A black cat happy ending

Too often, PFA finds it very difficult to find homes for the black cats that we rescue. Many people claim that they don't think black cats are attractive, or they cling to the old superstitions about them.

That's why we are extra excited about the recent adoption of both Star (now renamed Amber) and Charlie (now Max). These amazing cats waited far too long, but they are now in a very loving home that appreciates them for how amazing they are!

Their new mom, Elaine, says:

"They are wonderful cats and... we are more than pleased with them. The pic of the two in the window, amber is on the left, and she is the one in the bowl. They make a wonderful pair and both have a good time watching the birds from on top of the cage."

-Sarah

Update on spring trapping blitz and Buffy

We received an email from Sandra today, who is coordinating the Trap, Neuter, Release efforts on our feral cat routes in Regina's inner city.

"Just a quick update on what has happened on the "trapline" since we started a week or so ago. To date, from the start of the "blitz", we have trapped 8 cats, plus taken another cat and her 5 newborn kittens into foster care. So, total, that's 14 cats "rescued", with 7 returned to their home sites. Of those 8 cats, 5 are male and 3 are female. One female was a "kitten",under one year old and I had no report from the vet that she was pregnant, so we assume not. One adult female was pregnant, early stages. The third adult female, no evidence of conception. Of the 5 males, 3 were "kittens" (again, less than a year old), and 2 were adult males. Of the 9 cats in total that have been rescued (not counting the 5 newborn kittens), 8 are feral cats. Seven have been, or will be (today) released back to their home sites. The mother of the newborns will return to her home colony after the kittens are weaned. The kittens are being socialized and will be adopted out. One cat was domesticated, is in foster care now and will be placed for adoption soon."

The tame/domesticated cat that was rescued was Buffy, pictured above. This sweet female cat has now been spayed and is in foster care. We have reported her as found to the humane society, but, as is common with so many of the tame cats that we rescue, no one is looking for her.

We are so pleased with this first week of the trapping blitz! More to come...

-Sarah

More Monty!

Monty the hairless wondercat

We wrote about Monty last week, and my how things have changed for him since then!

His rescuer Melissa was able to take him to the vet clinic, where Monty was tested for FIV and was found to be healthy. We had him neutered, and while he was under, they shaved him from head to toe, as his fur was so matted it was disabling him.

Monty has been eating up a storm since he was rescued, and is a very happy boy, albeit still a little surprised about the whole thing.

For now, Monty is living in my basement fostering room. He is still a little timid with new people, but every day he is becoming friendlier. I knew I won his trust yesterday when he head butted me :) I'll be honest - I can be pretty tough about rescue situations, but Monty broke my heart, and I am glad to have him here to help him regain full health.

Monty is also thriving with the special care package that Alanna brought him full of high quality food from Metro Pet Market, so that when his fur does grow back it will be healthy. Thanks, Alanna!

-Sarah

PFA in the news again!

We were interviewed as part of a story about the cat overpopulation crisis in Regina for the local newspaper, the Leader Post. To read it, please click HERE

Angel this week

Our sweet little Angel had her surgery last friday.

Her little face has healed up remarkably well, and so the only point to doing surgery on it would have been for cosmetic reasons. So we decided not to do that. Dr S did say that if we decide that surgery is necessary further down the road, it could be done during her spay.

As far as her tail goes though, most of it was dead, as Cherilyn thought. They amputated most of it, leaving about 2 inches worth.

The ulcers on her feet are improving, but still not great. Dr S said that all we can do is let time heal them, and keep her comfortable. She said that either frostbite or a chemical burn would have caused them - and she finds it strange that if it's frostbite, it only affected her feet and not her ears. This little cat is an enigma and a miracle.

Dr S also said that Angel purrs continually when being examined, and NOTHING they tried could get her to stop!!! Made it hard to listen to her heart :)

I received a note from Cherilyn, Angel's foster mom, this morning:

"Angel's feet are slowly healing - it will take time as they are still painful. I still have to watch when I pick her up and now with her tail have to be very careful. It is cute though since she can't wash her own face with the Elizabethan collar on she licks the collar when she is done eating which is funny.I have to admit though it will be hard to let her go as we developed such a bond. I was watching animal planet and one of the foster mothers on there said the hardest ones to let go are those that are abused and you spend so much time with. She is right. Angel deserves now the best home ever where they will treasure her. One day at a time - I told Angel this morning one more week of collar and meds and hopefully everything will heal and go well and she can just be a kitten."

-Sarah

Another Wonderful Success Story

We love success stories and are always thrilled to get updates from adoptive families. Here are Dot and Dash, two siblings adopted last summer, living the good life in their new forever home.

Their adopter, Marianne, writes that "Dot and Dash are a joy to have around. They play together and keep each other company. I think people should know how important it is to adopt an animal from your organization - they are such wonderful company and really enrich my quality of life."

We thank Marianne for giving these two kitties such a wonderful home, and for keeping in touch so that we can see how much Dot and Dash are enjoying their life off the streets.

A Look at the Other Side

Nothing is more rewarding than adopting a rescued animal from a rescue organization or animal shelter. But do you ever get the sense that us humans need animals as much as they need us?

Please click here for a cute look at the other side of the story.

Alanna

An open letter to our friends and supporters in Regina

Hello friends;

PFA is about to embark on our biggest trapping and sterilization effort ever on the streets of North Central Regina. We have plans to send trapping teams out to all 17 of our regular feeding stations, beginning this weekend. It is crucial that we reach street cats before it is too late, and they reproduce. Already, many of the females that we see are pregnant.

While many of the cats that we are targeting are feral, and will be released back to their habitat where we support them with food, water and shelter, it is a guarantee that we will also be trapping tame cats.These tame cats were once loved and socialized, but through no fault of their own they are surviving on the mean streets. While releasing feral cats back outside is the best solution for them, it is not the best solution for a tame cat.

Right now, we have 75 cats and kittens in foster care, and no openings. This means that if the feral team does trap a tame cat and we have it sterilized, it will have nowhere to go to be further rehabilitated and adopted out to a forever home where it will never again know hunger and cold. Can you help?

Even if you have never fostered a cat before, and might never again in the future, you could make a significant difference to our efforts this spring. All you would need would be a spare room with some soft blankets, food and water, litter, and some time to spend with a very grateful rescued street cat. One small spare room is a far better place for them than the streets, or a kennel at the shelter.

PFA will handle all of the medical considerations, the advertising, and the screening for adoptions. We can also supply food and litter if needed.

Please consider this request, and contact me for further information.
With sincere thanks for the support that you already give to PFA,
Sarah
badbunnygirl@hotmail.com

Lucy and her week old babies!

We received a call on Sunday night about a very sick momma cat with brand new baby kittens. She had been found outside in North Central Regina, and was clearly ill, dehydrated and disoriented. Sadly, before we could get the whole family to the vet, one of the kittens died. However, we were able to save everyone else, and today Lucy and the kittens were released from the vet clinic with a clean bill of health.

They are in my bathroom for now, out of reach of my very curious chihuahua, but we need a foster home for them, as I am already overloaded. Can anyone help?

Please email me at badbunnygirl@hotmail.com if you can.

-Sarah

It's a Rough Life on the Streets

The last week has been difficult week for PFA animal rescue volunteers. We learned that our tiny rescued kitten, Angel, had been terribly battered; we rescued a sweet cat named Blue from a dangerous hoarding situation, and we lost a litter of newborn kittens because the mama cat, a 6-month old kitten herself, was too sick and starved too care for them.

This week we learned about Monty, a tame but homeless cat sheltering in the shed of a kind citizen, who fed him and watched out for him over the long winter. His story made even one of our most seasoned volunteers cry.

Melissa, Monty’s rescuer, contacted us after noticing that Monty would periodically wander off and would eventually return, each time in worse shape than the last, with frostbite claiming his ears, injuries from cat fights, and fur falling out in patches.

The photos below demonstrate how Monty went from a beautiful healthy cat to a victim of life on the streets. Sadly, Monty’s ordeal could have been prevented had he been neutered at an appropriate age. Monty is an intact male cat, which means that he is more prone to wandering and aggression, which is likely how he ended up as a stray living outside. Neutering largely resolves these issues.

As of this writing, Monty is safe and sound at a veterinary clinic awaiting his neutering. He will also be tested for diseases common in street cats such as feline leukemia. We also need to find a foster home for Monty, as we are currently full to the brim.

We are grateful to kind citizens like Melissa who cared for this poor cat, contacted us when it was evident he needed additional help, and contributed toward his veterinary care. We are also grateful to all our volunteers and supporters who help us to rescue so many cats in distress.

Alanna

Men who love cats

Yes, there are crazy cat MEN too!
Read HERE for this Globe and Mail article.

Mutt can't believe his luck!

Mutt was trapped by our volunteers a week ago. He had been living under a deck with a colony of feral cats for some time, but it became clear as soon as we had him in the trap that Mutt was not feral. This sweet boy charmed everyone at the veterinary clinic where we took him to be neutered and to have his ear mites taken care of. Fortunately, we were able to place him into a great foster home right away, and Mutt is truly shining now! He loves hanging out with his foster family, and "talks" to them all of the time. He is also getting along well with their cat and their two dogs.

Mutt is a sad example of a male cat who was once loved. Chances are good that once he hit adolescence and wasn't neutered, he began to wander and look for fights with other males. Perhaps he was even kicked out of his home because his aggression and need to mark his territory became an annoyance. In the photos above, Mutt is in rough shape, and it is entirely due to a failure to neuter.

We are thrilled that we can rehabilitate Mutt and give him a second chance!

-Sarah

Angel today

Lisa and I went to visit Cherilyn's today, where Angel the sweet battered kitten is being fostered. Cherilyn had commented to me that Angel's pain levels seemed to be pretty bad, so I stopped at the vet clinic and was able to have the vet prescribe some metacam for our little girl.

We also tried to deworm Angel, but her little mouth is so raw that it didn't go very well...

She is such a sweet kitten, and so teeny! She is very quiet, as to be expected with her injuries, but so sweet natured and friendly.

I tried to get a photo of her damaged mouth and jaw, and her tail. The swelling on her tail has increased at the break, so I am guessing that we will need to amputate most of it. We will be following up with Dr S on Monday about making surgery plans to fix Angel up.

-Sarah

Blue the third

We seem to rescue a number of cats named Blue.

This sweet guy is the third one. He is wonderful.

Blue came from the hoarding situation that I wrote about on the blog some time ago (see http://pfasask.blogspot.com/2009/02/cat-hoarding-in-regina.html )

We had stayed in touch with the people involved, hoping that they would agree to surrender some more of the remaining cats from the home. And, last weekend, we got a call that they had one more that we could come and get. It was Blue. He is a darling, 5 year old neutered male. Blue seems to be a himalayan cross of some kind. He is cream colored with big blue eyes, and he is a chatty boy. Much of Blue's fur was falling out due to neglect, stress, and a bad diet. However, his wonderful personality shone through!

Blue is now in foster care, and he has been reunited with Polly, one of the other cats from the same situation.

-Sarah

Study on People's Reactions to Cute Animals

Finally, scientific support to validate our crazy devotion to cats! Click here to read a news article about how cute animals cause the same pleasurable reactions as chocolate and other guilty pleasures.

Guest Blogger: Mr Mom

I currently own a 1 year old male orange tabby named Garfield. He is the biggest cat in my house. Garfield is the most loving cat who loves to play and snuggle. Garfield can get a little rough with other cats in my house. When I found two 5 week old kittens in the dumpster just under a week ago I was concerned about bringing them home with Garfield. Garfield when getting a chance to play with other cats often gets rough. My worry was this would happen to the babies. To my surprise there was not even a hiss! All of the other cats were hissing and striking at them but not Garfield. He was curious, following them around where ever they may go. By Sunday he was Dad. He grabs them and cleans them, he plays with them and he is oh so gentle. He has even protected them from the other cats in the house that are still not happy with their presence. After watching this I was just amazed. I have heard of females taking on this role but never a male. So it was decided that Garfield's nickname is Mr. Mom.

-Shelly

(Shelly is currently fostering the two dumpster kittens that we wrote about earlier here: http://pfasask.blogspot.com/2009/03/another-case-of-dumpster-kittens.html)

Note from Angel aka Sheeba's foster mom

Angel's foster mom, Cherilyn, emailed the Pet Rescue Group this morning to update us on her progress:
"Thanks Sarah and everyone.

I think if Angel could she would thank everyone for caring so much about her and receiving all the help to make her well again. Angel is a little trooper. The last couple of days she has been playing with all of her toys. I brought her out of her room last night and she was just fascinated with the other cats. She sat on my lap and watched them. I know she wanted to play with them but did not want her to get roughed up or scratched on her little mouth as kittens play rough. Shiloh and Kylie, my two dogs, come and check on her with me and Shiloh always give her a lick on the top of her head and they touch noses - it's like they know that she is not well and they have to take care of her.

She purrs as soon as you pick her up and loves to be carried around so she spends a lot of time in my arms. Although she does not like her mouth being cleaned and I have a hard time doing it as I am scared I am hurting her we get it done and get the antibiotic down a little at a time. She eats all the time and drinks lots of water. I can't keep her food bowl full enough - hungry little girl . I have noticed a big improvement in her spirits and she seems content and happy even though she has not had the best start. So thanks to everyone: to the people who found her to Sarah and People for Animals. It is so nice to know in the world where things can sometimes seems terrible, one little kitten is loved."

Satchmo and a balloon

Click HERE to watch Satchmo, a spry 18 year old female cat, play with a balloon!
Satchmo is the much loved companion of Shayna, our volunteer webmaster.

Molly and the babies at Sandy's

Updated photos of Molly and her babies

The kittens are now almost 4 weeks old! Molly and the babies are doing wonderfully with Sandy, their foster mom. And, we already have some potential homes lined up for some of the kittens!

A disturbing update on Sheeba

An update on the sweet little black female cat who was rescued from the street last week.(I wrote about her on the blog: http://pfasask.blogspot.com/2009/03/sheeba-can-be-queen-now.html )

After Jacyntha and her friend rescued her, she went to Cherilyn's to be fostered. When I checked with her a few days later, Cherilyn said she was very worried about Sheeba, who she had renamed Angel. She was not very active, and had some wounds that worried her.

So, we had her into Victoria Vet Clinic last night. Dr. Shtuka examined her, and it has become clear that this poor little 8-12 week old girl was the victim of some kind of attack. She has cuts and bruises all over her body, an ulcer on her paw, and her lower jaw is severly wounded. The vet is describing the jaw injury as a "degloving", where the skin has been separated from the face itself. Angel also has a severly injured tail - Dr S thinks it might be broken, and that it will also need surgery, or the entire tail will become dead.

Cherilyn has taken Angel home for now, and is doing a wonderful job of keeping her very comfortable. She is on antibiotics and Cherilyn is cleaning her wounds regularly. Dr S has done up a treatment plan and an estimate for Angel, and I called the clinic and spoke to Lea, the clinic manager about it just now. To repair the mouth injury, she has quoted $340 for the surgery. However, Dr S wants to consult some other vets before we proceed. She hasn't decided yet if it would be ok to wait for a bit and see how the tail injury develops, and then if it needs surgery do both at the same time. Or, should the repair to the mouth happen right away. She is going to call me today or tomorrow so that we can discuss it once she has had some time to think.

I am sick to my stomach thinking about the kind of torture that Angel must have lived through. The vet was pretty much certain it wasn't a car accident or anything innocuous like that.

I'll keep everyone posted.
-Sarah

Minnow being a love

Minnow was rescued last summer, pregnant and with a severely burned mouth.

She is an absolute delight of a cat. Minnow is affectionate, friendly, brave, and beautiful. She tolerates other cats well, and even endures the enthusiasm of my chihuahua. I have fostered her since August, and I adore her.

Because of her injuries, Minnow needed to have most of her teeth pulled. However, she has healed well, and has no issues with eating. She loves crunchy food!

Sadly, Minnow has been adopted twice now, and both times the adoption has failed, through no fault of her own. The first time the family had some personal issues, and the second time the new owner wasn't ready for a full time pet. This has been so hard on Minnow, and we very much want her to find a home where she can stay and be loved FOREVER.

I am sure that after seeing how sweet she is in the above video, you'll feel the same way.

-Sarah

Another case of Dumpster kittens

One of our foster homes, Shelly, was taking the trash out to the dumpster this afternoon. She heard mewling coming from a plastic bag tied up in a knot IN the dumpster. After investigating further, she opened the plastic bag to discover these two darling kittens, who her young son has named Sally and Chick.

Sally and Chick are between 6 and 7 weeks old. Shelly will foster them, ensure that they are strong and healthy, and in a week or two we will list them for adoption.

I can't believe that we have already had another case of finding kittens tossed into a dumpster! The level of ignorance and cruelty that it represents is unconscionable. Thank goodness that Shelly was there.

In the last week or two the Pet Rescue committee has been talking about getting ready for kitten season, which we expected to start in a month or so. Clearly, the cats had other things in mind, as the kittens are already here in the world and needing our help.

-Sarah

Feral cat route challenges

Excerpted below is an email I received tonight from Phil, one of the members of our feral cat team. A dilapidated garage where we have been feeding over the winter has been boarded up, causing concern that we might not be able to find a secure place to feed the cats, and making us worry that some of the cats who shelter in there might have been trapped. I wanted to share this, as it is such a good snapshot of the kinds of challenges that we face in trying to ease the suffering of Regina's street cats.

"I went over to _____ Street and indeed the “holey” garage is boarded up. Apparently the owner or renter was forced to clean up the garage by the Fire Department. The good news is that the garage is still filled with junk and the cats still have access in there through a small hole in a window. There were other cats that were outside and are sheltering under a pile of lumber in the back yard. All the cats appear to be accounted for including the four kittens that were living in the garage over the winter. I counted 7 cats in the yard plus an 8th who appeared to be a pregnant female coming down the alley from the south. They readily came to the food and water that I left just outside the garage, but were quite wary.

Leanne and I contacted ___________, who live two doors down from the garage. They agreed to let us set up a shelter and feeding station on their property. We established a temporary feeding station near the shed at the back of their property and will gradually shift the feeding station from the garage to this new site. __________ are very supportive of the work that PFA does and have been very concerned about the cats in the garage and in the neighbourhood in general.

The situation is stable for the moment. The cats have shelter and food and still have access to the garage. Over the next few days I will attempt to enlarge the hole that the cats are using to get into the garage and will attempt to retrieve the insulated water bowls and shelters that we have in there. In the meantime, we can expand the shelter and feeding site at _________. We should also start trapping and spaying/neutering these cats over the next few weeks. We may be able to release these cats back in their territory, now that we have a site that we can start building additional shelter/feeding space on."

Sheeba can be a queen now

Sheeba was found yesterday on someone's driveway, half frozen. She was quickly taken in by a community member who contacted us. This poor little kitten wouldn't have made it for even one more day without help! Now she is cosy and contented at Jacyntha's (one of our great volunteers - for some of our regular readers, she also rescued Spaz and Rosie!) and will be going to her foster mom, Cherilyn's, house tomorrow night. Jacyntha says that Sheeba is a very chatty and happy little girl, now that she knows she is safe!

-Sarah

A video of Molly and her 3 week old kittens

Molly and her beautiful babies

Some of you may have read a post from two days ago about a little family of a momma cat and her five kittens that needed foster care. Molly was dumped on the side of the higway in Sedley, taken in by the kind workers of the seed plant, and had her babies two days later. Tonight, Doug, one of the people who saved Molly, and gave her a soft bed and food and water, brought her into the city so that we can offer her and the kittens a better life. Molly and the 3 week old kittens are comfortable ensconced in my bathroom tonight and will go to their foster home with Sandy very soon. So far Molly has nursed the kittens twice already, and it's obvious she is a wonderful mother. All of the kittens are perky, with just-opened eyes, and round bellies. Molly has some frost bite on her ears, and ear mites, but she seems to otherwise be in good health. And such a sweet and friendly cat! Stay tunes for more photos. I think these guys will quickly become blog favorites.

-Sarah

Don't forget the AGM!

People for Animals of Saskatchewan Inc.
Annual General Meeting
Sat. March 14th 2009 at 1:30pm
Neil Balkwill Civic Arts Centre, Elphinstone St.

All members and interested friends are invited to attend.

New board members! Donuts!

Foster home needed!

In two days, PFA will have a momma cat and five 3 week old kittens that need foster care. A sweet tame grey tabby was dumped alongside the highway in Sedley, near the seed plant. She was taken in by the workers at the plant, and just a few days later gave birth to her five kittens. She has been an amazing mother, with the help of the employees there who have provided food, water, and a warm place for the little family. However, it's important that the momma and kittens be moved before the kittens get active and are hurt by the machinery at the plant. So, one of the employees is driving them in on Thurs night and bringing them to my house. I already have 4 foster cats along with my own 6, and I can't keep them here longer than a night or two. Can anyone foster this family? PFA will provide everything that they need, and have the mother spayed once the kittens are weaned.
Please drop me a line at badbunnygirl@hotmail.com if you can help.
-Sarah

Three sisters

These three girls were rescued by our feral cat team last May near our feeding station and colony on Athol St, in North Central Regina. They were adopted by Phil, one of our awesome members of the feral cat team, and have adapted beautifully to a very cushy life! How wonderful that all three sisters were able to stay together, and be loved.

-Sarah

Some new shots of the feral cats that we feed

These photos were all taken by Phil, one of the members of the feral cat team. These cats are regular residents at our feeding stations, and are managing to make it through a very tough winter with help from PFA.

A surprising pair

Shadow is the fluffy grey male cat that was rescued in December in a North Central Regina back alley; cold, thirsty, hungry, and very distressed. I have fostered him since that day, and he has come a long way!!! When Shadow first got here he was aggressive with all of the other animals - not only the other cats, but my own little dog. He had separation anxiety when I left the room. He was filthy, and very skinny. Shadow didn't like leaving the security of the basement room where he was first fostered.

The above photo was taken today. As I type, Shadow is napping on the daybed in my den alongside my little dog, Atti. He plays with the other cats. He has put on weight and is a very clean and happy cat. Now Shadow just needs to find his forever home. He is so affectionate and smart.

To see Shadow's adoption ad, please click HERE

-Sarah