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Archive for the tag “paw it forward”

16 Aug 2021

Carmelita’s Happy Tail Ending

HIYA!! SAVANNAH HERE!!!

Do you remember my former castle guest Carmelita?? I hope so ‘cuz she has a very happy tail ending to share.

If you know anything about trying to get a bootiful sweet ADULT kitty kat adopted during kitten season, then you know how awesome this story is.

Mom L took Carmelita to her very first adoption even through our partner’s Community Concern For Cats. They have a “pop-up” adoption site they set-up during the height of COVID. It is open only on Saturday and Sunday and fosters bring their cats/kittens into a very nice space for potential adopters to come through and visit kitties in which they have an interest. Mom L took Carmelita a week ago, on a Saturday, for her first ever adoption event. The place was packed with humans eager to check out all the kittens. Carmelita and one other darling calico gal were the only young adults present. Mom L also too four black formerly feral sweet kittens for some pals of ours who are their fosters. Thankfully Carmelita and the black kittens (very shy) were next to each other to give each other some support.

Well on that crazy pants Saturday, this one couple stopped by and admired Carmelita. Mom L chatted them up to learn why they were at this adoption event and whether or not they were interested in an adult kitty. Carmelita is only about 18 months old. And so very playful, not to mention totally house trained right down to knowin’ what to do with a scratching post!!

This couple hung around at the end and left with their adoption application in hand. Next day, Sunday last week, they were one of the first people to walk in the door when adoptions went live! They came with their completed application and a carrier!! They were back to take Carmelita home with them!!!

Mom L shed a bunch of tears later that night ‘cuz we all missed sweet Carmelita. But she is clearly already taking over her very own castle!!

And her forever Mom and Dad are ready for her to own their hearts and apparently even their shoes!!! MOL!!!

PAW PATS, SAVANNAH

Posted in Community Cats, foster kitties, happy tails endings and tagged cat photo, Community Cats, paw it forward

09 Aug 2021

11 Comments

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

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??