Urgent TNR situation, donations needed

Large TNR project underway being funded by Alley Cats and Angels - 14 appointments for spay/neuter this week alone. Please consider making a donation of cat food for this colony or monetary donation to help with the cost of spay/neuter.

Alley Cats and Angels (AC&A) has been asked to help with a large local TNR project in collaboration with Operation Catnip Raleigh (OC). AC&A will fund the entire project, an OC volunteer/board member will coordinate the project and schedule spay/neuter appointments, and the person who initially approached OC for help will do the actual trapping, transporting, and recovery. If there are kittens in the colony that can be socialized for adoption, Alley Cats and Angels will take them into our adoption program.

It’s a dire situation with a short timeline, and such a sad story. An older gentleman is living in his truck after his mobile home burned a few weeks ago, killing his long-time companion dogs and a litter of kittens. This is devastating for the man and he is sharing the little space in his truck with a number of unsterilized cats, which need to be spayed/neutered and vaccinated. There are also approximately 30 feral cats around the house that need to be TNR’d (trap-neuter-return).

The timing for this project is short because volunteers from a men’s church group will help the gentleman reclaim and sell metal and remove the debris. The large group of volunteers, heavy equipment, and noise will frighten the cats and they will scatter. We need to get them TNR’d as quickly as possible.

We are thankful for the neighbor who cares enough to ask for help and who is also helping herself, as she will trap, transport, and recover; and for the project coordination support from Operation Catnip.

If you would like to help, we will happily accepts donations of cat food for this colony and the gentleman's personal cats (canned food for trapping and dry food for daily feedings) and monetary donations to help with the cost of spay/neuter surgeries and vaccinations.

Adoption Update

Five cats/kittens were adopted this weekend:

 Mama Cass was adopted at her first event!  She's pictured here almost a year ago after she and her babies were pulled from a high kill shelter

 

 Loki 

Cheeto

Thor (!!) 

Princess Jasmine

Congratulations to the kitties and their new families.

Cheeto makes his television debut!

Check out Cheeto as the WNCN News Pet of the week!!

Sponsor a Sweetheart

Just a couple of days left to Sponsor a Sweetheart and get your themed, handmade card for your Valentine!
http://hosted-p0.vresp.com/554742/0f6071cc77/ARCHIVE

Sponsor a Sweetheart for you Sweetheart!

Some of these sweeties have been with us for quite some time. They are just waiting for the right person to love for the rest of their lives.

While waiting for Mr. or Mrs. Right, they could use your help. Do you need a new idea on what to get your loved ones for Valentine's Day?

Why not make a $25 donation to one of these Sweethearts?

In return for your $25 donation, you will receive a Valentine's Day themed, handmade card as a gift for your honoree.

To Sponsor a Sweetheart, please send an email to: info@alleycatsandangels.org BEFORE FEBRUARY 8th.

Let us know which of these sweeties you would like to sponsor, if you would like us to mail your card to you, or your recipient. Pick-ups in the Raleigh area may also be arranged. You can make your donation online by clicking link below or mail a check to PO Box 785, Apex, NC 27502.

Weekend adoptions!

Congratulations to Tekken and Pacman (adopted together!) and Prince Phillip (going to live with Alley Cats and Angels Graduate Cartman) and their new families!

The Amazing "CH" Kittens

Over the past 1-1.5 months, we've lost SunBird and Phoenix, our rescues from a mobile home park earlier in 2012.  Originally diagnosed with Cerebellar Hypoplasia (CH), these two kittens were so amazing.

As with Siren from last year (who came from the same mobile home park), these two wonderful kitties got progressively worse after many months and CH is not a progressive disease.  After Phoenix had a seizure and was agonal, we had to make the hard decision to have him put to sleep - we had to, he was suffering.  It was only a few weeks later that Sunbird had a seizure and passed away overnight.

We took Sunbird's body to Rollins Lab at the NC Vet School and had a necropsy performed and it turns out that these sweet babies did not have CH, but instead had a rare disease known as Lysosomal Storage Disease.  Lysosomal Storage Disease is a genetic disease and affects the cerebelum causing similar clinical symptoms as CH. (Tay-Sachs diseases for humans is in the Lysosomal Storage Disease class.)

This explains their diminishing motor skills, stunted growth, and progressive symptoms.  There is nothing that could be done to help these kittens, other than what we did - love, care, patience.  Lots and lots of patience.  For the last several months of their lives, they still had a lot of energy and wanted to play in their wobbly, can't stand up way and did not appear to be suffering at all.  Their foster mom would bath and blow-dry them each night and they did wear diapers.  She had so much patience with them.  As their health progressed, they went to a different foster home Sunday evening through Friday evening - a foster home where someone was always home.

We are happy we could provide these babies with as good as a life as they could have in their short life.  And we will be working even harder to TNR the whole darn mobile home park - even if it's ninja trapping after midnight!!

Here are some pictures to help remember these beautiful angels.  Most of them aren't great quality as they're from a not-so-great smart phone.

Sunbird  

Sunbird

 Phoenix

Sunbird and Phoenix - after baths and all tucked in for the night

Sunbird and Phoenix - diapered kitty bottoms

Chance to win money for the kitties!

Here's a fast, free thing you can do daily to help us win some funds for the kitties. Kitten season is nearly here and we will need all the help we can get.

Just "Like" the Westcott Automotive Group on Facebook and vote for us daily in their contest. The top 3 rescues get prizes when the contest ends in March. Right now we are at position 5 with a ways to go to catch up to the top 3.

https://www.facebook.com/westcottautomotivegroup?sk=app_475208202514832&app_data

It's easy, fast and free. You can even set up a daily google calendar event reminder to prompt your daily vote!

First weekend in February Adoption Events

Alley Cats and Angels Adoption Event

Petsmart Knightdale
220 Hinton Oaks Blvd.
Knightdale, NC

Saturday February 2^nd and Sunday February 3^rd

1PM – 4PM