You Rock!

©2011 Robin A.F. Olson. Beautiful Blitzen at 1 1/2 years old.

While I am over-the-moon-thrilled that Covered in Cat Hair is a FINALIST in the Petties 2011 as the Best Social Integration Blog and BEST CAT Blog, I had to stop celebrating for a moment and pay homage to my own rescue (aka, foster fail) boy, Blitzen.

Isn't he handsome?

swooooon!

This family was rescued because 1 person posted that this family needed help to rescue groups, 1 person began bugging rescue groups to help and offered to raise $500.00 via her blog (hmmm..who might that be?), 2 people at 1 shelter said YES, 21 people donated money immediately, and 1 person offered to drive the family a very long way to their new home. It took 26 people, most who have never met in person, to step up and offer to help this family in some way. Was the journey effortless? No way. But was the journey worth the effort? I think you know the answer to that.

©2011 Bobby Stanford. Mama is smiling. She knows she and her family are safe at last.

This family has no idea that after 1 person dumped them, so many would gather round them and offer them sanctuary, safety and love. Most of us will never even meet this family, but it's not about us. We don't care for our own needs. We care that this family will not die today and hopefully not any day soon.

©2011 Bobby Stanford. “I wonder where we're going? I hope it's nice there.”

They are a symbol of so many families that are just as deserving, who also need to make it out of a kill shelter today. Many of them need a donation or a driver or a foster home for a few weeks. These are things many of us can provide in one form or another. Let this rescue remind us how wonderful it feels to WIN one! Let us take a stand and remember to keep doing more-as much as we can-of course, without straining resources unfairly.

©2011 Bobby Stanford. Mama sings a song to entertain Bobby as he drives them to their new home.

We can fight this good fight together, but we have a lot more work to do.

©2011 Bobby Stanford. We don't know what the prognosis is for this little tabby's legs yet. Stay tuned for an update.

Thanks to Bobby, our super-awesome-do-anything-for-cats-friend, the family is with the Humane Society of Forsyth County (Georgia). The little tabby may have TWO deformed legs, not one. We hope the lesser of the two deformities will resolve on its own or with very little intervention. When I have more information, I will let you all know. At least, for now, everyone is well, with full bellies and a safe harbor.

Thank you again to HSFC for their willingness to go the distance for this family when their own shelter is beyond full. If you know anyone interested in adopting a sweet dog or cat, please visit HSFC's Adoption Page! The emptier this shelter gets, the more that can be rescued off death row..I'm just sayin'...Adopt today! It's almost the end of Adopt-A-Shelter-Cat Month!

Here are some faves:

Hufflepuff, Pure White Kitten

Leona, a Beautiful FIV+ baby Maine Coon mix

Felix-the GORGEOUS declawed Tuxedo (long hair!)

Helena Bonham Carter: a sweet mixed breed puppy.

THIS FAMILY IS SAFE AND ON THEIR WAY TO THE HUMANE SOCIETY OF FORSYTH COUNTY. THANKS TO THE MANY GENEROUS DONORS WHO MADE THIS RESCUE POSSIBLE!

Details and hopefully photos from their trip will be coming along later...for now we can breathe a sigh of relief!

I'm so honored and PROUD of EVERYONE who JUMPED IN to help this kitten with the deformed leg, as well as his two littermates and his Mama get passage OUT of the Kill Shelter!

This ChipIn was funded in SIX HOURS! I am crying my head off right now. All I can think about is the WONDERFUL, HUGE HEART EACH ONE OF YOU HAVE FOR OPENING YOUR WALLET AND SHARING WHAT YOU HAVE WITH THIS KITTY FAMILY IN DIRE NEED. I wish I could give you back something for all that you have given them. Big HUGS to you all!

Just know I am grateful and I'm sure the Humane Society of Forsyth County also appreciates your help to make it possible for them to provide the loving care for these kitties until they find their own homes.

WE DID IT!!!!!!

There's no question that Maria has a big heart. Her mission to locate and rescue kittens that had been hidden by a lactating mama-cat she found was a great success (that story is HERE).

The first night has passed. This morning Maria was greeted by hungry kittens and mama, alike. Everyone made it. They're all feeding well and they're all painfully adorable!

Their story could end here. Maria would ride off into the sunset and the kittens would magically grow healthy and hearty, find perfect homes in a short time and there'd never be any problems-but Maria cannot be completely responsible with providing for this family. She didn't plan on taking on such an expense and she doesn't have access to things like Petfinder, which will make finding this family a good home very difficult. She needs help.

I, too, didn't plan on taking in a family right now. I wanted to focus on getting little Cara healthy and my remaining foster cats needed to find homes. But doing rescue means you can never plan or even be prepared. You just have to do what is needed and do the best you can.

So without proper funding established or even knowing I'll have a foster home in Connecticut for them when they are big enough, I let Maria know I had her back. My rescue group, Kitten Associates, Inc. will be providing care for this family, then finding them forever homes later this summer. We can't turn our back on these fragile lives, nor can we turn our back on Maria, who has been a vital resource for us in Georgia.

This rescue is also going to kick off more BIG NEWS. A few days ago, Kitten Associates, Inc. had their Board Meeting. That day we got our 501(c)3 “Letter of Determination” from the IRS stating we ARE a Non-Profit Corporation! And before any of you fret, any donation from as far back as last September is deductible, so no worries! We had YOU covered, too.

With any luck, this is the kickoff of something big, something wonderful-and what better way to celebrate our news with the rescue of such a sweet family.

We REALLY need your help. Everything this family needs is multiplied by six. Between their future spay/neuter, shots, wellness exam, de-worming, flea treatment, food, litter and transport to Connecticut, we estimate we'll need at least $1200.00. If any of the kittens get sick, we'll have to do a second fundraiser for that. The last family I brought to CT cost many thousands of dollars due to their repeated illness. The GOOD NEWS is that this family was NEVER in a Kill Shelter and haven't been exposed to a number of diseases. Maybe we'll finally get lucky and this family will stay healthy.

We'll never really know what caused Amberly to suddenly trust Maria and show her where she'd hidden her kittens after more than 24 hours apart from them. It may have been that Amberly finally had a full belly and some rest at Maria's house and through those hours together, a bond began to ripen. Though Amberly is barely a kitten, herself, now that she has good food, she's more than willing to provide care for her kittens. The love she has for them is obvious and the joy we have knowing they are safe is priceless.

Please use the ChipIn widget, below, to make your donation. The other way to help us is by sharing this blog post with your friends and family and perhaps a few of them can help this family out.

Your donation will go to Kitten Associates, Inc General Fund so we can provide for this family. Your donation is Tax Deductible, too. Every dollar adds up and we are grateful for whatever you can spare.

Thank you for helping rescue this family and for making their lives safe and happy!

Don't forget to Facebook-share, Tweet or let your friends know about this family!

Our intrepid foster mama, Maria got up early to hit the local tag sales. It was a hot Saturday just southeast of Atlanta, Georgia. Maria was taking a break from a long work week. Tag sales were an enjoyable adventure since she could save some money and find something fun to bring home while she was at it.

This weekend Maria got far more than she could have expected when she saw a cat LAYING in the middle of the street. Maria stopped her car and got out; worried the cat would be hit by a car. The cat came over to her and rubbed on her leg. She cried to Maria and within a moment, it was obvious that this cat was very thin. Maria, of course, had cat food in her car and offered some to the cat. She gobbled it up right away.

©2011 Maria. S. A stray cat makes a new friend with Maria.

Maria took a closer look at the cat and saw that the cat's nipples were enlarged, a sure sign the cat was either nursing or pregnant. She sent me a text. It was not even 8AM. She wanted to talk to me, so I got out of bed and went into the foster room so I could talk to her without waking Sam up.

She didn't know what to do and I can't say I blamed her. She didn't know if this was someone's cat, but if it was they weren't taking care of her at all. If the cat had kittens, WHERE WERE THEY?

I encouraged Maria to ask anyone in the neighborhood if they knew the cat. She found one person to tell her he'd seen it before but didn't know where it belonged. I told Maria to get the cat to the Vet. If she did have owners, they didn't deserve this cat, who seemed to have no fear and who kept "talking" at Maria. Too bad she didn't speak cat.

Her tag sale plans disrupted, Maria went to her Vet. They weren't busy and offered to do an ultrasound of the cat FOR FREE. They didn't see anything unusual inside her so either she had already given birth or she was not far along enough for them to see anything. Maria spent her tag sale money to have a "snap test" done to determine if the cat had FIV or Feline Leukemia. She did not. She had some flea dirt on her, as well as two ticks. Her belly fur was bare, possibly from being itchy, they weren't sure. The cat only weighed FIVE POUNDS. They couldn't tell her if the cat had given birth.

Now what?

A few hours had passed since Maria took the cat to the vet. She noticed the cat's mammary glands were more enlarged. I told her to go back to where she got the cat and let her go. See if she would take Maria to where the kittens were located-if there were any. Surely she would need to feed her babies soon.

A severe thunderstorm hit just as Maria arrived at the drop off point. There wasn't much she could do, but wait. She was able to let the mama cat out of the car, but all she did was cry, then run into the street. Maria wasn't going to let this cat get hurt and it was clear the cat wasn't going to feed any kittens-if they even were alive. It was late. Reluctantly, Maria headed for home, the cat crying next to her in the car.

I quickly designed a flyer, hoping against all odds someone would step forward and help us find the kittens and I told Maria to just get the mama to her house and we'd sort it out the next day.

I don't know much about finding where a mama cat might hide her kittens. I asked all my rescue friends and most of them said that since the mother was only 8-10 months old herself, that odds were she had abandoned the litter and was not going to care for them-IF they were alive. It's hard not to give up hope, but we knew that between the 95°F temperatures, rain, predation and starvation, these kittens might have 24-48 hours left to live.

Maria skipped Father's Day with her stepdad and her day off and got back into her car with the cat she named, Amberly. Amberly had a good night's rest, drank a bowl of water and had some food. She was in much better shape than she was the day before.

Maria let Amberly out of the car and she strutted off into someone's yard. Maria followed and saw the cat go into a storm sewer. Her heart sank. If the kittens were inside it would be very tough to get them out. A moment later, Amerbly returned and decided to look around at another drain. A neighber saw Maria and she told him what was going on. He offered to help her look. Then, Amberly dashed out of sight.

©2011 Maria. S.

The neighbor called out to Maria. “I see something!”

©2011 Maria. S.

Maria ran to his side. In the base of a tree, they could barely see Amberly's eyes. Being black let her disappear easily. They walked up to the cat. She didn't move, but something else near her, did.

©2011 Maria. S. If you look closely, to the left are two kittens.

Maria could see a tiny kitten nursing on her mother, Amberly. It was a miracle. The kitten had been found. Maria let Amberly nurse as the neighbor, who admitted he didn't even like cats, went to get her some gloves so she could dig into the base of the tree to find every kitten that was there. I can't imagine how scared and excited I'd be if I was Maria. I'd be scared to find dead kittens, but excited that some might make it.

©2011 Maria. S.

Slowly and carefully, she lifted a tiny calico kitten into the sun. The kitten squinted her eyes and let out a small cry. She was alive, not near death, but alive.

©2011 Maria. S.

Maria looked again and found a second kitten. This one a little gray guy wiht white paws. He wriggled around in her hands, but seems all right, too.

©2011 Maria. S.

Maria continued to remove kittens from their nest. Another gray and white kitten, then a tortie.

All said and done, there were FIVE kittens rescued. Each one was alive, but after barely being fed for 24 hours they needed a lot more nourishment.

©2011 Maria. S.

First things, first-they needed to get to Maria's house, away from all the dangers they faced and into a safe, loving environment. From looking at them, we estimate they're barely 2 weeks old.

©2011 Maria. S.

There's much to sort out. Names to be given-perhaps something from the Hobbit since they were found under a tree? We'll need to do an emergency fundraiser to provide for their care and get them over to the Vet for a checkup to make sure they're all right. We didn't plan on rescuing any families since funds are tight and foster homes are tough to find, but we'll make it work somehow.

We'll see how the babies do over the next 24 hours. Will Amberly feed them and give them the care they need or were the kittens left alone for too long and Amberly will reject them?

Yesterday we hoped we'd find these precious little ones and thankfully they were found. Maybe, just maybe, the worst of their troubles are over and now the fun can really begin for them all.

And to Maria, who missed going to the tag sales, I'm sorry about that and I know you got more than you bargained for this weekend. I can't express fully how completely over-the-moon-happy I am that you gave up your time and money and kicked ass and rescued those babies. My hat's off to you, Maria. Way to go, baby. Way to go!

Last week I posted a photo on our Facebook page of a lovely orange persian/mix kitty. Some folks thought it was Phillip, who I rescued not long ago, but they were wrong. Phil is NOT quite so orange and Phil is not a female!

This is Tiger. She was rescued by a very nice lady named Deb P. Deb must spend a zillion dollars a year funding the rescue of many cats and kittens in need. Deb helped with the initial funding for Cara and her family, the fosters I STILL have at my home. The other day, Deb contacted me to see if I could take this lovely lady and find her a forever home.

Deb already had Tiger vetted, shaved down because her fur was badly matted AND Deb paid for Tiger to get her teeth cleaned, too! Tiger is a few years old, declawed, spayed and very sweet. How she ended up in a kill shelter is beyond comprehension.

How could I say NO to her?

So I said, YES!

Tiger will be here in a few weeks. Being that “ginger” females are somewhat unusual-only 1 in 3 ginger cats are female; I think Tiger will find a good home easily.

Tiger will enjoy a diet change, which will help her slim down and allow her coat to grow back in beautifully, too. I think she'll be a knockout and whoever adopts her will be very lucky, indeed

We just gotta come up with a better name for her! What would you name her? Okay, and not Lucky, either, even if that's true!

The Cow Mama, her babies PLUS an extra little tabby kitten, were rescued from Henry County Care & Control-and certain death. We are ever so grateful to the Humane Society of Forsyth County for offering to provide them with a safe place to live, great Vet care (they are already getting vetted) and love, until their families come to adopt them.

©2011 Bobby Stanford. Bobby loads up the family for the drive north to Forsyth.

The Cow Mama has a name and so do her kittens.

Please meet, Betty White (the mama) and her two boys and two girls are named: Daryl Hannah, Wanda Sykes, Michael Vartan, and Will Arnett! I guess they like celebrity names at Forsyth. The little tabby, who has a "goopy" eye and would have been put down, is named Jane Fonda. They are all doing well and are happy in their new home.

©2011 Bobby Stanford. Armload of kittens! Is anything better?

Betty will be up for adoption very soon since the kittens are already weaned. The kittens are going to a foster home to live it up until they get big enough to come back to the shelter. I'm so very pleased they are all safe and that the staff at Forsyth is so terrific and clearly, dedicated.

©2011 Bobby Stanford. I spot the little tabby!

I don't know if I'll have any further updates on this family, but you can always visit the HSFC's web site to find out when they come up for adoption.

©2011 Bobby Stanford. Super cute cow babies!

For whatever reason, maybe a miracle related to yesterday's wonderful news, MORE families were rescued today. FurKids of Atlanta took in a Russian Blue mama and her babies and they may be able to help take a Tuxedo Mama and her five babies, too. A lovely silver long haired mama, her sister and their combined 8 kittens got out ALIVE, too! The Henry County Humane Society offered to rescue them. FurKids said they didn't need donations, but Henry County Humane DOES need help with the 10 cats they just took in.

©2011 Bobby Stanford. Temporary holding pen at their new home.

If you'd like to help out Henry County Humane Society, since they did such a good deed, please visit their web site and click on the DONATE button.

©2011 Bobby Stanford.

And what am I doing to save this cats? I'm waiting for a little while longer. I'm ready to pounce if needed. For now things are sort of ok until the next wave of families arrives.

©2011 Bobby Stanford. So cute it hurts.

It's a good thing that the mamas got rescued. Cara is sick again. I think I'm going to have to turn my attention to her care for the next little while.

©2011 Bobby Stanford. Betty is on the road to her new home at last.

Good luck Betty White and your furry family and Thank You to Bobby for letting me share his photos with all of you and for driving all that way to deliver the kitties to Forsyth!

On April 21, 2011 another pregnant feline was brought to Henry County Care & Control, dumped by her owner, no longer their problem or responsibility. This cat's fate, along with that of her unborn kittens, was unknown. Many mamas never make it out of the shelters alive. The shelters are simply too overcrowded and the kittens too fragile to make it. If they pick up a URI, they are all euthanized. If they don't get sick, but they don't find a rescue in time, they will get euthanized. The odds are just not very good for a happy outcome.

This mama gave birth inside a steel cage, on newspaper, next to a litter pan. Not a very dignified way to bring life in to the world, but certainly better than she would have been if left abandoned on her own. The mama had four kittens. She cleaned them and began the task of providing nourishment-nothing unusual or special about this, just as so many other mamas have done before and since. Her babies were all chubby and healthy. One had a charming spot on this chin that looked like a goatee. They all squirmed and writhed, still blind and uncoordinated-reaching for their mama's warmth. The mama did what she could to keep them safe, placing her front leg protectively over them.

©2011 Henry County Care & Control. This very young mama hopes for a miracle.

Last month, I posted a plea about this “cow mama” and her “cow babies.” They were among the MANY mamas and kittens that came to Henry County that needed help. Many of the families got a rescue, but many MORE families arrived over the past few weeks needing help. The cow mama and family did not get rescued. The clock was running out, as they ran out of space at Henry County.

This morning, this family was slated to die. They were at the shelter the longest, so they would be first to go. The folks at the shelter did NOT want to put them down, but their hands were tied. There are SEVVEN other families that also need rescue, too and there wasn't any more room left to keep all the cats. It was time.

©2011 Henry County Care & Control.

Keep in mind that over the past month I, along with Dorian Wagner of Your Daily Cute, have been trying to find a way to rescue this family. Dorian and I both have a fondness for cow kitties, but neither of us were finding a solution. Last night, just before I went to bed, I got an email from Jennifer at the Humane Society of Forsyth County. I'd contacted her a month ago and at the time she couldn't help. She had not forgotten about this family. She said they had an opening and did we still need help?

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!! YES!!!! I could NOT believe the timing. Here I was about to give up. Jennifer saved the day! I got to work right away-banging out emails since it was too late to call anyone. I contacted Betsy, at Henry County. I pleaded with her NOT to put that family down. I wrote to Gerri, the Director and asked the same thing. I contacted our dear, Bobby and asked if he could transport the cats. My heart was beating so hard I could barely breathe. I contacted Jennifer and said I get the transport set up and get things sorted out and gave her information on who to call at Henry Co. to confirm they were going to take the cats.

©2011 Henry County Care & Control. Look at the spot on the chin on that baby!

This morning I got up early. I felt like I was going to jump out of my skin. I heard back from Henry Co. They would NOT put the family down. I called Jennifer and she was very sweet. She was completely calm. I'm sure she does this every day. She had just left a voice mail for Gerri and things were getting settled. In another hour of phone calls and emails it was worked out.

As of 12:30 PM EST, Bobby has picked up the Cow Mama and her babies and will be driving them to the Humane Society of Forsyth County. They're a NO-KILL shelter, so this family won't have to worry again about being put down. Now all they have to do is thrive, play and wait to be adopted when they're big enough.

©2011 Henry County Care & Control. It IS a miracle these babies got out ALIVE!

This could not have happened if it wasn't for Warren Royal, who offered me Jennifer's contact information when I was first trying to find a rescue to take this family. Forsyth is the same shelter that took in Warren's foster cat, Buddy who had FIV+ and who found him a great home.

This could not have happened if Bobby wasn't willing to drive 2 1/2 hours to deliver this family to their new home.

This could not have happened if I didn't stick my nose into this situation. While I didn't rescue this family, I did network my butt off by making phone calls and writing e-mails and blog posts.

Guess what? YOU can do this, too. You can get involved with animals at kill shelters and make a difference in their life. You don't have to foster them or even run a rescue group-you just have to be willing to stick your neck out and find those puzzle pieces until you get the right fit. I'm not saying it's easy and it certainly is stressful, but those times when it works out, it's completely worth it.

There is a lot more work to do. Those other mamas aren't going to rescue themselves. Let's get to it!

-------------------------------

If you're as thrilled as I am about the Humane Society of Forsyth County stepping up to help this family, then please be sure to visit their web site and “Like” their Facebook page, then check out all the animals they have for adoption. If you're not looking for a new companion, then please consider making a small donation in honor of the Cow Mama's Family to help offset the costs related to their care. Saying Thank You to them is great, but during these tough times, saying it with a donation makes a big difference.

I love all cats, okay except for those nudie-ones. Yick. Cats need to have fur if at all possible. Sorry! Although I may struggle with loving cats equally, I admit being a sucker for a few things. 1) BIG CATS, 2) FLUFFY CATS, 3) CATS WITH BLUE EYES, 4) TUXEDO CATS.

Meet cat ID# 5/19-1791. He lives in a cage at Henry County Care & Control.

©2011 Henry Co. Care & Control. Waltz, anyone?

Cat ID# 5/19-1791 goes beyond being just big-boned. He could be your dance partner he's so tall or he could keep your entire bed warm at night. He will chat to get attention, but has a tiny tiny “meow.”

©2011 Henry Co. Care & Control. Big hugs for a big lug.

ID likes other cats, but is not too keen on dogs. ID is chill. He likes to hang with his human friends, too. Apparently, ID enjoys a good meal every so often, maybe a few times too often.

ID# 5/19-1791 has lovely blue eyes and a nice, fluffy tail. At Henry County Care & Control they say he might be part ragdoll. I think he's 100% fluffy-esque.

©2011 Henry Co. Care & Control. That is MY kinda cat!

After yesterday's loss of Big O, I felt a strong desire to do something life-affirming. I read the plea about cat ID# 5/19-1791 and I looked at those big blue eyes and I thought, why not? We can always make room for one more, right? I'll sort out the details later. For now, this cat has been at the shelter too long and we know what that means...every day is one day less he has to get out alive.

In honor of telling Death to go suck it (see yesterday's POST for more on that), I made arrangements for this gigantic love bug to get busted out of his steel cage and into temporary foster care.

©2011 Henry Co. Care & Control. No more cage for you!

He is FREE as we speak. He's getting vetted, then going to Aunt Bobbie's house to be fostered until his quarantine period is over. After that, we'll put him on a bus or something and get his big fluffy butt up here to Connecticut where we'll find him a super-awesome home.

In honor of one of our supporters, we're going to name cat ID# 5/19-1791, Phil. Yes, Phil.

Meet Phil, our latest rescue. Welcome to the family Phil. Chapter 1 of the story of your new life starts today!

©2011 Henry Co. Care & Control. You may begin to adore him in 3...2...1

UPDATE: Phil is neg/neg for FIV+ and Felv!! YAY!!!! And he only weighs 15 pounds?!!! Must have big bones!