Burmese Momma and New Cat

Mrs. L called me last Sunday morning, telling me that she had trapped the Burmese momma cat. She was very excited, as she didn't think she'd be able to get this one. I found out the next available date to take her in, which fortunately, was the next day. The cat was spayed, ear-tipped, and vaccinated for rabies and distemper. It didn't look like she had been pregnant recently, which is a good thing. = )

B/c of the weather, Mrs. L took her back home to recuperate for a couple of days. I hope she does well.

So, that leaves us with the grey and white momma cat, the two grey kittens, and the black kitten. Mrs. L is trying to get the kittens to socialize and rehome, but I have a feeling that the black one is too old for socialization. If so, we need to trap hir to be sterilized. So definitely one, possibly two more cats there at Wendy's. She's going to be attempting to trap the momma and babies with a large cage instead of a trap, and will call me when she's got her. At least baby season is over for the time being.

Oh, and I guess there's a new stray cat over there. Black and white, very friendly, gives love bites. I told her that if she gets him, to just give me a call and we'll get him in as well. I put an ad on Craigslist in case he's someone's pet, but no answers... He may be an indoor/outdoor cat, maybe lost, maybe abandoned... who knows. But at least if he sticks around, he'll be taken care of.

Trapping Wendy's Cats

Mrs. L decided to try to trap the kittens with a cage. Lure them in with the food, when there's a bunch in, close the door. It worked to catch five of the kittens. But the last two (known) kittens were being a bit shy, so we knew we'd have to get out the big guns: Havahart traps. Mrs. L took our two traps over Monday night. She tied them open, and set food in the front, middle, and back. The cats ate all the food, so on Tuesday night, I went over and put food in the middle and back. All gone the next day as well, so to trap the kittens/cats, I untied the traps and rigged them up. This time, only food in the back so the trip plate is activated and *voila* trapped cat.

I was a bit worried that the trip plate wasn't going to be sensitive enough - these cats are on the small side. The kittens are about four pounds, I believe. The moms probably aren't more than eight. But I set them up in the food shelter (which works *great* as a disguise for the traps, by the way - they were already used to going in the shelter for food, so now they just walk in the traps) and hoped for the best. Went into Wendy's to wait at least a half hour - maybe I'll go over to that picnic table next time. It was a bit awkward pretending to be a patron.

After a half hour, I went to check. And of course, all the food was gone, no trapped cats. "Damn it," I thought. Knew the traps weren't going to be sensitive enough. I went back inside to get my stuff so that I could set the traps again because I had no other choice. Certainly am not going to be chasing the cats with nets.

Grabbed my backpack, hoping people would leave my book and tray alone. Got out the cat food, but lo and behold, the little calico was thrashing around in one of the traps! Yea! I covered her with the sheet and she immediately calmed down. I placed her on top of the shelter and set the other trap. I walked a few feet away, not sure if I wanted to wait outside or in the Wendy's. But as I stood there, I heard the second trap's door slam shut. It was the little torti! I placed her next to the calico and covered them both with the sheet. Then called T for a ride over to the LV's. She was babysitting, though, and her sister was late, so the LV's came to get me and the kittens. We deposited them at their house and they dropped me back off at Wendy's to try to get some of the adults. But T was tired, so I couldn't really stay long. (A bit irritating to me, but what can you do when you have to rely on everyone else?)

So I tied up the traps again and put all the food in the back for them. Fortunately, I am going back tonight to trap again. Dr. R will be working tomorrow and has time for surgery. Hopefully T doesn't bail on me again. She kept telling me I should trap during the day but doesn't understand that if the cats don't come out during the day, you're not going to be able to trap them during the day. She said, "you should start feeding them during the day." But, truthfully, it doesn't matter when we feed/trap. I can easily* drop them off at the animal hospital at night, so there's no need to change their schedule.

I really hope to get two of the adults tonight. Wish me luck! = )

*Well, not easily, but day is no more easy than night for me, anyway.

Wendy's Kittens Pt. 2

I have realized that I am not good at story-telling. In fact, I suck at it. I really only do well with "reporting" life. Non-fiction is where my comfort zone lies. So where we at before? Oh, at "no answer."

I had been feeling dismayed, because I always seem to have very few, very limited resources. I knew we'd have to figure something else out if I never got an answer, but in the meantime, the cats needed water and bowls. (They had been drinking out of some flimsy plastic container.) I took some metal bowls from the lost and found at work (They had been there for over a year and a half, so don't be judging me). Unfortunately, the bowls and water bottles did not fit in the bag that I usually carry on my back when I ride my bike. (I had only one bag that could be carried on my back.) So I took a shoulder bag, thinking I would be able to balance it on my shoulder while biking over there. I was wrong. So I put the bag on the handlebar, thinking I would be able to ride with it swinging gently. I was wrong. The bag caught in the wheel, stopped the wheel abruptly, and flipped me over the handlebars.

It was the most adventurous thing I've done recently. However, I think I should take a moment to say "Kids, wear your helmets." Because I was not, and I am very thankful that I did not hurt myself. And that no one ran me over. I now wear my helmet even if I'm going next door. (Well, maybe not... but you know what I mean.)

I made it the rest of the way without event, though I was horribly dismayed to see that I had smushed the bowls up in my crash to the pavement. The water bottles were still intact, thankfully. And I was able to form the bowls back into shape. = )

As I topped the hill, I noticed a large vehicle parked in the area where the cats congregate. "Oh no," I thought, because I have issues with talking to unknown people. But meeting this couple is the best thing to have happened for me, Mrs. L, and the cats. I told them about my desire to spay and neuter everyone and Mrs. L's desire to socialize and find homes for the kittens. And they expressed that they wanted to help, that they're big cat lovers, and want to see the situation resolved as well.

I told them that I needed permission from the land-owners to trap and return the cats. They were all, "Oh she won't care, you'd be doing her a favor." But they understood that Dr. R needed it for legal reasons, so they actually paid her a visit and got her written permission. Can you believe that? Here I am, writing and emailing with no answer - and they know her. Life can provide you with the right resources, I guess. = )

So now that we had permission, Mrs. L asked if we could have some sort of meeting. It was a bit awkward, but KB went with me, so it wasn't as uncomfortable as it could have been. We made a tentative plan to catch the kittens, socialize them, find them homes, etc. I didn't feel we talked about the adults enough, but that's another topic. Mrs. L and I were very happy to have people as wonderful as the LV's on board.

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I forgot to mention that KB offered to take in two of the kittens to socialize them. I asked her to do this under the impression that Mrs. L already had homes for them. Because that is what she told KB and me. Except KB has had the kittens for three weeks now - and no sign of homes. Not only do I feel bad that I got KB into this, but I am the one paying for everything. Food, litter, toys, and now vet bills. I just hope that I can come up with enough money. We're just doing basic worming, meds for upper respiratory infections, and testing the male for FIV/FeLV. But still, at just above minimum wage, these things are expensive. But I'll figure it out.

Wendy's Kittens: Part One

Going through the drive-thru at Wendy's one night, my step-mom noticed what appeared to be a "large rat." On closer inspection, it turned out to be a small cat! In fact, there were several kittens and mom-cats hanging out near a large rock.

There used to be a barn on the property the cats are congregating upon, so it's not a leap to wonder if these aren't remnants of those who used to live there. Who had kittens, of course.

I found out that there was someone feeding them in that area, so I went back to the Wendy's a few days later to acquire any information possible. I told the workers that if anyone had any relevant information for me about the caretaker, give me a call, because these cats need to be sterilized to prevent a population boom.

I walked around a little, wondering how I would contact the woman feeding the cats. I ended up calling T, who suggested leaving a note for the woman to find. So I did. (see picture) I got a call a couple of days later, but was too afraid to answer. (I have social issues, I know) The second time she called, I didn't hear it, but fortunately, she left a message. I remember thinking, "That's funny, she sounds like Mrs. L" but didn't ponder any further on it. I called her back the next day, and guess what? It was Mrs. L! I was actually very relieved, because talking to someone you don't know can be a little nerve-racking, especially dealing with crazy cat ladies. We all know that when someone is passionate about a particular topic, s/he tends to think of him/herself as an expert. And when that individual disagrees with your opinions, it can turn into a situation where nothing gets resolved.

But...

Mrs. L told me that there are five female adults and ten kittens. She mentioned that she had been trying to socialize the kittens, but what they really need is to be fostered for a couple of weeks before they go into "forever homes." T had said previously that she would use her garage to socialize the kittens, so I told Mrs. L that I would see if she was still interested, but unfortunately, she was not. I talked to Dr. R about having them boarded for a week, but he said it wasn't really our area in which we could help. I went through all my contacts, even posted on the Cat Lovers LJ community for suggestions. Luckily, KB just got back from vacation and said she would take two in at a time to help socialize them before they go into homes. I also met someone through LJ that said she would put the word out for volunteers.

All the while, I was trying to find out the contact information for the owner of the property so we could trap the cats and kittens to be sterilized. Dr. R is quite adamant that the property owners are in agreement with us going on their land for such a purpose. Something that makes complete sense to me. So I went to the town hall, pointed out the particular piece of land (after much difficulty, I must say. I can't read a map for the life of me), and was printed out a piece of paper with the address of the owner and a picture of the store that resides on the land.

The store is actually now empty, which explains why I didn't recognize it from the photo. I was able to find a phone number online, which led me to another branch, in Buffalo, I believe. Which gave me another number to contact the receptionist of the owner. Who was out of town, so I left a message. I went to visit the kittens again that night and noticed a sign in the front window with a phone number. I called, but hung up when it started making a funny noise. And called again, but was caught off guard by the answering machine - and I didn't know exactly what i wanted to say. I mulled it over, then called again. And was surprised when I man answered a bit groggily. Explained my business to him, who then informed me that he's in Italy, that it's two in the morning. Which made me feel quite awkward for calling him three times. Apologized profusely, but he was kind in not making me feel like a total ass. He gave me the email address of his sister to get permission from. But, though I emailed twice and wrote once, I got no answer.

To be continued... (With more info on socialization, permission from land owners, and possibly pictures. If I can figure it out...)