Our felines, friendly and feral, hope your 2015 is off to a glorious start. You’ve certainly made that the case for our kitties.
I’m overjoyed to report that, at long last, our expanded medical facility is finished and operational. Feast your eyes on the photo below for a glimpse of what you’ve helped to make possible for our kitties. (That’s little feral-born Biggie showing off the new digs.) While this wonderful space will benefit all the Tabby’s Place cats, it’s especially good news for our TNR kitties. Our goal for this new hospital is ultimately to conduct TNR on up to 20 cats every week. I can’t thank you enough for helping to make this happen for them.
Even as we ramp up to that goal, of course, there are many needy cats in our midst. In this young year, we’ve already scooped up three community cats right around the corner from Tabby’s Place. While it’s always a judgment call as to which cats will be happiest in an outdoor colony vs. coming to Tabby’s Place to acclimate to indoor life, there was little doubt when it came to Em, Sheldon and Audrey.
If you were to look up “feral” in the dictionary, you very well might find the definition “adjective: the opposite of Em or Sheldon.” Although these boys were outdoors, they were the epitome of friendly. In the cat rescue world, they were “community cats” — living outdoors — but not truly “feral” — unsocialized to humans. But whatever semantics you choose, the boys needed us — now.
As of this update, Em and Sheldon have both been settling into Tabby’s Place for a little over a week, and they’re taking the transition at their own pace. Em, pictured above, is elated to be here, head-butting up a storm and loving all our loving. Sheldon, on the other hand, has been a case of two steps backward and one forward — not at all uncommon for community cats who come indoors. While kitties like Sheldon are very comfortable being outgoing and snuggly in their known turf outside, they can feel a bit overwhelmed and resort to shyness when we move them in. That’s absolutely okay, and we know Sheldon will regain his footing and trust. He’ll have all the time he needs — plus a much-needed dental procedure — at Tabby’s Place.
Then there’s lovely Audrey. We were initially alerted to her story because of her age. As an elderly lady, Audrey’s not in any shape to weather another New Jersey winter outdoors. We were happy to help her come in from the cold, and she’s wasted no time thanking us with a sea of sweetness. This golden girl clearly has her best years yet ahead.
And so do all our community cats, thanks to you, amazing sponsors. Thank you for loving our kitties, “feral” and “community” and everything in between, so generously. Have a glorious rest of January!