There was no doubt in Ella and Mario’s minds they’d made the right choice. In their foster home the two cats were coming out of their respective shells, with the small mom meowing chattily and her son showing a marked fondness for pats and playtime with strings and sticks.

But now after eight months with Ella and Mario, Sushi and Kimchi are showing their true and adorable colours. Ella has many “meow-versations” with chatty Sushi. “She sounds like a trilling pigeon!” said Ella.

At first, though, Sushi needed a bit of time to get used to her new home. Ella describes the first few months as being “like a cha-cha – we’d feel like we were making progress, but then something would spook her and she’d be back to hiding again.”  One such spook happened early on when Sushi’s small paw stepped on a remote control that operated Ella and Mario’s bedroom ceiling fan. “Sushi was so frightened she wouldn’t walk past the open bedroom door!” said Ella. Fortunately, Sushi’s now settled in and has become much more confident and cuddly. In Ella’s words, “She’s a serious lap cat. There are times when I have literally just made contact with the couch and her paw is already on my thigh, demanding a lap to sit on!”

Kimchi too has gotten braver and braver the more time he spends living with Ella and Mario. In fact, the (human!) couple have nicknamed their boy “Explorer Cat” and he continues to lives up to that name, always climbing up to a high vantage point to survey his domain. When Kimchi’s down on the ground, he’ll spend time “zooming,” as Ella put it, running around like a “crazy cat”.  In true cat fashion, the zoomies often come in the early morning when Ella and her husband are happily snoozing!  As you might expect from all that activity, Kimchi likes his food. In the mornings he’ll “meeeeeoooooow pitifully as if he’s starving and will continue to meow until someone opens the bedroom door,” said Ella.

All in all, Ella and Mario are delighted with their new snuggle bugs. And we couldn’t be happier to report yet another happy tail!

Would you like to share your Happy Tail? Email us at [email protected].

Little Spring, the kitten we’ve been telling you about, has very sadly passed away. Her short life, and her close friendship with bestie Hamburgler, were a heart warming inspiration to us all, say many VOKRA volunteers.

“The most amazing thing about Spring was that her spirit was super strong even though her body was so very frail,” says VOKRA volunteer Susan, who spent a good deal of time with this little kitten. “In her short life she taught us to focus on the positive, make the most of what we have and love unconditionally.”

Spring was born with an inoperable genetic defect, a portosystemic liver shunt, a disorder in which a cat’s blood supply bypasses the liver, leading to increased toxins in the blood. Most kittens with this condition die within weeks of birth, so Spring’s relatively long life (she was 5 months when she passed) is an amazing tribute to VOKRA’s good care.

At first, volunteers at VOKRA’s Operations Centre weren’t sure how long this tiny kitten would be around. At a few weeks of age, Spring wasn’t thriving. She crouched in her cage, too nauseous to nibble on her food or even nudge the hands of volunteers who reached in to pet her cute self.

After a vet visit or two, she seemed to recover and our volunteers made a momentous decision. Another adorable feline had just been rescued from life on Vancouver’s streets. This cat, named Hamburgler as he was found hiding under a McDonald’s dumpster, was paired with Spring.

Spring and Hamburgler

At first, Spring was hesitant. Following some much-needed treatments, Hamburgler had become a happy rambunctious kittie, always wanting to play. He pounced on the little kitten, delighted to spot a new playmate.

But Spring soon learned to give as good as she got. On her healthy days, she and her new bestie chased each other around. On not so good days, Hamburgler began to help his friend, supporting her through her struggles.

Susan tells how he used to help make sure Spring was getting all the attentions she needed. “I was encouraging Spring to eat by getting her to lick food from my finger. It was a bit messy so when we were finished, Hammy rushed over and gave her face a good clean!”

Hamburgler even provided comfort on Spring’s worst days, when her health problems necessitated trips to the vet.

Hamburger in his new furever home

“When Spring travelled to the vet she would cry in the car,” says Susan. “But when Hammy started to accompany her in a shared carrier she was quiet and comforted. He even accompanied her on her last journey and groomed her beforehand to ensure she was respectable before they left!”

Hamburgler now has his own happy ending. He’s been adopted by VOKRA volunteer Leanne, who kindly waited to collect her new companion until Spring was no longer in need and then rushed in so Hamburgler would not have to spend a night alone in the pod he and Spring shared.

Leanne says Hamburgler is settling well into his new home, “He’s playing and giving me all the love and licks of affection.”

Spring’s fighting spirit, and her connection with Hamburgler, will linger in our minds for a long time.

In a final message about Spring, VOKRA co-founder Maria had this to say: “No matter what cards you are dealt, you can walk through life with kindness and love.”

Hamburgler says goodbye to Spring

Right now when you stock up on grocery cards from Safeway, Save-on-Foods, Nesters Market and Stong’s VOKRA gets a higher percentage of the profits. 

These profits can really add up fast! Last year with the help of our fosters and volunteers we raised more than $3,800 which we used to buy things like cat food, litter and flea medicine.

We need to bulk buy the gift cards in order to get this higher return and that’s where you come in. We need you to order your Safeway*, Save-on-Foods**, Nesters Market and Stong’s cards by November 9.

• Safeway cards are available in $25, $50, $100 or $250
• Save-On-Foods and Nesters cards are available in $25, $50 or $100
• Stong’s cards are available in $100 or $250
• Order now – but you don’t need to pay until November 9 (We’ll even take a post-dated cheque for November 9!)
• The cards will be delivered in late mid-November in time for the holiday season.

This is a limited time offer so be sure to place your order by November 9 by emailing [email protected] and let the gift card team know what you’d like. They’ll confirm your order and contact you to arrange payment and delivery. Want to know more about our gift card program? Click here.

You can help us reach our goal of $40,000 in sales. That’s a profit of more than $3,000 for VOKRA kitties!

*Safeway gift cards can be used at Sobeys, Foodland, FreshCo, Thriftyfoods, Lawtons & Needs.

**Save-On-Foods cards can be used at PriceSmart, Overwaitea and Cooper’s Foods.

Piper and her siblings were found in a ditch, covered with fleas and lesions from the fungal skin infection ringworm. It was VOKRA and vets who stepped in to help, said Eeva Wanders, who adopted six-month old Piper.

At first, the newly healthy Piper was very shy and VOKRA recommended a quiet home for this little kitty. At Eeva’s, it didn’t take long for Piper to come out of her shell. “For all [Piper’s] shyness, she took to me quickly and on the second night she jumped into my lap,” Eeva marveled. “The next morning I woke to her lying on my stomach.”

Eeva herself was delighted to meet Piper. Having lived with cats all her life, Eeva suddenly found herself alone and lonely after the death of her beloved Cairo. “I missed him terribly,” she said. “And I knew only a cat could help.”

Happily, Piper was there to fill this cat-shaped hole. Eeva says that even Piper’s markings seemed fortuitous. “I had hoped to find a silver tabby with a pink nose as I had one growing up. Lo and behold, there she was!”

Now, after six years together, Eeva and Piper are still very much enjoying each other’s company. The formerly shy Piper is “quite comfortable and curious of people and is keen to sniff their hair or ears,” said Eeva. “She LOVES to play and investigate boxes and paper bags. She loves her grey mouse, her felted braids and milk jug rings.  And she plays fetch…but only when she wants to.”

“She truly is an amazing and special cat,” Eeva said, “I’m glad to be owned by her.”

We’re glad, too, that Piper and Eeva have found each other and that Piper now has a forever home where she can be happy!

Would you like to share your Happy Tail? Email us at [email protected].

Paul with Spitfire

October’s the month of Thanksgiving and we couldn’t be more thankful for all of our volunteers. Without the hundreds of individuals who give thousands of hours of their time each month, VOKRA, quite simply, wouldn’t exist. One of those volunteer is our Volunteer of the Month October – Paul Breland.

Paul began volunteering with VOKRA in the spring of 2013 and, since that time, he’s fostered 16 litters, including 15 moms and 67 kittens.

Paul started volunteering after being sent a link to a webcam run by a kitten foster for Purrfect Pals in Seattle. After watching him foster a mom and kittens for a while, Paul thought it looked like fun and there was no reason why he couldn’t do it.

“I had been going through my own kind of midlife crisis at the time, wondering what I was doing with my life besides working and playing PC games,” said Paul. “Helping kittens is a way to do something more meaningful with my spare time.”

As a foster of moms plus their kittens, Paul’s main focus is ensuring the kittens grow up to be healthy, friendly and well-trained. If the kittens are around a week old when they arrive, it’s mostly a matter of making sure mom is well-fed and her litter scooped. As the kittens grow, Paul gets them used to being around people and being handled. He watches for any sign of ill health and weighs them frequently to ensure they’re going in the right direction. At around five weeks old Paul helps transition them to eating wet food and using the litterbox. As they near adoption age, he then submits pictures and bios for the website and answers questions when potential adopters come to view them.

“Obviously, my favourite part of volunteering is getting to sit in a room surrounded by kittens!”, said Paul. “But aside from that, the best part is seeing how happy the adopters are when they pick up their new furry friends. Many have left in tears they’re so happy to be adding a new family member (or two or three).”

It’s hard for Paul to pick a favourite story out of so many, but when pressed he said fostering the “Shovel Kittens” is one of the best. “They were discovered on a cold, rainy November day when their mom was trying to shelter them under a shovel leaning against a house,” explains Paul. “When they came into my care, they were really hissy and didn’t like attention at all. But after weeks of socialisation and handling (and a bit of reverse psychology!), they discovered they loved attention and became purring lap kitties.”

It’s even more difficult to pick a favourite kitty out of the 82 he’s fostered so far, but Paul must go with Hurricane and Spitfire, two kittens he just adopted from his most recent litter as company for his 10-year-old girl kitty. Outside of family bias, one kitty who stands out is Dusty, adopted by a couple of Paul’s friends earlier this year. He’s a friendly little black floofball who became a little brother to another VOKRA kitty. He helped fill the void of a departed kitty and has become a huge part of their lives.

“Another one of my favourites is Elle, a dilute torbie who was over-the-top friendly and loved being held,” adds Paul. “She also went to a family who was having some tough times and immediately lifted everyone’s spirits.”

THANK YOU Paul for all the time, effort and love you put into ensuring all the moms and kittens in your care are set up for success! We can’t wait to hear more stories from the next 16 litters!

As a volunteer-driven non-profit, we clearly couldn’t do what we do without our extremely dedicated and hard working team of volunteers. Thank you to each and every one of you!

VOKRA’s always in need of volunteers and fosters. If you’re interested in volunteering with us visit our website at vokra.ca/volunteer or vokra.ca/fostering.

Until recently, if you called “here Kitty Kitty” at our Operations Centre you’d have probably been talking to a single cat, an elderly gentleman named (you guessed it) Kitty Kitty.

This poor guy wouldn’t come running in answer though, as he has several age-related conditions that affect his mobility. He’s hyperglycemic and has arthritis in the lower part of his spine. When Kitty Kitty first came to VOKRA he couldn’t walk very well and our volunteers were concerned he was in a lot of pain. Everyone worked hard to find Kitty Kitty the right meds to help him move more comfortably.

Unfortunately, to make matters worse, Kitty Kitty started out not too relaxed in his temporary home and he had a tendency to nip. But after some medical care, and lots of cuddles and chin scratches from the team at Ops, Kitty Kitty started feeling much better. He’s still not the most agile of kitties, but he’s getting around and any volunteer or visitor who came to the back room where Kitty Kitty was staying was sure to be greeted by hopeful eyes and a little paw reaching out.

After Kitty Kitty’s temporary stay, he’s happier and healthier and has now moved on to a new home. Everyone will miss this super senior, but we’re glad we were able to ensure Kitty Kitty stayed warm, dry and loved while he was waiting for a permanent situation to come along.

If you’d like to help us help more kitties like Kitty Kitty, please donate today at www.givetovokra.ca.

“I was pretty sure when I had seen his photo but it sealed the deal as soon as I met him in person,” said Nicole. “Out of all the kittens I had an instant bond with him…he came right up to me and curled up on my lap and fell asleep! My heart instantly melted!”

Before long, Lincoln became the newest member of Nicole’s household. Slow introductions are advised when introducing a new cat into a home, especially when there’s a kitten coming into a senior cat’s domain. It was hard for Nicole to keep Lincoln separate for those few days, but once he had access to the house he wasted no time making himself right at home.

Nicole and Bayani quickly learned life with a kitten is a lot different than with a senior cat. “My other cats have always been well behaved and not as playful so it’s definitely been challenging keeping up with him!” she said. “Lincoln has a serious case of the ‘zoomies’, so he constantly runs laps around the house. He’ll even leap at doors and run across walls. It’s crazy!”

Lincoln enjoys many comforts in his new home, such as a box full of kitty toys and endless belly rubs and cuddles. By far his biggest quirk is his love for water. He always comes quickly when he hears water running and will even jump in the shower! Lincoln’s also obsessed with people food – especially chicken. Nicole and Bayani have to keep an eye on him when they’re cooking and now have a good system of covering ingredients – but Lincoln still manages to sneak off with a nibble from time to time!

Lincoln’s high energy and big personality have brought a light to Nicole, Bayani and even feline big brother Lex’s life. “Lincoln has a lot of the same traits and habits as my cat Cedes who passed so I really connect with him. His big personality just brings constant happiness every day,” said Nicole. “He’s just really silly and we honestly couldn’t imagine life without him!”

Thank you to Nicole and Bayani for giving a loving home to a kitty in need!

Would you like to share your Happy Tail? Email us at [email protected].

MY sink!

MY screen…?

Several months later another VOKRA email arrived in Rachel’s inbox featuring Timmy front and centre. Once again Timmy’s story was used to highlight how your donations to VOKRA are used to care for special kitties in need. Rachel’s heart went out to Timmy and, after convincing Chris, she contacted VOKRA to arrange a meeting.

Visiting Timmy at his foster home (only five blocks from her own!), Rachel was able to review his lengthy medical files. It turns out Timmy had been a struggling diabetic without a permanent home for nearly seven years. Furthering her bond with him, Rachel learned Timmy was on the same insulin and required the same glucose checks as she did. Despite her concerns that adopting Timmy into their happy three cat home could potentially disrupt the other cats’ lives, Rachel knew the value of giving Timmy the opportunity for a happy, stable home overshadowed the risks. Rachel and Chris decided to take the plunge and take Timmy home.

The first thing Rachel and Chris did when they adopted Timmy was to change his name to Louie. Shortly prior to his adoption, it was discovered that Louie needed emergency surgery to remove his teeth. The recovery was difficult for an older diabetic cat like Louie and developed pancreatitis. After a few close calls and attentive care from Rachel and Chris, Louie pulled through.

It took a month for all three cats to come around but Louie has now been accepted as part of the clowder. Louie’s a lover of all people food but is kept on a strict diet and schedule to manage his diabetes (even though Chris sneaks him a tiny taste here and there!). In fact, Louie’s diabetes has improved since his adoption and he now requires less daily units of insulin to manage his glucose levels.

Since Rachel treats her own diabetes she quickly accepted Louie’s needs as part of her routine. “I think, if anything, taking care of him has left me feeling like I’m not alone,” said Rachel. “It never felt to me like I was taking on too much more, but rather I was gaining someone who was helping me deal with my depression around diabetes. A support buddy!”

Thank you so much to Rachel and Chris for giving Louie the loving home he’s been waiting for. We wish you all many happy years together!

Would you like to share your Happy Tail? Email us at [email protected].

Sweet Spring’s mom was one of the many cats in Vancouver who aren’t spayed or neutered, leading to a lot of unwanted kittens for her owner. VOKRA staff and volunteers helped to spay Spring’s mom, and they’re now working hard to get Spring and her brothers and sisters ready for forever homes.

With her big amber eyes and attractive Bengal-like brown and yellow markings, Spring’s sure to be a hit when it comes time for her to be adopted. But there’s a problem. Spring’s the runt of the litter and she’s been having organ troubles. Her kidneys in particular show some congenital difficulties. Not so long ago, Spring was really nauseated and couldn’t pee or eat. Everyone at Ops spent a lot of time helping with her treatments and giving her some much-needed love.

Right now Spring’s back to her regular self. She loves to chase plastic ball toys around her kennel and afterwards scratch her small nails on her cardboard ramp or snuggle up to her many admirers.

As a no-kill rescue, our volunteers strive to give a fighting change to every cat, including kittens like Spring, whose health problems could have led to her euthanization at other centres. Everyone at Ops is hoping for a long and happy life for little Spring, with a loving friend to take care of her. There may be some colder weather ahead for this tiny kitten as she may still need some special care. But we’re all in her corner and won’t let her down.

Each year, VOKRA rescues more than 1,400 homeless cats and kittens from around the Lower Mainland. Unlike many other animal rescue groups, VOKRA is a volunteer-driven, no-kill organization. Our work is made possible through the generous support of volunteers, adopters and people like you.

Without your support we wouldn’t be able to afford to rescue all these cats and kittens.

Please help us help kitties like Spring this September 16 by joining us for Walk for the Kitties, presented by FirstMate.

Walk for the Kitties is our largest fundraising event of the year. This 5k fun walk takes place at Jericho Beach and all funds raised go directly towards supporting our rescue efforts. Learn more here.

Can’t make it on September 16? You can still donate today!

Oshi’s a tiny kitten with a big heart.

Each year, VOKRA rescues more than 1,400 homeless cats and kittens from around the Lower Mainland. Unlike many other animal rescue groups, VOKRA is a volunteer-driven, no-kill organization. Our work is made possible through the generous support of volunteers, adopters and people like you.

Without your support we wouldn’t be able to afford to rescue all these cats and kittens.

Please help us help kitties like Oshi this September 16 by joining us for Walk for the Kitties, presented by FirstMate.

Walk for the Kitties is our largest fundraising event of the year. This 5k fun walk takes place at Jericho Beach and all funds raised go directly towards supporting our rescue efforts. Learn more here.

Can’t make it on September 16? You can still donate today!

Want more Oshi? You can follow him on Instagram at @DailyDoseOfOshi.