Volunteering at the Grateful Paws Cat Shelter

It's been a long time since I last posted. WOW.

We now have kittens! We also have some very lovely adults. If you are on Long Island or willing to travel to Long Island to adopt a cat/kitten, please come to the Grateful Paws Cat Shelter (check out our website).

Above are photos of today's residents including the cat that I plan to adopt, Sergio. He is a special needs cat who is not otherwise up for adoption.

 

cheryllmt at 7:10:41 PM EDT Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

 CFA: Declawing of Cats: Guidance Statement

The most common surgical procedure, onychectomy, or "declawing", is amputation of the claw and the end toe bone joint. The surgery has a reputation for causing pain for a week or more and the possibility of postoperative complications, such as infection, hemorrhage, nail regrowth and altered feeling in the toes for some time after surgery.

The above is from the Cat Fanciers' Association.

I wanted to talk about this topic because we do not declaw cats at our shelter nor will we allow anyone to adopt if they are intending to declaw. If someone has in their lease that they can only have a declaw, we will show them the cats who have come to us declawed. Those are the rules and for good reason.

Declawing is an amputation. I wouldn't want the last section of my fingers and the nails removed, so why would a cat be happier with that? We had a person recently say that her understanding was that it was for cleanliness. When I told her what it involved, she said she would not declaw a cat now that she knew better. I explained that cats clean themselves by licking. Claws were originally intended for helping them to climb trees, defend themselves and kill prey. An indoor cat does not need to defend itself usually nor kill any prey. As for climbing, they use their back paws mainly for climbing and even a front declaw can climb. Claws can easily be trimmed.

At the shelter, if someone is unable to clip the nails of the cat they got from us for whatever reason, for a small donation, we will do it by appointment. Of course, groomers and vets will do it too, but likely for a larger fee. We also love to teach people techniques for successfully clipping their cat's nails themselves.

Another idea for cats is plastic tips that you glue onto their nails after a fresh clipping. They protect your furniture should the cat scratch. They also come in very interesting colors. Personally, I think it may be more work to do that than just clipping the claws, but if that solves the sharp nail problem, then it's all good.

Let me end by saying I don't condemn anyone who chooses to declaw. I have friends who have and they are people who love their pets immensely. I am only stating how our shelter runs and my personal belief is that while I would be willing to adopt a declaw, I wouldn't declaw a cat.

Just something for everyone to think about and then make the decision that is right for you and your cat.

cheryllmt at 7:22:44 PM EDT Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

Saturday we had no adoptions, but today we had two. Sienna and Seth were adopted separately. Both are a year or less old.

Rafi is still not eating on her own and Peter still is so snuffly that he cannot smell his food to know to eat it (it's a cat thing). I bottle fed both of them today and yesterday I did Rafi while another of our volunteers did Peter. We work very hard to make sure our cats get the very best care we can give.

cheryllmt at 6:38:22 PM EDT Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

This was quite a weekend. No adoptions on Saturday and we were closed on Sunday.

Sergio was returned late on Saturday. We're not quite sure if it was because one of the kids developed an allergy or because Sergio didn't use the litter pan all the time. There was a language barrier. In any case, he is back and we all love him tremendously. I'm sure the right person will come along for him. He is special needs but he is worth the extra expense and trouble.

Rafi, the maine coon mix, is also back. She was doing well at first but then stopped eating. That's a very bad thing for a cat. Here's some information I found on about.com regarding this condition:

Feline Hepatic Lipidosis

Fatty Liver Disease is an accumulation of fats (lipids) in the liver tissue. Since this condition is not found in humans nor dogs, it is thought that it might result from the way cats metabolize proteins and fats, although the disease is presently considered idiopathic, which indicates no known cause is present. The disease progresses this way:

• A previously overweight cat stops eating for whatever reason
• Lacking food, the body starts sending fat cells to the liver to process into lipoproteins for fuel.
• Cats' livers are not terribly efficient at processing fat, and much of the fat is stored in the liver cells.
• Left untreated, eventually the liver fails and the cat dies.

Needless to say, it's important to get the cat eating again, hence we are force feeding Rafi. The gal who adopted her still wants her, but is not able to care for her like we are doing. It's a lot of work and we have people who are coming in frequently during the day to just try to get a little bit of food into her. Today I got almost a full 60ml into her of the A/D-water mixture. When one of the other women came in to feed her, she puked the little bit back up. It all has to be just right and you never know. The other woman didn't do anything different from what I did. As I said, you just never know.

We have a mommy cat with her six two-week-old kittens. Cleo is a good mom and doing very well. She's also going to be a very nice cat to adopt in a few weeks.

One of our volunteers has Ali and her babies. Ali isn't feel so good and she's being watched not only for her own health, but to make sure she's feeding the babies. If she doesn't, the volunteer will bottle feed them.

Then there's Alice. She looks to be barely more than a kitten herself but she is pregnant. She should kitten some time soon.

Seth is adorable and waiting to get his surgery. Archie had his surgery and will probably be adoptable by tomorrow. He's a little shy right now. Hopefully tomorrow our director will remove Whisker's collar (she was trying to nibble on her wound from her surgery) and she can be adopted. Whisker's is VERY friendly.

That's about it for the comings and goings. All the little kittens should be ready for adoption in about 10 weeks. The kittens that came in last week (there were nine of them) should be adoptable in about 6 more weeks. Kitten season may be starting a touch early at Grateful Paws!

cheryllmt at 4:57:09 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 1 comments: Show Recent | Add your own

Yesterday our shelter director took nine kittens from the town shelter. They are all too young to be adopted as they are only about five weeks old, but they will be wonderful when they are 12 weeks, have had all their shots and their spay/neuter. There are two tigers, four orange (three girls, one boy), two white with gray patches and a calico. There is nothing so cute as a kitten especially at that age. They mew, they purr, they cuddle, they curl up.

We also have some 6/7 month old kittens. Sneakers is looks quite good. He's a black and white (I'd say he probably could be called a tuxedo). He's VERY playful and loves to roll over for a belly rub. Once he's over his cold, he will fly out the door. Sienna is all black and a sweet little girl. She has the sniffles too, but another week on meds and she should be as good as new. One of our wonderful volunteers was going to take Whiskers last night so she can give him some extra tender loving care. He hasn't been eating much so he needs to be bottle fed till he's a little stronger. He's a beautiful black and white and will be a great cat once he is well again.

Just a few more weeks and the kittens that are old enough to be adopted will flood the shelter and it will be adoption city (I can't wait although I always wish it was my turn).

Just a little fact or two about kittens. Cats usually mate around Valentine's Day (how appropriate, huh?). Gestation is about two months (that would make it mid April). It's not a hard and fast rule by any means, but that puts the peak of kitten season (when the kittens are old enough for adoptions) at about mid July. The early litters will be ready in May and June and we can get litters ready for adopt ion into the fall. 3 month old kittens in the dead of winter is on the rare side, but not impossible.

And that's Kitten 101 for today.

cheryllmt at 8:43:24 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 1 comments: Show Recent | Add your own

It was another good day at the shelter. Isabella was adopted.

I hope she loves the nice man who chose her and his other cat. I think she will.

cheryllmt at 5:31:06 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

People always ask me how I can volunteer at a shelter. Don't I get upset and sad when a cat I love gets adopted. I always say that while I miss the cats I love the most and love them in my heart, it is better they get good homes.

Today two of my favorite fur babies were adopted: Sergio and Jazzy. It will be strange not to have them there tomorrow, but I'm hopeful they will be happy and healthy.

Sergio:

Jazzy:

 

cheryllmt at 6:16:39 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 0 comments: Add your own

Not a whole lot of news this week except Rafi got adopted today.

Two nice young women came in and one of them adopted her (the other one was her friend who was there for company). Rafi seemed to love the woman so it seems everyone got what they wanted.

Another month or so and kitten season should start. I have been telling people that the kittens are still cooking. ::giggles:: Around Valentines day, they are started and then they have to bake in the oven until April/May at least. :::laughing::: Hey, it's pretty much true but it does get a lot of laughs as people get the point. Cats usually do not give birth all year round.

Remember, spay or neuter your pets. There are more kittens and puppies than people to take them home. The overpopulation is not good for them and it's not good for us either. Spay/neuter also helps your cat or dog to live a healthier and longer life. They get less diseases such as cancer. Thank you.

cheryllmt at 6:31:25 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 1 comments: Show Recent | Add your own

This is our newest arrival, Lottie. She's a beautiful gray and white girl. Very sweet.

Yesterday there were no adoption. Today, Winky went home with a very nice couple. I swear that couple had catnip cologne because they were getting some of the shyest cats out.

Other than that, it was a pretty quiet weekend. I hope next weekend there will be more people and they will adopt like crazy. These darling adults need homes, good homes, now!

cheryllmt at 6:06:01 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 1 comments: Show Recent | Add your own

My apologies that there are no new pictures. You see, it was VERY busy at the shelter yesterday and today.

Yesterday I arrived an hour before we opened. The director and I walked in together. The place was quite a mess and someone had set out way too much food. Our director started doing the morning meds and I started cleaning up. The place has to be nice looking for when the people come in.

The director found Sergio in room 1. He's not supposed to be in any of the rooms because if he goes in, he eats the regular food and gets sick (irritable bowel syndrome). He's on special food to keep his tummy happy (and the cleaners too!). Fortunately, he seemed okay.

As I was getting the laundry started and before we're officially open, the people started to pile in. You see, we had 7 kittens available. Well, let's say the rest of the day went VERY fast. 5 kittens and 2 adults were adopted. Another kitten was adopted and the new owner came in today (Sunday) to pick him up. ::phew::

I also helped the director clean and feed yesterday, so it was a long, tiring day. (I think I still ache, but I'm too tired to feel).

Today we had no adoptions but tons of lookers. Thanks to Vicki, our assistant medical director and certified cleaning whirlwind, the place was almost spotless. Vicki and anyone who works with her and was trained by her (that would include me) are meticulous (We have to be... Vicki said so).

I did get to sit with Travis. He's a 23+ pound fawn colored cat with a super personality. He's a huge cat, but so loving. He let me pick him up and hold him. He got himself into just the position he wanted and he was such a mush. His housemate, Tracey, is much shyer. I hope she comes out of her shell because she is a gorgious long haired calico. We also have another new cat today, Rafi. Rafi is mostly Maine Coon. She and Travis weight about the same. She's still shy but I hope she comes out of her shell too. Maine Coons are rare for us to get in. Cats as big as these 3 are are not terribly common. Travis and Tracey probably should lose a few pounds each because it has to be hard for them to leap around. But they are like small dogs in some ways. Very solid animals and darling, for sure.

I did bring my camera but never got to take it out to get any photos. Who knows who will be there next week and who will get adopted. We have 4 more cats in the cage room 1 and 2 in the back cage room. They all need clearance to be out in a room. Some of them are older kittens but very shy. Two were returned yesterday and are adults.

I hope some wonderful people will come in this week and adopt. They all need good homes.

Until next week, keep loving those cats!

PS, I took these photos off the Grateful Paws site so you can see more of the cats:

Rafi (Maine Coon)

Tracey:

Travis:

 

cheryllmt at 5:36:51 PM EST Permalink | Blog about this entry |  Add to del.icio.us |  digg this This entry has 1 comments: Show Recent | Add your own