Community Cats | Savannah's Paw Tracks

Archive for the tag “Community Cats”

09 Aug 2021

It Takes A Village…

HIYA!! SAVANNAH HERE!!!

That old human adage—”it takes a village” is true for what it takes to rescue an abandoned community cat in danger. Mom L and Dad P are co-founders of a nonprofit TNR (Trap, Neuter, Return) all volunteer group, Delta View Cats (DVC) dedicated to helping these cats in our city of Pittsburg, CA.

Of course, this is one of my most ambitious Paw It Forward project ever!!They are carrying it out under my paw tracks guidance. This story was first written by one of our DVC volunteers who pawticipated in this rescue story. Mr. Chris and Mr. Mauro were present the night Stormy was finally saved and Mr. Chris wrote this about it.

“Shivering, hungry, and covered in fallen leaves

On Saturday, July 31, during their routine, daily, community cat colony feeding at Riverview Park, a couple of volunteers with Delta View Cats (deltaviewcats.com), a nonprofit trap-neuter-release organization in Pittsburg, heard a loud yowl and went to investigate. They found an adult, black kitty in one of the park’s storm drains.

We suspect Stormy was abandoned in the park, an all-too-common practice. We found a cat carrier in bad shape near the storm drain.

It would make sense that this frightened feline, an apparent domestic cat, dumped through no fault of his own, would retreat anywhere to safety from park traffic.

(this video is not professional but if you turn up the volume you can hear Stormy’s cries of fear and his hope for help)

Volunteers to the rescue

On Sunday, after several unsuccessful attempts to coax Stormy out of the drain, one of our tireless Delta View Cats volunteers reached down into the drain with heavy-duty gloves. Ray began petting stormy and offering him smelly tuna. After several tense moments, with a confident scruffing, Ray lifted Stormy into a cat carrier held by another volunteer. Collective sigh of relief!

Chalk it up to timing & good fortune. The quiet of the near-midnight hour. 4 people putting their heads and hearts together. And a little black kitty magic.

He rested on our balcony covered with a blanket, heated by a safe space heater and he had a midnight snack of water and a little bit of tuna. He appeared to not be feral; he gave slow blinks and didn’t hiss or strike when I went to put water in the carrier. His eyes are so soulful.”

After the rescue, our DVC volunteer Mr. Ray, had a storage building already set up to house community cats on their way to being adopted. It is managed by another cat rescue, Kitty911. Stormy waited for a neuter appointment and we knew his adoption would be overseen by our partner, Community Concern for Cats.

Delta View Cats is making neuter surgery plans now and fortunately, another DVC volunteer who feeds the colony we manage at this park, Miss Shashi, fell in love with Stormy and his rescue.

Short story short! Stormy is now with Shashi as a “foster to adopt”.

We are fortunate that our city of Pittsburg has provided us with funds for spay/neuter for cats we find along the waterfront area. Once Stormy is all done with his medical needs, then Shashi and her family can adopt him forever!!

Again a short, not great, video of Stormy accepting the love from his foster to adopt human!

I will keep you updated on Stormy’s journey.

PAW PATS, SAVANNAH

Posted in Adult Cat Rescue and tagged cat photo, CC4C, Community Cats, paw it forward, real rescue stories

02 Aug 2021

10 Comments

A photo kind’a post

HIYA!! SAVANNAH HERE!!!

It’s been a “hodge-podge” kind’a week here in my castle. Remember my newest castle ~~introoder~~ guest, Bart?

Mom L spent most of Friday taking him to emergency. He was walkin’ around Friday morning like a tripod cat—not good! Bart hated being in the garage and he cried and cried and thrashed in his cage. He apparently had injured his right front “wrist”. He has a clearly painful soft tissue injury and is now on anti-inflammatory meds and pain meds. He is finally lookin’ a teeny bit better today, Monday. We moved him into Dad P’s office. Mom L has sweet Carmelita in hers, and Carmelita was spayed on last Thursday! Sheesh—what a couple’a days that was!!

So this post is easy peasey. I have some recent photos I thought you might enjoy.

The photo above was taken this very afternoon. And yes, that is my tail wrapped around Katie’s bottom! We shared our afternoon nap in this spot.

Lousy lighting, but this is Katie’s new afternoon resting place lately. She loves the sun as much as I have always loved it.

This is me after a long day at the vet’s office. My arty-right-us is getting worse in my left front leg so’s Mom L and Dad P wanted me to have some pictures taken of my leg, shoulder and neck. I’ll let you know what’s up once we get some answers. Likely, it’s just old age!!

And Sage, the ever hopeful dinner guest. Just waiting for Mom L or Dad P to toss her something off their plates when Dad P grills chikhen!1

That’s it from me this week. Let me know if you have any questions. Hope all of you are doin’ great!

PAW PATS, SAVANNAH

Posted in Community Cats, Katie's Life Experiences, Sage's Life Experiences, Savannah's Life Experiences and tagged adopt adult cat, cat photo, Community Cats, Savannahs progress

12 Jul 2021

16 Comments

UPDATE: An afternoon at the Kitchen Kitten Clinic

HIYA!! SAVANNAH HERE!!!

I know most of my readers are very familiar with KITTEN SEASON! And you also know that Mom L, at my direction, has been volunteering with our partner nonprofit organization, Community Concern For Cats (CC4C) for over eight years at their almost weekly KITCHEN CLINIC.

This clinic takes place in the kitchen of the lady who manages CC4C. The attending veterinarian is my buddy Doc Josie. Mom L does the recording for medical records and Miss Gemma does all of the “holding” of the patients for Doc Josie.

This clinic is basically set up to prepare kittens for adoption. All kittens are from abandoned mom cats living outside as community cats. They receive the following when they come in for “The Works“!

FeLV test for feline leukemia
First FVRCP vaccination ( feline distemper)
First of a series of three, every two weeks, of Pyrantel for deworming
First of once a month treatment of Revolution for fleas
A general Vet check-up

Mind you, some kittens are resistant to these inflictions upon their bodies!! MOL!! Especially the part when they must be held still!

At this weekly clinic, Doc Josie also sees some only “medical cases” which can be adults or even kittens that are not thriving.

The handsome male brown tabby above had the biggest paws and so dark and handsome!

We see so many kittens, itty bitty ones, with eye infections. Sigh—the perils of being born wild in the out of doors. But with the wonderful fosters from CC4C and this Kitchen Clinic and Doc Josie, these littles are cured and thrive and find loving forever homes.

The above trio of kittens came to the clinic so thin, severe diarrhea and simply not putting on weight. Normally, kittens who are thriving gain one quarter pound per week. Miss Gemma told their foster that she would take them under her wing for care. Miss Gemma can snatch almost any kitten from the paws of death—and that’s no kidding!!!

Doc Josie and Miss Gemma brought out some yummy Nulo turkey and chicken wet food, good for kittens and adults. And the kittens chowed down! Mom L saw these kittens last week and they are doing GREAT!!!!

This Kitchen Clinic is Mom L’s most favorite thing to do ever!! She has learned so much and done things to help her bestie Doc Josie do surgical repairs to kitten’s butts and oh so many more things—not bad for a retirement project, right??

So what do ya think about our Paw It Forward work??