Feral Power ALERT - action needed

Please sign the Alley Cat Allies petition and also boycott Loews Hotels -specifically Loews Portofino Bay. They are having the cats they have already been TNR'd "relocated" to an animal shelter - this means CERTAIN DEATH for the ferals.

PLEASE TAKE ACTION TODAY.

http://capwiz.com/alleycat/issues/alert/?alertid=61135491&PROCESS=Take+Action

Dr. Who needs your prayers, thoughts, and support

Dr. Who is at the emergency vet. He got really sick Sunday morning and was rushed to the vet for care. Initially they checked his sugar and it was really low and he was having trouble breathing so they put him on oxygen.

Sunday evening update: Since these pictures the vet has called to let us know that Dr. Who is doing better, they've taken him off oxygen and he's walking around, meowing and eating on his own. His white blood cell count is really low, so they are being careful to keep things sterile. The next 24 hours are crucial for the good Doctor. Your prayers and positive thoughts would be appreciated.

Monday morning update:  Dr. Who is not able to absorb glucose orally and his blood sugar is still very low so he is no longer running a fever - which in this case is not good.  The cost of his first 16 hours of care was $800.  He could require 1 day of care or 7 more days of care.  The estimates range from $250/day to $800/day - and right now because of his condition his care is costing the higher estimate for 24 hours of care.  Dr. Who's foster mom went to see him this morning and he kept trying to get up to see her and show her his belly for some petting.  It is so hard because he's fighting, he's not giving up so neither will we. 

And as you might imagine, a trip to the emergency vet and 24 hour care for a tiny kitten can be very expensive. If you would like to make a donation towards his medical bill we would really appreciate it. Every bit helps. You can find the link for a donation on our website: http://www.alleycatsandangels.org/

Weekend Adoptions

Adoption today: Bones (he'd been pending adoption but he was getting over respiratory), Parfait and Sorbet together, Cinnamon and Buckwheat together, Lady Roslin. And Bogart and Cute Avenger who were adopted last weekend and returned due to resident cat circumstances were also adopted today.

We have a very low return rate, however, we make a lifetime committment to our cats and we welcome them back at any time for any reason. And we would rather a cat be returned to us and live in a foster home until re-adopted than live in a house where a cat or dog is aggressive towards them.

2011 Annual Report

Alley Cats and Angels is pleased to share our 2011 Annual Report with our supporters.  AC&A has grown so much since it was founded in 2008.  We are a small rescue making a BIG difference.  If you would like more detail on the good we do in our community, please read our annual report at: http://alleycatsandangels.org/AlleyCatsandAngels_2011AnnualReport.pdf

2011 Highlights include:

• 227 adoptions
• 24 cats placed into safe barn/garden homes
• 422 cats spayed/neutered and vaccinated through our Alter an Alley Cat spay/neuter assistance program

Expenses

• 88% of our expenses were for medical care for program cats and spay/neuter assistance
• Program supplies (food, litter) accounted for 8.5% of our expenses
• The remaining 3.5% of our expenses was included fees for fundraising expenses, website hosting, post office box, telephone/voicemail, accounting/Form 990 preparation, and booth fees for community events.  We work hard to keep these costs very low. 

A special thank you to Nicky Thayer (http://luckydesigns77.blogspot.com/) for her annual report cover design (and all the other amazing design work she does for Alley Cats and Angels).

Please help the feral cats in the Triangle, NC area

Join us in supporting TNR in Wake County. Let Wake County know they need to be part of the solution for feral cats and the only effective and proven solution is TNR (trap-neuter-return).  The ordinance also needs to be caregiver friendly. 

If you live in Wake County, North Carolina, please take a minute and sign the Alley Cat Allies petition: http://capwiz.com/alleycat/issues/alert/?alertid=61104116&PROCESS=Take+Action&external_id=10519.-19067610

Recently a caregiver was fined $300 for feeding feral cats.  $300!  And if it wasn't paid within 72 hours, a summons for her arrest would have been issued (thankfully it was paid by some OC donors).  Keep your dog chained up outside 24x7 and let it bark all day and you don't get a fine that high - or often even a visit from animal control to assess the situation.

Together, we can make a difference.

Adoption Update

Last weekend's adoptions: Fawn, Mahi, Custard, and Zeller. 

And a barn/garden cat relocation (actually in this case garage/big backyard) - very friendly cat that cannot be adopted out to indoor home because of very naughty litterbox behavior.  She will get lots of love and attention in her alternative home.

NC State University College of Veterinary Medicine's Open House

Alley Cats and Angels is participating in the NC State University College of Veterinary Medicine's Open House on Saturday, March 31. Alley Cats volunteers will be on hand to talk about our organization, how you can help the cats, helping community cats, etc.

We are currently seeking volunteres to help staff this event. Please sign up via ivolunteer: http://alleycats.ivolunteer.com/event_049 Thank you!

More kitties saved from high-kill shelter this week!

We were able to pull 12 kittens/cats from Cumberland County shelter yesterday.  Cumberland County has a 98% kill rate on cats.  Pictures of most are up on our Kitten Alley Facebook page, and the rest of the pictures will be up soon.

It's worth the drive to the shelter to be able to save these kitties.

Weekend Adoption Update

Saturday:  Aria, Captain Cuddles, and Baby. Congratulations to our kitties and their new families. The adopters were all wonderful and have kids (of varying ages) and all three kittens will be spoiled rotten.   Hercules is available for adoption again. He was returned today. His adopter was very upset about it but felt it was the right thing to do for Hercules. Her resident cat just would not accept him, was bullying him, and Hercules was terrified.

Sunday: ge and Spice were adopted today. Bones is pending adoption (the adoption would have been completed today but he's coming down with upper respiratory so he'll be adopted once his URI is all cleared up).   Also did a site visit today for a great location with a "potting shed" (huge building with concrete floors) and a fenced in garden that will be taking two of our big ol' friendly kitties with very bad litterbox habits (preventing them from being indoor only unfortunately). They'll have the potting building, barn and 79 acres, and people to give them love and attention. We'll be working out the logistics on that relo within the next two weeks. YAY!

Adoption update

Well, it was an unusually slow adoption weekend last weekend but Hercules was adopted and found a great home.  And we also placed one semi-feral one cat in a barn home, one barn home that took cats from us last summer was willing to take more cats and this 4 year old front yard feral needed a place since her one of her humans passed away and the other moved into assisted living. 

So yes, slower than usual but we are happy for the kitties that found homes.

World Spay Day

Alley Cats and Angels held a free spay day on Tuesday, February 28, 2012 in celebration of World Spay Day.  31 cats were booked for appointments, but only 23 showed up.  A bit disappointing when you're offering FREE spay/neuter and vaccinations.  But 23 cats were spayed/neutered and vaccinated and will no longer breed and add to the overpopulation.

The spay day was made possible by a grant from the Build-a-Bear Workshop Bear Hugs Foundation.

Below are some pictures.