National Feral Cat Day

National Feral Cat Day, an annual feral cat awareness day.  A day to educate and to make others aware of Alley Cat Allies and their pledge to help control feral cat population by the trap neuter and release program.  For me it is a time for me to reflect on the year and the work that I have accomplished by being a feral cat caregiver.

The volunteer service  that my husband and I do for the feral, stray and abandoned cats in our neighborhood is done out of love for the cats.  

We oversee the colony of cats along with two neighbors and we work together to provide the cats with medical care, nourishment and shelter.  We pay for their needs out of our pocket and I design gifts at zazzle.com from my photographs to raise money for the cats.

Kitten at doorway of our shed/shelter

We provided woods cats with straw to walk on when snow too deep

Rescued 4 week old kitten for medical care

Cleared a path so cats in woods could come to feeding station

After blizzard cleared the sewer so cats could get out

Rescued wounded cat and kittens and took in for medical care

Hiked through 2 feet of show to feed cats in thicket dens

Provide warm beds for feral cats in winter

Care for cats at the shelter

Feral Cat Recuperating after Spay

Lost Cats at Shelter

Caring for Forest cats / 2 kittens and queen by den entrance

In the last year, we trapped many paid for their sterilization and vaccinations as well as preventative vaccines.  We also saved a feral queen cats life along with her three five week old  kittens.  

The queen cat fought off a wild animal that attacked her kittens, the orange tabby kitten need medical care.  I trapped her and her kittens and they all received medical care, however they needed to stay in the animal clinic for 21 days due to a serious infection.

Out of the 16 cats that we trapped, we were able to socialize and adopt five cats into forever homes, seven of the adult feral cats returned to the colony and the remaining four cats live with my husband and I.

I believe in the Alley Cat Allies cause and will continue to protect and improve the lives of feral cats in my neighborhood.  Any feral or stay cat that I come in contact with will be given a bowl a food, fresh water and if I am able to do so I will trap them for spay, neuter and for medical care.   

I will rescue and protect the feral cats from a life of hardship.  They will always find food and water and the door open at my shelter. My husband and I and the two civic minded neighbors will always care for the feral cats in our neighborhood.

View this video to learn more about Alley Cat Allies.

Feral Cat Released to Colony

Feral cat Lucy in Woods

On August 9th the feral cat named Lucy was released from medical care. Her attending veterinarian said she was healed and could be returned to the feral cat colony.  

The cat was released where I trapped her, inside the shelter. I assumed Lucy would bolt out the door and run into the woods but  Lucy was not ready to go outside and she hid in the back of the shelter.

During her stay in the shelter I treated her with a homeopathic healing.  My friend in Atlanta who is a gifted healer helped me with the treatments.  I also fed her a raw diet of lean meat, vegetables, sweet potatoes, and liquid vitamins.  Lucy grew healthy and strong and within two weeks Lucy the feral cat was ready to return to the woods.  

Released feral cat

Today Lucy walked outdoors and laid by my pond and then she slowly walked into the woods. I did not see her for several days and then one day I saw her go into the shelter.  I brought her some evolve maintenance formula natural cat food and fresh water. 

Lucy looks great, her fur has grown in and her coat is healthy and shinny.  She limps on the front paw that was injured and I suppose she always will.  She visited with me for an hour.

Feral cat Lucy resting on deck

I spoke softly to Lucy and told her of her kittens. Charlie the yellow kitten who was wounded was socialized and he was adopted.

Her other kittens Boris and Natasha were still under medical care, but would be coming home soon.  They would be socialized too and would be adopted.  

Lucy the feral cat need not worry because her kittens would have a better life than she.  Lucy was a good listener as she did not turn her head nor did she walk away. 

Lucy was reunited with the feral cats at the Oak Ridge colony on August 26th, 2010.  She will live the rest of her life in a wooded tract of land that is privately owned. My husband and I will watch over her with the help of the civic minded volunteers..

Feral Cat Needs Medical Care

Feral cats are smart and once they have been inside a trap they are not going to enter the trap again.  Normally after I release a feral cat they will live their life in a control colony and will only be re-trapped if medically needed.

 The feral cat I call Lucy was released three weeks ago after being treated for an injury that she suffered while nursing her kittens.  Since being set free Lucy has stayed close to the shelter, she goes inside the shelter and sleeps there throughout the day. 

In the evening around 6:00PM she will leave the shelter and venture out into my yard, sometimes she lays by the pond, other times she hides in the ornamental grass garden, and sometimes she sits on the back wall, rarely does she enter the woods to go to the cat colony by the caves.

I have been watching the feral cat named Lucy through the lens of my camera. She was wounded several weeks ago and I trapped her for medical care.  The wound on her paw is not healing. The 1/2 inch scab grow larger daily. 

Lucy has been chewing on her paw, as if she needs to drain it daily. I suspect that she has another infection. On Friday September 3rd, I spoke to the veterinarian and I told him my concerns for Lucy’s wound, he told me that she is chewing on her paw because it must have another infection.  I was told to re-trap Lucy the feral cat and to bring her in for a medical examination. 

I set up the trap inside the the shelter as that is where her feeding station is located. 

Both my husband and I have been watching the shelter, waiting for Lucy to go inside. Lucy did not spend the night in the shelter. She did come to my yard at 3:00 this afternoon and I noticed blood on Lucy's head and I thought that she had been in a fight. Then I noticed her paw, it was covered with blood. 

I quickly made up a bowl of Blue Buffalo chicken canned cat food and brought food and fresh water out to her.   I set the food in the back of the trap. I left the kitty door open and I waited for her to go inside. She did not enter the shelter; instead she hunted a salamander and ate it before walking out of my yard.

 I will continue to watch the shelter and have placed a baby monitor inside, that way I will be informed of any movement. I pray that she enters the shelter tonight and I also pray that God will watch over her and guide her to the shelter and inside the trap.

Saying Goodbye to a Feral Kitten

Saying goodby to a kitten that is only weeks old is the hardest thing that a colony caregiver can do.  There is always a reason why a kitten needs to be put down and even if you know it is the right decision it does not make it any easier.

I came to know this feral kitten whne the queen cat  brought her three young kittens to my garage shelter and that is where I trapped the mother cat  and all of the kittens for veterinarian care.  One kitten had a bite wound on his paw, another had a puncture wound on her head and one kitten had an infection in his eye.


the little Feral Norwegian Forest cat that was the last kitten to be trapped was rushed to the veternarians office and diagnosied with a serious eye infection. They administered antibiotics and he was kept at the animal clinic for ten days. Boris was released to go home for crate rest.

I put the feral kitten in the crate in new cat room and he was lyiing comfortably in the hamack, but he looked sad and lonely. His brother was in the other room and so brought the sibling cat crate into the cat room. 

The feral kittens; Charlie and Boris were so happy. They both talked to each other and then played paws between the slate of the crate before falling asleep. 

I left the room to make supper and whe I returned the little feral kitten with eye infection (Boris) was limping and his crate cracker brother Charlie had escaped from his crate and had climbed to the top of his brothers crate. 
   
I have no idea as to what occurred but I suspect that both brotheres were trying to get closer to each other, and the little kitten twisted his paw. 

We took Boris to the veterinarians and they took an X-ray to see if the leg was broken. They informed me that they did not think it was broken but it was close. the joint was twisted. Boris stayed at the animal clinic for 21 days and then they released him to me for home care.

The attending veterinarian was waiting for Boris leg to heal. Boris was to be confined to a crate and he needed peace and quite. I was the only one who entered his room and I spent 4-6 hours with him per day. 

Boris was so afraid of everything. I could not socialize him because of his leg however, in spite of his ailment he learned to trust me.

Today we took Boris for the check-up on his leg. The veterinarian took an X-ray and told us there was no change.  Boris had a very bad infection and the veterinarian said his immune system was weak.

I spoke to my husband as I did not know what to do, I needed to make a decision that was best for this little kitten that we called Boris. My husband suggested that we do what was best for the kitten. 

I contacted his pending adopter and she told me to do what was best for Boris. She did not want to see him suffer. What saddens me is this little kitten had an adopter who would give him a forever home.  He would have had a good life with his adopter.

Boris was 8 weeks old when he passed from this life to the next.  I have never had to say goodbye to a kitten and it broken my heart.

Here are few photographs of Boris.  They were taken in our garage cat shelter..
  

Wounded Lucy and her 3 feral kittens at my shed/shelter

Boris and Charlie checking out the litter box:  New territory for feral kittens

 

Boris on the bottom and Notti on the top:  Kittens playing

Notti on top and sweet Boris looking up

Boris comes out to visit Mom in the garden

Inhumanity Towards Feral Cats & Kittens in Joplin -News Report

Cat Cruelty in Joplin, Missouri – Inhumanity Towards Feral Cats & Kittens: Rights Radio™ with Dr. Joyce Starr

August 14, 2010

Joplin’s policy towards feral cats and kittens: Potential legal action against those who feed, neuter, and save them. My guest is a cat protector and feral cat expert, Lindsay Donzanti. Show Date: August 14, 2010.

Lindsay on Joplin Policy:

“Joplin has a feral cat problem and the powers that be are enforcing an ordinance forbidding the feeding and harboring of feral cats.

“If you trap a cat in Joplin, have it sterilized, and/or pay for shots, it’s now considered your cat.

“If you feed the cat after releasing it, you’re breaking the law.

“Rescuers are who own more than four cats are guilty of a misdemeanor.”

“But Joplin residents are not legally permitted to “own” or house more than four animals at a time. Those who keep four animals are not allowed to feed, catch, neuter, or vaccinate feral cats. Moreover, owners who release a cat back to the streets or to a colony are not allowed to feed them. If the cat is starving, you can’t intervene. Their solution is to starve these defenseless cats to death.

“I called the Director of Animal Services in Joplin and He confirmed this inhumane and misguided method of control, which has proven wholly ineffective elsewhere. It is SO cruel. We “colony caregivers” regard these cats as our pets" 

Homeless cats a Rights Radio Review with Lindsay Donzanti

View Letter to Editor Feral Cat Fight published by Dave Woods at Joplin Globe here

Cat and Kittens Trapped for Medical Care

A queen cat with her kittens came to our shelter.  The  cat had the good sense to realize that she needed our help as she had been wounded from fighting off a wild animal that threatened her kittens.

We needed to trap the injured queen cat and her kittens but this was not an easy task because this feral cat knew how to enter the trap without setting off the lever that closed the trap door.

After several days of trying to trap the queen cat and her kittens the trap door closed and we rushed mother cat and kitten to the animal clinic.

The injuries were extensive and the infection was terrible.  The veterinarian recommended putting both cats down but I said no, I asked them to try to save their lives.


I asked my veterinarian if she would heal and he said yes, that it would take time. The vet-technician who cares for both cat and kitten remarked that both cats were calm and showed no aggression to humans which is uncanny for feral cats.

Both cat and kitten underwent medical care for 21 days.  Upon release I cared for them at home for an additional 10 days by administering their treatments and feeding the cats grain free quality cat food with antioxidants to aid in keeping immune system strong. 

The adult queen cat was approximately two years old was released to return to the colony after she had finished her home care treatments. Orange tabby kitten that I called Charlie was socialized and I adopted him.  



Photograph of Lucy the feral cat at woods colony: 

Lucy in Thicket Den

Lucy at Feeding Station winter 2011

Lucy survives summer heat wave 2011

Lucy Late winter 2012

God Watches over Feral Cat with Kittens

The feral cat that I call Lucy arrived at my old shed the other day, she came with her mate a large Norwegian Forest cat that I call Bob. These cats are wild and live in the rock caves that are adjutant to my property. 

These wild cats occasionally join the other colony cats for a bite to eat or enter the shelter for protection when the weather is extreme. Most of the time they are deep in the woods foraging for their survival. 

Today Lucy came to the shed because her left paw is wounded. I suspect from a hunters leg iron trap or from an injury from a rock that may have fallen while she was on the ridge. Whatever the cause the paw was injured and she was walking on three instead of four paws. 

 The shed is always open for any cat that wants to come in out of the cold or the heat. I have a window air conditioner and a window heater that keeps the room temperature comfortable for the cats.  

 God watches over feral cats, and this is why Lucy came to me. I suppose she sensed that I would care for her and protect her from harm. She has been in my shed for one day and allowed me to stand close to her and to view her three very young kittens. Two are black stripes like a British Tabby and the other is a yellow stripe they are only week’s old and all are nursing.

My neighbor is helping me with Lucy, and the kittens. We cannot get close to Lucy to clean her leg wound and have decided to trap her for medical care.  We will trap the kittens also as they will need to be bottle fed.

Lucy's love for her kittens is very strong.  She is suffering in silence as she nurses her kittens.  She keeps them close to her in the bed of straw and protects them from harm.  I love cats and will do what I can to keep them safe. 

Here is a video of a mother cat that hugs her restless kitten and helps it to sleep comfortably.

Feral Cats Deserve a Better Life

There are billions of feral cats worldwide because of human negligence. Feral is the cat that nobody wanted. These cats were abandoned by their owners and left to survive on their own.  

Some cats survived in areas close to a food source others perished. These cats are living a life much like the wild cats of Africa. They are competing for food water and shelter and just want to carve out space for themselves so they can live a peaceful life with humans.

I have been a colony caregiver since 1999 and in that time I have trapped, sterilized, and given the feral cats their vaccines, tape wormer, and treatment for fleas, ticks, and ear mites. 

 All of the feral and stray cats that I have trapped were either socialized for adoption or released to a controlled colony where they are safe from human traffic.

My husband and I care for feral and stray cats.  At the present date, we have 10 cats in our colony.  The colony where the cats reside is on a side of a mountain ridge that is located in a forest of 25 acres. The cats live in limestone cracks and crevices as well as large thicket dens or hollow trees. 

 All cats are fed twice a day and get fresh water at the feeding station.

In the winter the cats are welcome to sleep and get warm in my old shed.  It is a drafty shed, however, it is dry and it does provide the cats with a good wind block and straw-filled beds. 

Some feral cats will go where they go when the weather turns extremely cold or hot and these cats do suffer. They are too wild to realize that the shed has heat and an air conditioner.  

The feral cats are terrified of the noise that the heater or the air conditioner so these cats will burrow into the leaves or the brush in the forest. For these wild feral cats, we will hike out to them to provide them with food and water.  And when the snow is too deep we will make a path to them.   (see the path my husband created for us to get to the cats or for the cats to come to us.)

It is not easy to be a feral cat, most humans fear them and believe they are vicious and diseased.  Many humans think the best interest of the feral cat is to trap them and euthanize them, and this action is humane.  

I have trapped and taken the feral cats in for sterilization, tested for feline aids or leukemia, and out of the 298 cats there was 1 sick cat and that cat was a neighborhood stray cat, very people friendly. 

Feral cats did not ask for this life, they really had no choice as their human abandoned them long ago.  They are feral because of human neglect, a human error that can only be fixed by the caregivers that dedicate their service to trap, spay or neuter and then care for the cats in colonies.  

Feral cats deserve a better life, where they can co-exist with humans without being feared as dangerous animals, with no purpose on earth.