Its a Mad Mad World



Life sure is crazy in the neighborhoods I feed cats in.  I had a scare each morning this weekend.  I have to reiterate the fact that I would like nothing better than to know that there aren't starving and in need cats on the streets in these neighborhoods, and that I wouldn't have to subject my self to unnecessary danger - unnecessary because there is danger enough in daily living, i.e. driving a car, other crazies, etc., and I would like nothing better than to not have to get out of bed every single morning of my life at 4 am. and brave the outdoor elements and stop at 16 different locations and get out and place food and water down for the waiting cats.  But waiting they are, and I couldn't in all good conscience stop feeding them.  Not on my clock.  I know how hungry they are, and how much they depend on first the sound of my car, and second my voice, and third, for some, my gentle pet and pat.

I hope my mother isn't reading this today, because of the events that happened both mornings.  On Saturday, as I pulled up to one spot, I noticed a younger black man with a black hoodie and black pants walking toward me, on the sidewalk.  I got out, said goodmorning to him, as I always say to anyone that I see, and he sort of just kept walking without a word.  I went behind the house to place food and water down while the kitties sat there waiting, with my back to the open driveway, and then noticed the cats running away.  I finished quickly, turned around and saw this guy walking toward me toward up the driveway.  When I saw him he took off running, around the front of the house to the side, and gone.  I quickly went out to the front of the house and yelled something to him, like 'what the F are you doing?' but he was no where to be seen, I quickly dialed 911.  Now, I know that what I do - I take my own life into my own hands doing this.  And I know that what he did was not a punishable offense, but he for sure wasn't coming around the back to say hello to me.  I was shaken by this.  I sat and waited for the cops, and when they did finally come by, I told them the same thing, and they were going to have a look for him regardless.  OK, fine.  So my plan was to leave a half hour later the next morning so that it would be lighter out when I made this stop.

On Sunday, at one of my stops, at which I have never had any trouble, I started to get back into the car after placing food and water down, I heard a loud noise, indescribable, and the next thing I heard glass breaking, and then saw a person hurling headfirst out the glass door on the porch to my right.  I couldn't believe what was happening in front of my eyes.   Did she jump through the door, or was she pushed?  I then saw a  woman get up, run down the steps to the street, turn and run toward my car, run right past my car, jumped into another car, and sped off.   I immediately called 911, and my body shook, my stomach in a knot.  I kept waiting for someone else to come out, as I saw a television glow flickering in the downstairs apartment.  I must have waited for five minutes with no cop in sight, so took off to continue my rounds, until 10 minutes later 911 called me and asked me to go back as the cops were waiting for me.  I went back and this cop, very non-chalantly stated that this was normal, common, that sometimes these criminals are making a statement by breaking glass etc.  I told him there were people in the apartment upstairs that had heard it, and the cop said that no one reported this incident, which is apparently so common in these crime ridden neighborhoods.  He said he would knock on the door, but if no one answered, he couldnt' do anything.  He agreed with me that it was crazy what I saw, but said he has seen so much that it didn't surprise him.  The cop then thanked me for reporting it, and I wished him a good day and drove off, still shaken.

What is wrong with our society today?  Its a very scary world out there.  People just don't care anymore.

(Update from yesterday:  I rescued another two kitties and they are going to Lollipop this morning for eventual adoption!  My friend from Lollipop advised me that they are still low on cats - thank God, and I could bring in a few more.  Meet Gus, from Second, who reminds me so much of my beloved Boris, who is up in kitty heaven, because of his coat.  Very wirey, but this is one sweet sweet boy that survived the brutal winter living in a plastic tote shelter on a porch.  I am so happy he was waiting for me this morning.   The second rescue is Brady, from Stout.  This sweet black kitty runs to me each morning, and competes for his food with another not so friendly black kitty, and a very shy red one.  It was his time.  He is going to make a wonderful companion for someone!)  Yay!!!


Gus



Brady

TGIF!!!

"The world is a dangerous place, not because of those that do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing."

Its a deluge out there this morning, and cold.  It was 35 degrees.  I changed a lot of wet towels yesterday, this morning, and will have to do it again tomorrow.  My poor washing machine.  I wonder when spring will ever get here.  I did, however, feed a lot of hungry little babies. 

Of note, I see an average of two cats now at each of my 16 spots.  I skip two spots on Parsells every other day because there is still food there, except when it rains, as the towels become wet, and I want the cats to have some small window of comfort when they come eat in the morning.  I know, call me crazy.  At Sixth, where the owner has removed the shelters I had on the porch as he is getting ready to fix the place up for either sale or rent, I am placing bowls on the side of the house on the driveway, and have a board leaning against the house to shield the rain.  There are about five cats waiting for me to leave from here each morning.  At Baldwin, there is a very very sweet white (yet very dirty) adult cat that greets me, and I would like to get him adopted.   He is obviously a stray, and needs a home.  There is another   young red one on Webster.  He is shy, but will come close enough to sniff my hand when I extend it toward him.  On Second, there is a very sweet grey kitty, that has always reminded me of my Barney, who passed last year, he has the same wirey type of fur, and he lives in a box on a porch.  He comes out of his cocoon each morning dry and warm, but craving a pet and scratch.  I need to find him a home also.  At each of my locations there are cats watching in the shadows, waiting for me to leave them food. 

I have a few updates - one from Michelle, who took in Red (Angel) and Lucy from Second.  It hurts me to say it, but this didn't work out well.  I have successfully relocated cats to two different barn situations in the past and both have worked out beautifully.  Somehow, Red got out a window at one of the stables at the Fingerlakes Race Track.  He has been seen, the food is being eaten, but Lucy is also gone, and has not been seen.  I am heartsick over this.  Its a situation where I wish I had just left them where they were.  I pray they are not scared and have lost their way.  I pray they come around. 

At the other barn situation, where Stanley, Sylvester and Sadie went to, they are thriving, except Sadie is now pregnant.  She is the beautiful Siamese little girl that I was convinced was spayed.  I had fed them all on Parsells for so long, and she never got pregnant.  I am not sure who the father is, because both of the boys I know for a fact are neutered.  Mary Ann will keep a close eye, and let me know when she gives birth.  She advised she would be bringing the kittens to Lollipop unless homes can be found, along with Sadie, to be spayed.  I feel terrible about that.  She is really a gorgeous kitty, and will have really beautiful kittens. 

Another of my recent rescue's from Central Park, Harold, is still holding his own.  His 'mom' is giving it all she's got.  Here is the latest:     "He is doing okay...     great in some regards and not so hot in others.  He seems to be very comfortable and "at home"...   he still does not like to get up on the bed or couch or our laps.  As much as he loves being petted and scratched, he won't get up on anything to get attention...   we have to sit on the floor with him.  Still eating and litterboxing like a rock star...   very at ease with Brady...  at one point over school break, there were 5 kids here and he let them all pet him at the same time.  He can be a tiny bit skittish with Billy, but not outright scared or anything.  We did manage to block of the crawlspace from the inside, so he can't get in there and hide all day anymore.  However...   he finds little cracks and crevices to wedge himself into.  One day, he was under Brady's bed way back in the corner...   just sleeping...   Another day, we literally lost him for about 8 hours.  We had shut Brady's door at that point (because we didn't want him hiding; we wanted him out and about) and the crawlspace was blocked...   we searched EVERYWHERE and were freaking out...   then, all of a sudden, I turned around and there he was.  We still don't know where he came from.  He goes under our bed now...   it's not in a corner like Brady's, but he still hides under there.  He just does not like being out during the day.  He usually emerges anywhere between 7 and 9pm...  hangs out, follows us around, we play with him...   We go to bed anywhere from 10 to midnight and he is usually fine (and quiet) then.  But, about 2 or 3 in the morning, he starts meowing and wandering around.  That goes on until about 6 or so, when I get up.  He is out and about until 8 or 9, then disappears again.  I am gone until 2 most days, and Billy is in and out all day.  Harold rarely comes out when we are home...   he did come out today around 3 for half an hour or so...  then back to wherever his hiding place is.  He looks out the windows occasionally....   I think I have mentioned that we have 2 sliding glass doors in different areas of the house, and he could care less about them.  We have a large bay window with a wide ledge that he sits on now and then...  not much interest there either.  The window in the bathroom that he was isolated in is still open (just the storm is down and I have a towel on the sill) and he goes in there and sometimes jumps up there and sometimes doesn't...   we have had other windows in the house open with the warmer weather, and he doesn't seem to want to be up in them either.  He doesn't act like he wants to go out...  he's just not interested in much of anything.  He doesn't like (or maybe doesn't understand) the laser pointer...  is afraid of strings and things....   the only thing he seems to really love are his toy mice and fishies with catnip inside of them.  He and Chloe are getting along...  she hardly hisses at all anymore, and is back to being fine with us again too.  The whole meowing in the middle of the night thing is so odd...   it's not even like he is really looking for us...  we have been sleeping with the door closed, and he scratches at it and I ignore him...  he goes away after a few seconds, comes back in 5-10 minutes, and repeats that from about 2am to 6am.  But even in the morning when we are getting ready or having breakfast or just hanging around, he chirps and follows us, but it's not like he stays around us...  he gets a few seconds of attention and then he walks away from us and disappears and eventually comes back.  He is so friendly, but only to a certain extent...  it's weird.  I don't even feel like I am able to explain it properly.  I did buy the Feliway diffuser...   we will see how that works.  I just want him to sleep at night (so *I* can sleep at night) and be happy...   I don't think he is UNhappy, but it just seems like there is something missing in his life and we can't figure out what it is." 

If any of you have any more advice to give, we both would welcome it!  Have a GREAT weekend!

Home Sweet Home!

I am facing some personal challenges in my life these days, as I know we all do, some more than others, and as I got back onto the saddle this morning, as I was leaving my house to go feed in the hood after not having to do it for four days in a row, and with this weather being so miserable, still, the thought of having to do it all over again, to go out in the rain, pick up soaking towels, see the little faces of these sweet angels waiting for their morning meal, I felt this overwhelming sadness wash over me, and I thought, oh God, do I have to do this all over again...  and I did it, and it took me forever, one location, the owner of the home has opened his boarded up house and fixing it up to either rent or sell, and has removed all my sweet shelter I had on its porch for at least five cats through the winter, so I had to find a dry spot nearby and lay some bowls down and shelter those because of the rains we are having.  Once again, these cats 'homes' are disrupted and they have no place to go.  They are confused.  Its very sad for them when this happens.    The point I am making here is that on the way back home to get ready for tomorrow's feeding, and get ready to go to work, after seeing all the little babies I really did miss, and really did think about each morning, that sadness I had felt the hour and half before that had washed away.  I was thankful for the chance that morning to do it.  I was thankful that I could pick up a soaking wet towel and replace it with a dry one, I was thankful I could fill an empty dish with food and clean out a very dirty water bowl.  It just felt good.    So maybe if you are feeling down, call me, come help me, it might just give you the lift you need.  I know it did for me.  There is just something about feeding an empty belly, someone elses, that is just plain rewarding!

I was in San Diego this past weekend, where its always sunny, and the temperatures are always mild.  Everyone is beautiful there, and the prices of just about everything is outrageous.  I went for work and work it was.  I asked the locals about the homeless animal situation, and was told that there are for certain homeless cats in the poorer neighborhoods, but that there were a ton of rescue organizations and shelters, and I took some comfort with the fact that with the mild weather they have there, life on the street wasn't as dire as it is here in Rochester.  The highlight of my trip was a chance to hear John Legend speak at the conference I attended, and then to hear him play five tunes.  This man is awesome!

I will have some updates for you tomorrow!

Its a Girl! Its a Boy, No, Its ..... Super Cat!

Rare King Cheetah Cub



African Lion Cub


If you will recall, last fall I spotted four or five little baby kittens running around the Parsells/Grand/Baldwin streets area.  They were completely wild, and I had no hopes of getting them.  I never saw them after a couple of times.  I wound up making a little shelter under a tree bench in a vacant lot on the opposite corner of where I saw them, and fed there daily throughout the winter.  Laura, sometime in January, wound up getting two of the kittens there.  Meanwhile, she had them neutered/spayed, and returned one recently.  In the meantime, one of the little guys - I believe only three survived, and never see the mom throughout this entire winter - has been gaining trust in me, and now allows me to pick him up each morning and hold him, and scratch him, and I can hear him purr.  Laura mentioned recently that if I can get the little guy, she will take him as a companion to his sibling that she has.  I did it!  I got the little bugger this morning.  Cute as a button, but very scared.  Remember, these are feral cats.  They were born outdoors.  They lived there the first months of their lives.  Sad, but hopefully this has a happy ending for this little guy.  He's scared to death sitting on my porch in the carrier until Laura picks him up sometime today.  Hooray!

I received a note from Lollipop Farms yesterday with the following update on the only cat that had not been adopted from the last update I had received.  Talkie (aka Sunny) was one of the old timers I rescued and brought to Lollipop in the last sweep, and turns out that Talkie had a microchip and had actually been brought in one other time.  The 'owner' was contacted and they legally have to give some time before they can adopt out the cat, and finally that time period was over, Talkie was shown, and was adopted!  Here is what my friend at LF says:

"Just writing with a final update! Sunny (who turned out to be a BOY!) was adopted a little while ago by someone who is bringing him to Massachusetts! Even our clinic staff thought he was a girl for the longest time... so weird!"

Too funny.  I guess I need to go back and take an anatomy course.  Thats like the third time I got the sex of a cat mixed up!

I heard from Harold's 'mom', however long she may be, and I will let you judge for yourself, and PLEASE throw in a few more bits of advice.  She is a good good person, trying to do the right thing.  I just wish Harold would cooperate!

"Let's see what the latest is...

Well, we haven't been around much during the day because of school vacation, and last night we stayed overnight at a local hotel, so poor Harold has been on his own quite a bit. I have been keeping the light in the basement crawlspace on during the day to see if that makes a difference... I could bring a radio and maybe a strobe light down there if it will keep him awake all day... ;)

I just got home around 10:00 tonight, and when I walked in the door, he came running from upstairs in a panic (he is still a little skittish) so at least I know he was making his nightly rounds. I followed him downstairs, sat on the floor with him for a few minutes, and then came upstairs to the office, and he followed me. He is laying on the floor right next to me, chirping away... and Chloe is sitting up on the desk growling at him (or maybe me... not sure). He gets up every few minutes... wanders around... comes back... Billy and Brady are away tonight, so I am going to close the door to my bedroom (Chloe will have to find someplace else to sleep!) and turn on a white noise machine so I can get some sleep... I will get out the laser pointer and try to tire him out a little bit first! The way our house is set up (it's a split level which I hate for many reasons, only one of which is trying to keep cats separated) makes it impossible to close him in any room other than the downstairs bathroom, which (as I mentioned in a previous email) worked for the first several nights and then he got sick of it and scratched and clawed to get out. Even if I could block off the basement (ground level where our family room is), that would prevent Chloe from getting down there where her litterbox is... and I really don't want to start relocating litterboxes! I wish I could give him his own room! I think that would solve everything!

I am going to look into the links that you copied below and see if I can figure anything else out... aren't cats supposed to sleep for 18 hours a day or something??? I really don't want to return him... I know you made that offer the day we picked him up, but I feel so horribly guilty... I just think we should have stuck with our original plan and taken a young female... but we didn't, so I am really trying to make the best of our 'mistake'. He is sweet... still a little jumpy and hasn't totally warmed up to Billy... and Chloe will just have to suck it up... I want to do the right thing but we shall see what happens... so he will be staying here for now!

Keep your fingers crossed for me! I'll let you know how things are going in a day or two.

Thank you for all the advice! Let's hope it works!"

This may be my last post for a while.  I am on vacation tomorrow, and then travelling, for work, for the next five days, and have to express my gratitude to Laura for taking most of my rounds in the morning.  She is a brave soul, not that at that time of the morning there is much to worry about.  Bravery comes in many forms, fear comes in many forms.  There is fear of darkness number one!  But the outcome of both is so gratifying.  To know you've fed the many cats out there that have no home, most that fear humans, but filling their bellies for at least a half a day is just so rewarding.  Summer is coming, along with the raccoons, who will gobble up the cat food, so its important that they get that one meal a day in the morning.   Until then, as they say, Godspeed!

"The tragedy of life is not so much what we suffer

but rather what we miss."

Updates

Thanks Everyone for your advice yesterday.  I have and will pass on more to the family, but have not heard back from them yet from my e-mail to them yesterday, offering as a last chance to take Harold back.  Will keep you posted!

The following was written by a friend the day after my birthday last week, after I had posted that someone had removed my shelter from their vacant house porch.  I thought it was clever (and he thinks he is too...  :)), and share with you.

It’s the day after your Birthday

And all thru the hood

Not a new kitty was seen

Not even the jerk’s

But the bowls were removed

And placed on the curb

Why would he do that

It makes us perturbed

Some people realize

And some people don’t

That the best part of life

Is caring for those who can’t for themselves

The next picture is of BUTTERS!  and his pal.  Butters was rescued by me and adopted several months later by a nice family who already shared their home with the kitty on the right, and several dogs.  After a rough first couple of weeks with Butters, they finally fell in love with him, and he obviously fell in love with his new sister, Lovey!  :)



Butters and Lovey



Butters and Lovey



Remember Pumpkin and Magic?  These two boysI rescued from Pennsylvania Street last July when they were barely two or three months old, along with their mom Vanessa, who I still have.  After months of caring for them, they were adopted out at five months old, to a woman whose husband wound up allergic, and she returned them about a month ago.  My house was overloaded and Pet Pride of NY, which is a wonderful no kill shelter in Victor run by a WONDERUL woman named Norma offered to take them in and get them adopted.  They would surely be seen more than in my possession.  After much heartbreak, I gave them up.  Jessica had just lost her beloved cat Gxir and was looking for another two to add to her family of now one kitty.  Within a day of giving up Pumpkin and Magic, she asked me if I had any kitties that would be suitable for her, and I thought immediately of Pumpkin and Magic at the shelter.  Jessica knew of the situation and didn't care, and went and adopted them both!  Well, they are settling in very nicely in their new home with Jessica and her mom Sharyn.  I feel like they are staying in the family by being adopted by these two wonderful women.  Thank you so much for loving them!  The following are a few excerpts of what Jess has to say about them:

"Oh my gosh are they cute!  So snuggly and sweet and gentle.  Magic is really coming out of his shell and is making more eye contact with me.  He now presses into my hand when I pet his head instead of ducking away.  I was a little concerned about that at the shelter, but he's like a different cat now, following me around.  I had a wonderful snuggle with him in bed with big, loud purrs (from him, not me!) and then he moved over and let Pumpkin get his snuggles, who curled up in front of me, his paws kneading my chest.  It's 10:15 pm and Sierra still hasn't figured out they're downstairs!  ha!  She's not the savviest of cats.  They have their blankies on the couch when I'm in bed with my door closed and litter boxes, etc.  Cross your fingers for me that Sierra won't be too mean and pee all over when she does find them.  I think she was enjoying being the only cat."

and later...

"Last night went very well.  Magic has really come out of his shell and seeks my attention now. He's like a different cat from the one I saw in the shelter yesterday. They have a love seat they slept on last night, each on his own pillow and blankie. They follow me around like puppies and like to watch the toilet flush. Haha! They're just little lovebugs and so gentle and sweet. And they left my stuff alone in my craft room last night! So far, anyway. We just love them!  If Sierra knows they're here, she hasn't let on."



Pumpkin




Magic

"When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, "I used everything you gave me."

Harold

Today, I am asking for your advice.  I rescued Harold, around two years old, over two weeks ago from Central Park in the city of Rochester.  I had been feeding Harold for quite some time, he would run to me every morning when I pulled up to the vacant house.  I wasn't sure what I was going to do with Harold, but I knew he had to get him off the street because he was a very sweet cat, and you could tell he didn't want to live outside anymore.  None of them do actually, but a lot of them have lost that trust in humans, so it makes it difficult to rescue them all.  Once home, he hid for about a minute, and then came out and was the most loveable kitty.   After spending the night in the basement room (man cave) with the television on, all the food he could eat, chairs and futon and plenty of warm blankets to sleep on,  the very next day, a wonderful family - mom and dad, and 10 (?) year old son came over to look at my adoptables (Daisy, Paddy, Earl), and chose Harold, who I wasn't going to show because of his age, and because I had just rescued him the previous morning, and hadn't gotten to know him yet.  The first week did not go so well with him due to him escaping to their attached garage and hiding in the rafters, and doing some loud howling.  After giving her a little advice on getting him down and into the house into a small bathroom, where he should have gone in the first place to get to know the scents, etc., I gave her advice on introducing her cat Cloe to him.  I hadn't heard since last Thursday, thinking no news is good news.  I got the following note from her this morning, and here is how his past weekend went.  I could (THEY could) use some advice.  I don't know what I will do with Harold if they return him - I cannot keep him, I won't put him back on the street, I won't put him in a barn situation, so my only other alternative would be Lollipop, where I would pray he would get adopted out and quickly.  So, as you can see, WE are DESPERATE for any and all advice.  Here is what the mom has to report.

"We kept Harold in the bathroom until Friday evening. We did the thing where their dishes were close together, and they had been sniffing under the door at each other. He actually got out a little sooner than I had planned... he kind of made a break for the door, and lets just say he is very quick! He seems to have adjusted to the house just fine. He wanders all over the place, but has certain places he prefers. Unfortunately, one of them is the crawl space which is unable to be completely blocked off, and since he is a Houdini, he manages to squeeze in no matter what we would do to try to barricade it. He spends most of his day in there... comes out to eat and check things out, then goes back in... he comes out for good anywhere between 7 and 9, and then he is in the main part of the house for the night and all the way thru till morning. He follows us around and likes attention, but has not figured out the concept of sitting on laps yet. We just sit on the floor and he comes to us. He does not like being up on the bed or couch at all... jumps up and then right back off. Starting around 10 or 11, he wanders around the house meowing... it's not the crying, lost yowling he did that first night... it's just a little chirp or meow every 2 or 3 minutes, like he is looking for us. But even when he finds us, or we go to him, he doesn't settle down. It's like he can't stand or sit still. Unfortunately, this goes on all night... and I mean, literally - ALL NIGHT. He comes up to the bedroom, and I dangle my hand over to scratch him, and he lets me, and then he's off downstairs to do a lap... then he's back in my bedroom... then he goes downstairs... and so on. The first night, I got up and put him in the bathroom at 1:00... he was fine with that and happy to come out in the AM. The second night, I had to put him in the bathroom at 4:00... last night, I went and slept on the couch at around 1:00... I thought maybe he was lonely and would settle down if I was down there (and I figured at least Billy could get some sleep). Nope. Same deal... he would peep at me, come over for a scratch, go toss a toy mouse around or grab a bite to eat, and then start they cycle all over again. Around 4:00, I couldn't take it anymore, so I put him back in the bathroom. NO DICE. He scratched and picked at the door, but did not cry or meow. I let him out around 6:00 and he did his usual morning routine. I do not know what this is all about, or what to do about it, but I am getting a little twitchy from the sleep deprivation!!! It's like he's got his days and nights totally backwards... any thoughts or suggestions? I am at a complete loss. He still seems perfectly happy... purrs all the time, loves attention, eats and uses litterbox, could care less about Chloe and her attitude... I just don't know what to do next.

Chloe has actually gotten better... less growling and hissing, and she's not mad at us anymore. But right now I am not worried about her; I don't know what to do about Harold and his nighttime antics (which makes perfect sense if he's been living on the streets, but I need to get him to settle down at night now that he is in a nice warm house). So... help...?"

PLEASE COMMENT HERE, or shoot me an e-mail at janinethebean10@yahoo.com - thanks!

"One joy scatters a hundred griefs."

My Route

My mornings begin at 5:15 in the hood, on a daily basis, never skipping a beat.


I start off on Parsells, where there are two locations, just houses away from each other, but a few months back, there were many cats in between and all around these spots, and they were very territorial, so if I were to combine one, some cats would starve. Both locations are quiet now, I don’t have any kitties coming up to me at either, but I know they are there, I see them hiding or lurking under cards, and their food is gone the next day.

At my third spot around the corner on Stout, yesterday I spotted five cats – three beautiful reds and two black kitties. One black kitty has been neutered, and one red kitty. The other black kitty is very friendly, and sweet. They feed inside an open garage of a vacant home. I don’t know how long I will have use of this when the landlord/owner finally kicks me and all my stuff out.

Around the corner on Garson I feed two cats (that I see) on the porch of where I’ve had to remove the shelters located there because the landlord/owner kept placing them to the curb. I have left two dishes of food and one of water there on a daily basis, thanking God its springtime but sad because they don’t have a nice warm straw lined shelter to nestle in at night.

Around the corner on Hayward, the activity level there has dwindled, I have rescued so many, most recently the little kitty that was trapped in an apartment next door, and is also pregnant, and is now named Pepper due to her fur. Linda is now caring for her. They are eating the food that is there under the lean to against the house, but I don’t see them up close – they are a new bunch there.

Around the corner from there, is where the little baby Baldwin kitten remains. I feed him under a bench, and occasionally see another little kitten that runs that apparently Laura, who trapped two in January, has re-released the little one. The little baby that I see daily now runs to me when I get out of the car. He lets me hold him long enough until he knows I am going to put the food down and then he wants down. My heart breaks for him. I want to take him home so badly. He is about five months old I would say. He has survived for so long there by himself. I don’t think Mama is in the picture anymore. There was a house on the corner of Parsells and Baldwin that was just demolished, and I pray there were no cats taking shelter inside while they did it.

Around the bend on Webster, the sturdy shelter that Kristin and Darrin built for me out of a coffee table still stands. I am feeding a sweet Red kitty that was missing all winter, I believe the woman Marilee took him in but he is since back out, from down the street where she lives, and waiting for me each morning.

Around the bed on Short I don’t see many kitties but know they love the covered shelter there, and eat the food. I occasionally see a pretty red inside waiting for me to leave so that he can devour.

Around the corner from there is Sixth Street, where a female was just TNR’d last week. There is a family of kitties there, and one is very pregnant. I feel horrible about this. She allowed me this morning to touch the tip of her nose so that she could smell. I can tell she is ready. I am sick over this. I must get spots at the clinic, but it’s a bad week for that as I have to be at work early in the mornings, and work late at night. My job comes first, no matter what.

Around the corner from there is on Pennsylvania and Fourth, where I see two pretty reds, one getting more trusting with me as time goes by.

Around the next corner from there is Third and Central, where I feed Tuffy (who has been around forever, a huge red and white tom) and a white and brown spotted kitty.

Across from there is Central, where I feed a friendly boy in front, and a shy girl behind the vacant house. This is another location that will be taken from me as the bank that owns it will eventually want to sell this property.

Around the corner there is Second, where I feed the sweetest grey on the porch of Frank’s house, he reminds me so much of my Barney, his fur very course, but he is a very sweet boy. He was just neutered last week in our TNR sweep, he and the three others. Behind Paul’s, which is across from Frank’s, are two black kitties and another white with brown spots – of course this is all in the dark. I see another grey and brown tabby too, but again, they hide until I leave.

Around that corner is on Pennsylvania behind the giant’s house (I posted previously about his huge footprints). There are at least three or four that I see lurking in the shadows.

From there I go to my last spot (phew!) which is Seventh. I feed at least three to four kitties there. It’s a good shelter there, nice and warm and dry. No one has trashed this spot since last summer. Knock on wood.

UPDATE: Red/Angel from Seventh, and Lucy, both of which I brought to the stables at the Racetrack two weeks ago, are now free. Red escaped out a window unexpectedly Saturday, but has been seen this morning. I prayed and prayed for him to find his way back when I found out early Sunday morning, and he did. He was spotted this morning. Now Lucy needs to learn this learn how to return to her safe spot too. Prayers!