Just a Saturday update...

Here are a couple of pics from a colony I've started feeding recently near where I park my car to go to work.  A couple of the cats live in the rooming house and some more live outside it.  That's three colonies of cats that I now feed on a regular basis. 

I have some great adoption news to report.  Both Larry and Lake have been adopted!

50 years and 500 + cats

Today I am 50 years old, I can hardly believe it.  I have no words of wisdom to offer, life is vastly different than I expected it to be but I am grateful for so many things today; my health, my supportive husband, my friends, my cats and the cat community that I became part of five years ago when I chose to start feeding feral cats.  Thanks to that one decision, I have met many wonderful people and have been able to help more than 500 cats.

Life can change in the blink of an eye that much I know, recently one of my friends and neighbours, a wonderful woman taking care of her three boys and fostering guide dog puppies was killed by a car.

It reminded that you never know how much time you will have...this seems to be a time for me of seemingly irrational decisions but I'm following my heart now.

I quit my job, seem to have adopted a kitten, and tonight am singing a six song set at my birthday party/cat fundraiser.  I'm excited for my new life.  I'm going to expand my catsitting business and of course continue to care for my ferals and keep trapping and rescuing.  Beyond that, who knows.

Of course the cats don't care that it's my birthday, I started my day the usual way, snuggling with cats, and then getting up to clean the litter boxes and feed my crew.  I'll end the day the same - no complaints.

The white cat trio: Ernie, Oliver and Bunny

Ernie and Oliver

Baxter, Buddy and Apollo (box lids are the best beds!)

Homes needed and homes found

I realized I've fallen a bit behind in my rescue updates.  Loveable Larry has settled in to Mary Helen's, I had secretly hoped she would keep him but I guess it's not a love match so once we get his diarrhea under control he will be needing a forever home.

We have a few other kittens also needing homes.  This is Tink and Tonks, who were feral kittens at Maria's, now socialized and almost five months old.

Tink and Tonks

 Then there's Maddie and her two siblings, also rescued from a feral colony.

Maddie

 And of course beautiful Lake, seven months old, still a bit shy but so sweet.

Lake

I really hope we can get them into homes soon.  It feels like winter has come on too soon too fast I'm not ready and it breaks my heart every day seeing my ferals out in the weather, I'm so grateful these ones are in.

And here's some photos of ones that have found homes, I love getting the photos adopters send in, it keeps me going when I'm tired or discouraged.

Milo the tabby underneath was adopted by my neighbour last year, and this year when I sent out a photo of Winston, she couldn't resist, and their family grew.  Clearly they are great friends.

Pepper and Cinnamon, now Bullet and Lucy, were feral kittens from Niagara Falls that I took in, they were adopted by Cory and got to stay together, how great is that.

I just hope the ones waiting get such wonderful homes!

From the valley to safety

I have a lovely neighbour, Ella, who adopted a cat from me a year or so ago that showed up at the colony.  Yesterday I got an email from her, she had been for a walk in the Don Valley and a cat ran up to her meowing frantically.  She went home to get a carrier and when she got back the cat came out of the brush and happily went into the carrier to eat.  

She stashed him in her spare room and I went to see him, an absolute sweetheart but skinny clearly out for a while.  I emailed one of my catsitting clients whose cat sadly died a month or so ago who had recently mentioned fostering and she said she would take him!

An exam at my vet this morning revealed that Larry is about one year old, seems healthy, but isn't neutered or microchipped.  I've posted on line but I don't hold out much hope of finding his home, when they aren't spayed or neutered my warning bells go off.

Larry will get neutered tomorrow and then off to Mary Helen's to get loved and fattened up.  I'm so glad he's out of the cold!

Sunday at my house

At my house anytime you put down a box chances are a cat will find it and claim it as their own.  Why spend money on fancy cat beds?

Blinky in a box

Oliver was sleeping in a large cat bed in front of the fire when Scooter decided hey, there's room for another cat there.  The cats love the gas fireplace as do I.

Scooter and Oliver

Last trapping of the season

On Saturday I loaded up the car for my last TNR mission until spring.  I find it too hard in the winter, the traps are cold, the garage where I hold the cats before the clinic is cold, it's dark and I worry about putting back females with shaved bellies.  So for the winter I focus on feeding, that's a hard enough thing when the real winter sets in.  Ian and I set off for North York, stopping at Jet Fuel and then Petsmart on the way.   I loaded up on litter and Friskies on sale.  Laden down, we continued on our way.

Sadly our mission was not successful.  The two older kittens that were our quarry were there when we arrived but then disappeared not to return.  I've had a lot of drama at work lately and it's distracting me, I often like to say I'm a gladiator, and I really need to stay focused.  Less than three weeks to my big event, lots to get done.

I almost forgot to report that the fantastic trapping team managed to get all four cats out of that demolition site just in time!  

Car loaded up after shopping

The rest of the car filled with traps

Our newest guest Oliver

Our Bud Bud, on his three year anniversary with us 

I found this bench, put in the yard, and Charlie fell in love