and she is always willing to at least call these people and offer some slight solution.  Every rescue needs a Kristin!

Observations:

There are far too many people walking in my neighborhood drawn to their cell phones.  They are walking their dogs, their babies, or walking alone – heads down not paying attention to what's ahead.  Not a good idea.

There are mean people who do nice things, and there are nice people who do mean things.  There is no one on this earth, the nicest person alive, who hasn’t done or thought something mean at least once.

I received a call the other day from someone wanting to ‘get rid’ of their dog.  Those words make me bristle.  To talk about an animal that needs to be rid of.  I posted it and I received a message from an old friend that she and her husband would drive to Rome New York that evening and pick up the dog.  That dog, now out of a very sad situation, is now as happy as can be in a new home with people that love her and are able to care for her better.  I am sure she had love, but sometimes living situations are not the best.  I was glad I could help.

My last post I stated that I rescued the grey cat that had been hanging around Syd & Johnny's last fall, the one that got in my truck and happily ate the food I provided.  He would cry until we let him in the truck each time we pulled up.  Well, I rescued another grey cat thinking it was him that turned out to be a female.  Sweet, and homeless nevertheless, so it was a good catch overall.  She was adopted right away so that turned out, but this grey boy is still on the street, not always at the same location.  He will be the next rescue, hopefully.

Ten Lives Club took six of our cats a month or so ago.  We had been in touch, and they offered to help with any friendly cats we had, so we rounded up the cats, and off they went, thanks to Kristin, to Buffalo New York to hopefully find a good home off the street!

One last thing on my mind today.  I have had a cat named George who I spotted over 10 years ago in the Grand Ave/Stout area in the city.  He disappeared for quite a while, months, and when I saw him next he was thin as a rail, but he was alive!  That was back in the day when we didn’t have much social media, and I wasn’t able to get cats adopted like I can today, especially having my own not-for-profit rescue.  So I named him George and off he went to my house, hoping to get him adopted, but was never successful because he wasn’t considered a ‘pretty cat.’  He had what I called a hairlip – which I am sure is not the correct definition but his bottom lip fell down and exposed a lot of his gum.  People over the years have commented because it's very noticeable, but there wasn’t anything wrong with him except he had FIV, which means nothing anymore.  But he needed to always be an indoor cat because of low immunity.

George has been with me through thick and thin, he has been Grandpa to many kittens.  He has been a big brother to my other cats.  Mellow and unassuming.  He is now very sick and very old.  He is skin and bone.  He begs me by looking into my eyes and following me around, looking for food.  I give him wet food but it's not making a difference anymore.  His eyes are sunken into his head.  I know he doesn’t feel good.  I’ve decided to say goodbye.  I have had to euthanize at least a hundred very sick cats over the past 30 years and not shed a tear for most because I was so used to it, but this one has affected me deeply.  I will miss him, and it will be the hardest goodbye for me.  I love you, George.

(you can click on the pictures to see close up)

Today