The worker, being an animal lover, went to the child’s home to meet the kitty but instead, found many kitties. Dozens of them, in fact. And lots were sick with puffy, runny eyes and colds as well as intestinal parasites. Luckily, she knew about VOKRA and sent us an email.
We’ve all seen animal hoarding situations on TV and, if you’re like me, you wonder to yourself, how the heck did this happen? In this case, the underlying intentions were good. The family rents a house at the end of a dark street where people dump garbage in the treed lot next door. Sometimes people dump unwanted cats there too. These cats aren’t always spayed or neutered and, of course, they breed and create more cats. The family did their best to feed and care for all the cats and kittens but the numbers got too high and they were overwhelmed.
By the time VOKRA got involved, many of the cats and kittens were very ill. We took them to the vet in batches, day after day, and then set them up at our intake centre for monitoring. Those who were healthy enough went to foster homes right away. Sadly, two of the kittens were just too sick and didn’t survive, despite round-the-clock care.
When all was said and done, VOKRA took in 27 cats as part of this rescue.
This has been a very expensive rescue for us. With so many cats and kittens needing vet care and extensive rounds of medicine, the medical costs alone have climbed to over $7,000. Add this to the amount it costs VOKRA to provide food and litter for each cat every month they are in foster care and that number looks more like $10,000.
We try to keep a contingency fund available for emergencies but we weren’t prepared for a rescue this big. (We weren’t prepared for the two big rescues that came along in the following months either but those will be covered in future blog posts.) We are a completely volunteer-run, no-kill rescue organization and it takes continual fundraising just to cover our regular costs. When a huge rescue like this comes along, it really takes its toll. And it means we don’t have the resources for the rescues that will be coming our way in the next few months.
We desperately need help to pay down our vet bills and ensure that we have the funds to keep rescuing cats and kittens. Not everyone is equipped to care for dozens of cats, as the family at the centre of this story found out. Hearts being in the right place isn’t enough. At VOKRA, we have decades of experience saving and caring for cats, relationships with vets who provide excellent medical care for our animals, and over a thousand volunteers who dedicate themselves to helping end the suffering of abandoned cats and kittens. We encourage people to leave rescue work to the professionals but there is something you can do.
Your financial contribution to VOKRA, no matter how small, will make a big difference. If you can make a donation on behalf of these kitties, please do. (Click on the red words to go to the donation page of our website or click on the logo on the upper right where it says “Donate to VOKRA today”.) Thank you for your support.
These cats and kittens have a second chance thanks to one caring child care worker and VOKRA. Some have been adopted already and they went to great homes. Those who are still waiting for forever families are being cared for in our volunteer foster homes. Like Ritchie and Robbie who will be available for adoption in the next week or so.
Their foster, Stacey, says:
I got Ritchie first and he lived behind my toilet for a couple weeks before I was able to tempt him out with chicken baby food and a “birdie” toy. Now he is the first kitty to greet me when I wake up and he loves to be petted. He is still skittish and isn’t a lap cat (yet!) but purrs when cuddled and likes to be around where the action is.
When his brother, Robbie, came to stay, Ritchie really came out of his shell. Robbie is super confident and moved right in like he owned the place. The two of them play ALL DAY LONG! They love to wrestle and chase the laser dot. Whoever adopts them will get a lovely pair of sweet boys. While they are about a year old, these two act just like kittens and are full of beans.
I know when I look at these photos and read about how sweet these cats are, it breaks my heart to think of them being sick and uncared for. Will you donate to VOKRA and help us make sure the hard times are behind Ritchie, Robbie and the 25+ other cats rescued from this site?
Check out this slideshow featuring some of these rescued cats now, then click to donate and help us care for them!
Click to view slideshow.
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