HITCH!

Lovely, calm Hitch is a 2-3 year old black male cat who had been living under someone's deck since last spring. We are so pleased that he is now safe in temporary foster care, free from worries about the cold. Hitch was neutered yesterday, and all of the staff at the vet clinic thought he was wonderful! While he is still a little rattled by all of the changes that have happened in his life in the last couple of days, Hitch loves to be petted, stretching out his entire loooong body, starting up his motor, and rubbing his massive tomcat head against your hand. Hitch bears many scrapes and scars from his rough life on the street, and the relief of being warm and well fed is positively emanating from him.

Hitch is currently in a comfortable spare room in the home of a volunteer who is going out of town for the holidays. We have recently found some cats frozen to death on the streets, and we didn't want to see that happen to him, so we brought him in, even without an ideal foster home situation waiting. He will only see a friendly face once a day when someone stops by to check on him, and give him food and water. This loving, gentle guy deserves to be in a foster home who will shower him with all of the attention he has been missing, and help him build trust in people again. Can you help Hitch? Please email saskpeopleforanimals@gmail.com if you can.

-Sarah

Sick kitten on the mend

Meet sweet little Coda. A 3-4 month old kitten rescued from the street last week, we didn't think he was going to make it. Coda was trapped along with two siblings, but for some reason they had been managing ok on the street with support from our feral team, and Coda did not. Our vet, volunteers, and Coda's dedicated foster mom Laurisa had never seen a kitten so emaciated. He needed to be hand fed every hour for the first few days, and Laurisa carried him around in her shirt. And she has a new human baby too! Finally, Coda has begun to show some signs that he is rallying. He is taking more of an interest in his surroundings, and he is even trying to play a little. However, he is still such a little skeleton that he isn't able to walk and keep his balance very well, so he still has a long road back to health. When I met him today his skin is still hanging on his frame, and you can feel his bones in his arms and legs. Heartbreaking.
Thank goodness for our feral team, rescuing vulnerable creatures in all kinds of weather. And thank goodness for Laurisa, from Prairie Animal Assistance, who gets full credit for saving this sweet little kitten.

-Sarah

Another girlfriend for Bugsy

My beloved rehabilitated tomcat, Bugsy, is a rather famous character in PFA circles. He lived at a feeding station for a long time, and we think he had been on the streets for even longer. When we finally succeeded in trapping him his injuries were so severe that he eventually needed 3 surgeries. Very timid to begin with, Mr Bugs is now Mr Purrsonality, the welcome ambassador to my home. Bugsy loves hanging out with young females (like many older males do!). He always takes my female foster kittens under his proverbial wing, and sweet Belle has proven to be no exception. In the photo above they are enjoying a comfy snooze on a cold winter day.

-Sarah

From trauma to total contentment

Volunteering with PFA can be incredibly gratifying, as we work to ensure happy endings for our feline charges. However, it can also be devastating when we are faced with heartbreaking animal suffering, and the truth about how cruel some people can be.

Angel, the little black kitten, was one of those cases that made many hardened rescuers cry. She was found partially frozen to a driveway in the midst of winter, hungry and terrified. Once she was safe in a foster home, we discovered that Angel (whose name was changed to Angel from Sheeba when we realized what a little miracle she was) was horrifically injured. Her tail was badly broken, and the skin on her lower jaw was torn away from her face. She had ulcers on her feet that were likely caused by some kind of chemical burn. Our vet was certain that these wounds were inflicted on purpose.

Angel's foster mom, Cherilyn, carefully and lovingly nursed her back to health, and when she was well enough, she had surgery for her injuries. Most of her tail was amputated, but she healed from the surgery remarkably quickly. Through all of these experiences, we were all inspired and amazed at how resilient and loving this sweet little kitten was.

The photo above was sent to us by Angel's adoptive home. As you can see, she is a happy and healthy full grown cat now, with great feline companions (including another PFA rescue, the grey tabby pictured with her) and an incredibly loving human family. These are the endings that help us to keep going in the face of more sad stories on the streets of Regina.

-Sarah

Mr. Moustache is in need of a loving foster home for his last days

Mr Moustache is a PFA rescue cat, a handsome tame guy who was rescued after depending on one of our feeding stations in North Central for his food and shelter all summer. He spent some time in my basement room being assessed between his neuter at the vet and going to his foster home. He is AWESOME. He was likely on the street for some time, and he relishes being warm, snuggling on laps, and eating as much as he wants. Now, we have discovered that he has Feline Leukemia. While he is currently comfortable and content, the reality is that our sweet Mr M likely only has 5 to 6 months left, at the most. We would love to see him enjoy this time and pass on his own terms, rather than be euthanized now. But he needs a loving foster home with no other cats so that can happen. Can you, or anyone you know, help? Please email saskpeopleforanimals@gmail.com if you can help us give Mr M a loving safe space for his final days.

-Sarah

Petey Indoors

This summer, long time PFA volunteer and foster home Sandy began feeding a sad looking shaggy grey stray who was spending a lot of time in her yard in the south end of Regina. Petey was hungry, homeless, and seemed to be injured. Sandy was able to trap him and take him to the vet for neutering and medical care. The vet theorized that Petey had been struck by a car and dragged, and he needed to be treated for some pretty heart rending injuries. Once he was in better shape, still wildish Petey was released back to Sandy's backyard and she resolved to continue to care for him and win his trust. Since then, Petey has been living in Sandy's garage, and she had gotten to the point where he would actually sit on her lap for petting.

Last week, when the weather became so terribly cold, Sandy began trying to entice Petey to come into her warm home. After a few attempts, he walked in her door of his own accord. He was quickly accepted by Sandy's feline clan, and has already picked out his favorite sleeping and hanging out spots. Petey is still a timid guy, and he will need a great deal of time to be rehabilitated, healed, and socialized. However, now he is warm, well fed, neutered, vaccinated, dewormed and adored. We are so grateful for wonderful people like Sandy who are willing to put all of the time needed into helping Petey recover from his trauma and time on his own outdoors.

-Sarah

Belle looking for a second chance at life

Yesterday, a young man whose girlfriend had adopted a cat from us found a scrawny, dehydrated older female calico kitten out in a storage facility in Belle Plaine. He thinks she got in through a drain pipe and was likely dumped out there as she is very tame and friendly, and there are no farms nearby. Belle is now comfortably ensconced in my bathroom, where many of our rescues start out their time with PFA! I am able to assess them for tameness, age, and overall health, and give them their first shots and deworming. From there, we generally move a new arrival within a few days to their foster home. I love having the role of welcoming cats in distress into the security of the PFA family, and offering them food, shelter, medical care and love.

Sweet Belle is happily dozing on a soft blanket now. She will be available for adoption soon.

-Sarah

A special rescue by some special people

Two nights ago, I received a phone call from a young man about a cat. He had a kitten that he said had been found under a building, and he was hoping that PFA could help. I arranged to go over the next day and pick the cat up. I had very little information - just that they couldn't keep her, as they were only allowed one pet, and they already had a cat, and that this cat/kitten was thin, hungry and seemed like it had been homeless for a while.

The next morning, I went to the apartment complex, and discovered that it was a supportive living complex for special needs adults. These amazing people had found that Marnie, a small black female cat, about 7 months old, had been living in a crawl space under their building. Braving scratches and bites from this frightened little girl, they dragged her out, and took excellent care of her until I got there. They checked her for an ear tattoo (she didn't have one), cleaned her up, and even called all of the ads in the paper for lost cats! Not only had many of the residents been involved in this rescue, but they did far more for this little lost cat then most people that PFA deals with. I was touched and impressed. The residents also quizzed me at length about what would happen to Marnie, to ensure that she would be safe from euthanization and any future homelessness.

Marnie is now already spayed, had a wound over her eye treated, and is in loving foster care with Gayle. Once she has had some time to recover and learn to trust again, we will be listing her for adoption.
-Sarah

A happy ending for best buddies

Last fall, two tiny kittens were discovered in two different locations on the street on the same night by our dedicated feral team. These little guys were way too small to survive on their own, especially with the cold fall nights.

Delee, another dedicated member of our feral team, took these two babies in to foster, named them Wally (black one) and Lola (grey and white), and quickly decided to adopt them. 6 months have now passed, and these two rescued kitties are thriving with lots of love. Although they are not actually related to each other, they are as close as litter mates, as evidenced by the photos above! Wally and Lola would have either died on the street, or grown up to be feral street cats. Instead, they are happy housecats with a wonderful family, and they are getting sterilized this week.

-Sarah

The Evolution of Baby Girl

Baby Girl, the first time I saw her, and when we knew we had to rescue her and her kittens.

Oct. 2008

Baby Girl now, Sept. 2009
More Baby Girl now, Sept. 2009

Baby Girl (known as Gemma in her adoption ads) was rescued by PFA almost exactly a year ago. She had been confined in a small windowless bathroom for close to 4 months with her four kittens by a well meaning but misguided elderly lady. We rescued the entire little family, and I took them into my home as foster cats. Baby Girl was about 9 or 10 months old at the time. My guess is that she had gotten pregnant on her first heat, and was then rescued from the street by the old lady. Baby Girl was thin, slight, and exhausted from caring for her kittens. As you can see from the above photo, she was scared, poorly socialized, and depressed, and not sure what to think of humans.

We quickly found homes for two of her kittens (the orange ones, of course!) and over the course of this past year we also found a wonderful home for her two black female kittens once they were adults. However, Baby Girl needed more time. We rescued her last October, and I wasn't even able to touch her until about December. At first, she would simply race around the large room I had settled the family into, panicked at the thought of having any contact with me. After a few weeks, I gave the whole family the run of the house, and Baby Girl relished her freedom, but still ran any time I tried to engage with her.

Finally, last January, Baby Girl decided that I wasn't so bad. She began letting me touch her when she was eating, and even started asking for attention from time to time. And then, it was like the floodgates opened, and she became the most loving, affectionate cat! I earned her trust enough that I was able to get her into a carrier and take her to the vet for her spay (finally... after a noisy heat). And, even after that experience, she continued becoming more friendly and loving.

Today, Baby Girl is a happy and healthy, well adjusted tortoiseshell cat. She is large for a female, and has the most lovely, plush fur. She greets strangers at the door, and loves to snuggle with me in bed at night. She wrestles and races with my own cats all over the house.

A year is a long time for a PFA cat to stay in foster care. However, in this case, I think Baby Girl needed all of that time to truly recover from her rough start in life. This is one of those times that I am so glad that we are committed to giving cats every opportunity to have a happy ending, with no timelines. We never give up on a cat.

Baby Girl is ready for her forever home now, of that I am certain. I love her so much, and I truly wish that I wasn't already at my 6 cat limit so that I could keep her. But I simply cannot, especially since I am expecting my own baby in the New Year!

-Sarah

Cat Hoarding

A&E has a new show called "Hoarders". The episode that was on last night featured an elderly couple who were hoarders of both material items and cats. Eventually, Animal Protective Services comes in and removes 76 cats from their home, only 41 of them alive.

This couple is well intentioned, but has very little in the way of resources, and no understanding of the damage they are doing to these stray and feral cats that they are trying to help. When asked how many cats they have they think maybe 20 or so, when the truth is far higher than that.

Watching this footage is helpful for anyone trying to understand the concept of animal hoarding.

This segment shows as the house is searched for cats, dead or alive, by animal protective services. (The segment is in two parts, as it also features another hoarding case. The cat case comes at about the two minute mark.)

This segment shows the aftermath, as the couple tries to clean their house so that they can keep their three remaining cats.

People for Animals deals with hoarding situations more often than anyone would expect, even in a smaller city such as Regina. While we haven't come up against anyone with quite as many cats as this couple had, we often do deal with people who honestly believe that they are giving their cats the best life possible, when in all honesty they are forcing them to live in unhealthy and unsanitary situations.
-Sarah

Mouse

This is Mouse. She was rescued this spring when someone in the community alerted us to a momma cat and her 5 kittens sheltering in an old dog house trying to protect her babies from the neighborhood tomcats. She was taken into foster care when the kittens were about 5 weeks old.

All kittens have been adopted except for one, little MJ (Mouse Junior), now known as Frankie.

When PFA tried to get Mouse spayed she almost died on the table but with the quick thinking and action at Victoria Vet Clinic they were able to reverse the anasthetic and bring Mouse back around. They determined she had a reaction to the anasthetic and found lots of mucous in her lungs. Mouse returned to her foster home with a shaved belly, a tattoo and medication for Upper Respiratory Infection. After 2 rounds of antibiotics she has now been on Prednisone for 3 weeks with 1 more week to go and then needs a check up to see if PFA can proceed with her sterilization then adoption.

Mouse is such a good momma cat, and is still a bit timid due to her experience living on the streets and now all her medical issues. However she still greets you with a meow and loves to have a good head scratch. She has a beautiful long coat and is super soft.

Michelle

An update on Piglet, now Zeus.

This spring, we rescued a feral momma cat, Chika, with two of her babies. Piglet was the cream colored flame point siamese cross male, and he was a beauty! I felt so lucky to be fostering this little family.

Today, we received some pics of Piglet, and he is thriving with his adopter. Many thanks to Jacyntha for passing these along!

-Sarah

Sammy is coming along

Sammy was a small kitten when she moved into my backyard in North Central Regina last fall. Despite my best efforts to coax her into my arms, and later tries at trapping her, she evaded all of it. I am quite certain that she had started out life as a tame kitten, but her time on the street left her wary and timid. She was very smart though, and figured out how to eat the food as bait in the cat trap without setting it off! Sammy would often sit on top of my outdoor cat run in the middle of the night and look in my bedroom window, teasing my dog Atti. She would also play through the mesh of the cat run with the kittens I was fostering at the time who were the same age as her.

As winter came, my concern for Sammy instigated my efforts to customize my backyard shed as a feral cat shelter. I set up four insulated shelter boxes, got a heated water bowl, and even ordered an outdoor heating pad for cats to place in one of the shelters. I checked the shelter regularly to top up the food and water, and make sure that all was well. My hope was that once winter was over and it was safe to try and trap again, I could finally nab Sammy.

Sammy wintered beautifully in the shed. Her fur was in great shape, and she had no signs of frostbite (damaged ears or paw pads) that outdoor cats in Regina often show. As soon as spring arrived, I resumed my trapping efforts, and finally one evening I succeeded in getting her. I released her into my basement fostering room. And then I realized that she was heavily pregnant. I was broken hearted, and felt so responsible for it, since if I had only managed to trap her in the fall this would have never happened. Now, there was no way I could get her back into a trap or a carrier to get to the vet for an abortion and a spay. She was terrified, and I couldn't even touch her. I decided that I would just let her mellow out, and shortly afterwards, she had her kittens. Sadly, as is common with many first litters, all but one of her kittens died shortly after birth. However, Jellybean thrived under Sammy's care, and he has now gone on to a wonderful adoptive home.

Flash forward a few months, and Sammy now has the run of the house with all of the other critters. I took this video this morning of Sammy eating breakfast along with some of the other cats. She is still a very timid girl, and disappears if anyone other than me is in the house. However, she plays with everyone, and will now sit within about a foot of me, and sniff my fingers. Sammy is a long term taming project, and normally PFA doesn't have the fostering resources for this kind of lengthy process. But I feel a special responsibility for my Sammy, and will work with her as long as it takes.

-Sarah

Jellybean and Ninja!

AJ and her family adopted two kittens from us this summer... Jellybean (orange male) was the sole survivor of Sammy's litter, and Ninja (grey male) was one of three kittens rescued from a life on the street. It took a week or so for them to make friends, but once they did, they became inseparable. Ninja is a little older and bigger than Jellybean, and he loves to groom his buddy, as in this video here.

Bottle fed babies thriving

These five lovable kittens are being capably fostered by Darlene. They were rescued from the street by our feral cat team about two weeks ago now. Their feral momma was trapped and spayed, and returned to her home territory where she will be supported as part of the colonies that we maintain in North Central. However, these kittens will have a much different life!

All five are happy and healthy, and will be very trusting, loving cats as they have been hand raised by humans. They will all be available for adoption at the end of this month.

-Sarah

PS. The larger siamese kitten in one of the photos is another kitten that Darlene fostered and saved, and ended up keeping :)

Milo's happily ever after

Milo is a sweet young male tabby who took refuge in Sandra's backyard early this spring. Sandra took an interest in this charismatic homeless kitty, and asked around the area to find out if he had a home. No one came forward, so she asked me if PFA could help. We arranged for Milo to be neutered, and Sandra offered to foster him. In a surprise twist, Milo escaped from Sandra's yard almost as soon as he got home from the vet and disappeared. Sandra eventually located him at the Regina Humane Society. Apparently someone had trapped him and taken him in.

Sandra took this well travelled feline home, and he has made friends with her formerly anti-social older female cat, LB. Sandra has formally adopted him, and he is doing extremely well!

Sandra is a great example of a community member who is willing to work alongside PFA to ensure a happy ending for a stray cat.

-Sarah

An update on Sammy-girl

Sammy has been in my care since May, when I was able to trap her in my backyard shed. Shortly after being rescued, Sammy gave birth to kittens.

Sadly, only one of her kittens survived past the first week. However, Sammy took excellent care of Jellybean, and he has now been adopted into a loving family.

Sammy has shown great progress in her time at my house.

She actually began living in my backyard almost a year ago when she was still just a kitten herself. She showed a great deal of curiousity about me and my critters, often perching on the top of the cat run to look in my bedroom window. She would also play with my cats through the mesh of the cat run. Sammy wintered in my outdoor cat shelter, and I was so glad to finally trap her in the spring, although sadly it wasn't soon enough to prevent a pregnancy.

I am seeing Sammy as a long term fostering project. She trusts me now, and allowed me to touch her babies when she had them. Sammy will come up to me and smell my fingers, although I still can't touch her. In the evenings, she comes up upstairs and explores the house, and she loves going out into the cat run. I am confident that she will eventually become a loving housecat, but that she will need at least 6 more months.

Sammy is the kind of cat that we normally don't have the fostering resources available to spend the time taming. Instead, a semi-feral cat like her would go to a farm or a colony where we would support them. However, I feel very proprietary about her since she has lived in my yard for so long, and so I am content to have her here as long as it takes...

-Sarah

Kitten foster home needed!

These three lovely ten week old kittens need a foster home! They have had their first shots, and have also been dewormed. We rescued this trio from one of our feeding stations and few weeks ago. Their temporary foster home has done a fantastic job taming them up, but now we need another spot for them. Can you help? Please let me know, at badbunnygirl@hotmail.com

-Sarah

The rescue of Lil' One

On Sunday, I went for brunch with a friend, and came home mid afternoon. As we drove up to my house, I glimpsed a small black kitten on the sidewalk trying to rub against the ankles of uncaring passerby. She was clearly too small to be out on her own. I walked over and picked her up. She was very thin, but very friendly, and began to purr right away. She had a terrible case of ear mites, and was limping on one of her back legs. Poor little girl. I took her into my house and settled her down with a soft bed and some food and water. After sleeping for about 12 hours straight, she has now taken over the whole house! Lil' one is a spitfire. She has made friends with the dogs, and climbs all over me and any furniture in her way. She sleeps with me, wedged between my shoulders and the pillow. I adore her, and I am so glad that I found her. Once her leg is fully healed, she'll be listed for adoption with PFA. As I type this, she is curled up on my lap.

-Sarah