MC goes home

After four weeks, my friend was still unable to touch MC, so late last week we returned her to the colony. As you can tell from this photo, she readjusted very well, stretching out contentedly. The frustrating thing is as soon as we returned her, she behaved just as before, allowing me to pat her, and following us around. I guess she feels happy and secure here at her "home". At least we tried, and she missed out on some of the worst weather, gained some weight and got dewormed.

Henry is still around, spraying up a storm. Surely he must have marked every upright surface by now. I will continue to try to trap him, if for no other reason so that my clothes don't smell like cat urine from brushing against something.

Hank and this UBC have it figured out, let's just sit here and wait for the catering truck to arrive.

Community counts

Last year we were able to get our colony registered with Toronto Cat Rescue. It has been a huge help, allowing us to access discounted rates for spay/neuter. A little piece I wrote about caring for our colony was just posted on TCR's blog, check it out at http://torontocatrescue.wordpress.com/2011/02/15/feeding-ferals-rain-snow-and-sunshine/

It's great to share our kitties and feel part of a larger community.

This cat is one of a few that we call UBCs, unidentified black cats, because there are 3 or 4, and we can't tell them apart. Thank God for eartipping.
This is a rare photo of Minky. He is one of Clayton's two cats. Clayton works and lives in the boatyard but he takes off to warmer climes from December to March so we feed them. They live under the wheelwheel of the trailer. Sometimes I only see them every couple of days.

And this is Clyde, Minky's buddy. I'm glad they have each other.

Survival mode

My posts feel a bit repetitive these days but with the winter we've been having, my preoccupation is just getting the cats through the winter. It's been cold and snowy, and I worry about the cats. Their water freezes, their canned food freezes if they don't get to it within minutes. We spend a lot of time shovelling little paths for them. I can't wait for it to end.

I don't know if Teddy is just cold and welcomes a warm hand, but he has been much friendlier, letting me pat and even brush him.
Luckily the little group of seven at Harry's have a trailer to sleep in. There are shelters in the trailer. It's still cold but out of the snow and wind. Mo is one of the males I still have to trap and have neutered. I haven't had any luck yet. He's starting to get that tom head. I was trying to get Henry, the sprayer and even managed to briefly pick him up on Sunday but I tried it again when I had a carrier with me and no luck, I think he recognized the carrier and knew it meant V-E-T.

Snowpocalypse

Tuesday night I tossed and turned, worrying about how I would get to the ferals the next day. The Weather Network was forecasting doom and it seemed the city might be shut down by the massive snowfall predicted. I was relieved Wednesday morning when I awoke. Still, there would be lots of shovelling to clear the cats's feeding stations and shelters.

Thankfully Tory, with her 4 wheel drive, came and picked me up and we went down together. Two shovels are better than one. We shovelled until our shoulders ached.

Even though it was cold and windy, we saw about 15 cats and made sure everyone got water and food.

Maggie couldn't wait, and just ate right by the car.

Here's Tory surveying one feeding station.

No excitement about a snow day for us. I don't mean to sound like a party pooper, but when you have cats who depend on you, this weather sucks. Our location is pretty much only accessible by car, so curling up on the sofa and watching the flakes fall is not an option. Hope the groundhog is right!