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To Catlovers

Remember it start with us
Twinkle Trust Animal Aid

In April 1995 Andrew Storey and myself, Jenny Billimore, first visited Fuerteventura for a one week holiday. Little did I know at that time, how our lives were about to change forever. Throughout the week we witnessed countless cats and kittens dying in the grounds of the holiday apartments, most of them looked as though they were suffering from cat- ‘flu' and many of the kittens had such badly infected eyes they could not open them.

We just knew they were going to have short, sad, painful lives.
At first we tried to help by putting down some food each day and washing the kitten's eyes, so at least they could see but each day we found more and more in need of help. We knew without veterinary treatment many of them were going to die.

We tried in vain to make it down to the beach or to the car and carry on with our holiday but in the end it was impossible to pretend that this was anything ‘but' a holiday. I felt so helpless and desperate. I was only able to give them temporary relief and knew as soon as we returned home many would be left to suffer alone.

Leaving was so hard !
When it was time for us to leave the apartment and fly back to England, we were both overwhelmed with sadness at the thought of leaving so many sick cats and kittens. As we boarded our return flight home, I made a promise to the cats that I would not forget them and would come back.

Always on my mind
Once back home I would spend my lunch breaks at work, trying to contact as many animal welfare groups as I could find to see if they could or would go and help these poor Fuerteventurian cats. I was getting more and more desperate after each organisation I contacted said they same thing ‘they did not have the funds or the staff to help'.

We had to go back - and soon !
So one month after returning home we went back to Fuerteventura to bring home a little black female cat that we just could not forget about, whom we had called Twinkle. As soon as we arrived we went back to the complex where she lived and we found her lying at the bottom of tree, trying to take shade from the blazing sun. Sadly, since we had left she had caught cat- ‘flu' and despite spending four days in the local vet's, she died. That night we felt numb and cried until the sun came up and that morning we buried our Twinkle just outside our apartment, under her favourite flowering burgonvilla. Later that day, I tried to pull myself together and put on a brave face as I approached the complex owner and asked what was being done about the cat situation, I was horrified when he explained their inhumane methods for controlling the cat population but I was grateful for his honesty, it made me even more determined to help all the cats that we had to leave behind.

As nobody else was able or prepared to carry out humane cat control, I took it upon myself to find some volunteer vets and helpers and raise the money for a cat sterilising trip if the complex owner would help me get permission. The owner not only helped me gain permission from the local authorities in Fuerteventura but he also offered us free use of some accommodation and a place to carry out the operations.

By the end of our second heartbreaking visit to Fuerteventura we decided to bring home another little black cat that we had grown to love and a five week old kitten that had been brought into our apartment by a member of the complex staff after she had heard that Twinkle had died. Nothing could replace Twinkle but as we still had all the necessary quarantine paperwork it seemed the least we could do was to try and give these two little orphans a chance. But, as if life hadn't been cruel enough our second little black cat died just three days after being released from quarantine, this was due to an ear infection that she developed during her six months quarantine. We had called our second black cat Twinkle because they were so alike in every way. It is in memory of our two Twinkle cats that we called our little charity Twinkle Trust Animal Aid.
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Re: to catlovers

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Tell Department of Corrections to Lift Feeding Ban
It has been over a month since the cats at Bayside State Prison have been fed. Despite widespread outcry against this cruelty, the prison’s administration refuses to lift the feeding ban. Alley Cat Allies reached out to Bayside State Prison over and over again, requesting an end to the feeding ban and offering assistance with the prison’s Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program—but the administration will not work with us. Just this weekend, we visited the prison to deliver food for the cats, but were turned away. The cats’ situation is dire, so we are taking this to the next level by going straight to the New Jersey Department of Corrections.

Cats who have been living on the prison grounds for more than 10 years are starving. Along with several groups in New Jersey, we can help set up feeding stations and other colony care best practices that are essential to a successful TNR program—if Bayside State Prison lifts the feeding ban.

Your voice is critical. These cats don’t have much time left.

https://secure3.convio.net/alley/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=369
 
Re: to catlovers

^Sent!! Too bad I couldn't edit the pre written message to give Bayside a piece of my mind! But I suppose if I keep it civil there's a better chance they may reconsider. Seriously would they turn away starving children or other animals (ie. puppies?) I'm sick of the cat phobia around the world, I see no reason why they're getting away with this. Proud to be an Alley Cat Allies member :)
 
I didn´t think there were so many cats there, they say about a hundred in the video. I thought maybe there are some mice there so the cats can survive for a while.On the other hand the cats have been there for a long time and it´s not always easy for older cats to catch a mouse.
To stop feeding the cats are cruel.
[video=youtube_share;Lzh-LYBbAkM]http://youtu.be/Lzh-LYBbAkM[/video]
What do the adinstration want to show?
That it´s ok to be cruel?
 
We do not need to all get along. We can't all get along. And standing up for animals is not "divisive." What is harmful to this movement is not dissent, nor people unflinchingly calling anti-animal positions for the betrayals that they truly are. What is harmful to the humane movement, and therefore animals, is the long and historic association between those who love animals and those who kill them and the deadly and illogical myth this contaminating relationship has fostered that we all want the same thing, even in the face of clear and overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

There will come a day when No Kill is fully established, when we can gently agree to disagree on issues because we will all be on the same page—and the big question relating to whether animals should live or die will be put to bed once and for all, and the systematic killing of four million animals a year will be viewed as the cruel practice it always was; a national shame that is inconceivable to us as a people.

When that day comes, as it invariably will, and the voices championing killing are finally silenced, when the practices they condone are unequivocally rejected, when killing innocent animals is unthinkable, and when those who staff our nation’s humane societies, SPCAs, animal shelters, and large, national groups are truly committed to the best interests of animals; then we can shake hands across the aisles over our disagreements, because the stakes will be much lower—and no animal will be killed as a result of someone’s “differing” point of view.
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https://www.facebook.com/nathanwinograd
 
UPDATE: Bayside State Prison Cats
November 25, 2014 |
Yesterday, Alley Cat Allies met with Bayside State Prison officials and received a tour of the prison grounds where cats live, so we could begin to assess the situation and the cats’ health.

The cats we saw appear to be stable and in good shape and are being fed on an interim basis.

Now that we have confirmation of the cats’ immediate safety, we’ve begun discussions with prison officials, and we look forward to putting in place a long-term program to meet the needs of the cats and Bayside State Prison. Discussions are ongoing, and we will keep you updated as our work with the prison progresses.

Thanks to all of your who raised your voice to protect the cats at Bayside. It’s because of you that Bayside State Prison is working with Alley Cat Allies. We, and the cats, thank you.
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http://news.alleycat.org/2014/11/25/update-bayside-state-prison-cats/
 
[video=youtube_share;PmalngARf3I]http://youtu.be/PmalngARf3I?list=UU45A6cFQk8sdyvStqruKdyg[/video]
I find this very interesting but I wonder how it works.
I´ve learned that birthcontrol pill for cats prevent the female cats to get into heat.
But even if the female cat doesn´t want to mate it doesn´t help if the male cat wants to.
And then there are kittens.
It would be great if it worked, until you have the whole colony fixed.
 
Most of my posts involve companion animals in shelters. And because the majority of shelters kill animals, a fair number of those neglect or abuse them in the process, and often the large national groups will defend the practices, invariably someone will post a comment suggesting humanity is hopeless.
Having been in this fight for over 20 years, I understand the despair.
But humanity is far from hopeless.

Consider this: In a national survey, 96% of Americans—almost every single person surveyed—said we have a moral duty to protect animals and should have strong laws to do so. Three out of four Americans believe it should be illegal for shelters to kill healthy and treatable animals.
Specialization and advancements in the field of veterinary medicine have been driven by a population of Americans willing to spend and do whatever it takes to save the lives of the animals they love.
In fact, spending on our animal companions is the seventh largest sector of the retail economy, showing steady annual increases even in the face of economic uncertainty.

When it comes to saving dogs and cats and other companion animals, we don’t need to win the hearts and minds of the people, because we already have them. Our fight, therefore, is not against the many, but the few with a vested interest in the status quo of killing. That is a fight we will and are winning because we are tens of millions strong, and they are not.

Of course, we have a long way to go in our treatment of other animals, but a casual backward glance provides optimism there, too.
Humans are capable of great change and great compassion.

In just a few generations we ended monarchies and replaced them with democracies. In a short time historically, we went from a slave-based society to one that elected an African American as our President. We outlawed child labor as well as segregation, we prohibited gender discrimination and are on the verge of granting marriage equality to all people regardless of sexual orientation. Once the path to a more compassionate future was cleared for them, most people pursued it willingly, because they saw it as better, and that kinder, more enlightened view became the new norm.

In “The Better Angels of Our Nature,” Professor Steven Pinker discusses the decline in violence between humans over the course of human history. The fact that humanity is becoming more and more peaceful in our interactions with one another (and all the evidence proves that statement is true) means that we are that much closer to turning more of our attention to our treatment of animals. It’s a continuum.

In short, when it comes to our fellow humans, there is much to be optimistic about. Remember this: a couple of decades ago, there was not a single No Kill community. Today, hundreds of cities and towns save between 90% and 99% of the animals and the numbers continue to grow. That’s progress. And that is good news! A No Kill nation is within our reach and it is within our reach because of people; people who care very deeply: www.nathanwinograd.com/?p=10483
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https://www.facebook.com/nathanwinograd/posts/887166617974250:0
 
4 WAYS YOUR CAT COULD END UP HOMELESS

Too many cats end up in shelters each year. And when pets are lost, far fewer cats are ever returned to their people when compared to dogs (ASPCA). So how could any cat, even yours, end up in a shelter some day?

1) Cats Get Lost, Even Indoor-Only Cats
According to the National Council on Pet Population Study and Policy 1997 survey (NCPPSP), only 35% of cats that ended up in shelters were relinquished by owners. People sometimes assume that because their cat is indoors, kitty will never get out, therefore never get lost. Dr. Linda Lord at the Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine has studied the issue. She's demonstrated that indoor cats do get out. In one community she found that about 40 percent of lost cats were identified as indoor cats. (AVMA)
Once outdoors, most cats either hide or run for their lives. The lucky ones are obviously found, or the next best thing is that they find themselves at an animal shelter. Others may have a difficult time finding food, may need to deal with very cold or very hot weather, fend off savvier outdoor cats, or may lose their lives to coyotes, birds of prey or cars. Lord reported finding that nearly half of the lost cats she studied were never found and only 7% of cat parents who recovered their pet found him or her at the shelter.

2) Microchipping Can Help, But Only If The Chip Information Is Up-to-Date
One savior for pets is the microchip. Another study by Lord highlighted in Ohio State University's Research News, showed that shelters were able to locate owners for 72.7% of stray pets who were microchipped. [Editor's note: The same study found that microchipped cats who came into the shelter as strays were twenty times more likely to be reunited with their families than unchipped cats.) While microchip numbers for cats in recent years has skyrocketed, cats started from pretty much ground zero. So, despite the trend – most cats remain without a microchip. The Petfinder, the ASPCA and others now endorse that cats also wear a collar with an ID as a secondary form of identification, but that idea has yet to catch on with most cat parents. Remember: Having a microchip is a necessary start but means nothing unless there's up-to-date registration information in the microchip provider's database. Having a microchip without registration is like having a phone without a phone number. There's no way for anyone to find you.

3) What If Something Happens to You?
In recent years, the economy has been an increasingly common explanation for pets relinquished to shelters, though some communities are now experiencing a positive turn-around as the economy improves. Still, there are people who lose their jobs, and their homes and just can't afford to relocate with a pet. There are a handful of shelters and organized networks of foster homes that provide a temporary safety net. Still, these options aren't abundant, and if there's no family or friend to take over a pet's care, the shelter is the only hope. [Editor's note: According to the NCPPSP, 43% of cats were relinquished to shelters for reasons unrelated to the specific cat, such as moving, too many cats in the household and the owner having personal problems.] Sometimes issues are just unavoidable, such as when a pet's caretaker dies. Sadly arrangements aren't always handled in advance for the pet, and there's no willing or able family or friends to save the day. (Learn more about providing for your pet's future in case something happens to you.)

4) Breaking Down the Human-Pet Bond
Medical and behavioral problems can certainly affect your bond with your cat. The truth is that with appropriate medical care or a different family, for many cats, those behavioral issues won't re-occur. For example, a cat may urinate outside the litter box. Finally when diabetes is diagnosed and treated, the cat's aim reverts to 100 percent. Another example may be merely providing appropriate scratching posts located in the right places, cats may be far less likely to scratch in the wrong places. Or with two daily sessions with an interactive toy and another cat to chase, a cat deemed aggressive may suddenly become benevolent. The point is that with appropriate help, most behavior problems can be rectified before it comes to giving up the cat. What may be a real behavioral issue for one family may be no issue in another. Of course, when there's a medical explanation for "poor behavior" treatment is crucial.
The very bottom line is that when the bond is broken between family members and their pet – for whatever the reason - the animal is at risk. If you've noticed a change in your cat's behavior, contact your veterinarian. Behaviors don't 'just change' without an explanation. Help may be available through certified cat behavior consultants, www.iaabc.org or check out Petfinder's Cat Problems center to get tips and advice for resolving common cat issues before they hurt your bond.

(source: Pawnation.com; article first appeared on Petfinder.com.)
 
Re: to catlovers

On a tiny planet surrounded by the infinite emptiness of space, in a universe in which the anomaly of life renders every blade of grass, every insect that crawls and every animal on Earth an exquisite, wondrous rarity, let us commit ourselves to the goal of ensuring that every life that appears on this Earth is welcomed and respected as the glorious, cosmic miracle it actually is.
Happy holidays from the Winograds.
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It reminds me of Planet Earth.
 
Re: to catlovers

Senior cats are beautiful and can be great friends
 
Is No Kill Going Mainstream?
Over the last several years, and 2014 in particular, the animal sheltering industry has finally started to grow up. After decades of little more than calendars with pictures of cute puppies and kittens, vapid hand wringing about shelter killing but no serious solutions to bring that killing to an end besides increasingly sterile campaigns like Adopt a Cat Month and a Adopt a Dog Month, we are seeing paradigm shifting efforts like Home 4 the Holidays, Just One Day, and now the Million Cat Challenge. For those of us who have been in the No Kill trenches for many decades, enduring the relentless ridicule of the traditional sheltering establishment for championing alternatives to killing, such changes are more than welcome; they are, in fact, the realization of our greatest hopes. The changes we are now witnessing—in which a sheltering culture based on killing and stalwartly defending that killing are giving way to an embrace of lifesaving innovation and a greater respect for the lives of animals—are proof that No Kill is an idea whose time has come not just for the few, but the many. As I wrote nearly 10 years ago, “the more successful this effort is, the more No Kill will shift from being personality based (a result of the efforts of individual leaders) to becoming institutionalized.” That is what efforts like Home 4 the Holidays, Just One Day, and the Million Cat Challenge do. And that is why I hope to see more of them.
But as we celebrate the larger embrace of the No Kill philosophy and the sheltering methods that make lifesaving possible, it is important to recognize how it is the No Kill movement has achieved the massive paradigm shift that is beginning to take root. If past can be prologue, understanding the methods of our success is key to leveraging them for ever greater innovation and lifesaving in the future. My article, “Is No Kill Going Mainstream?” explores how it came to be that a once small, grassroots movement which dared to challenge the absurd but thoroughly entrenched notion within the animal protection movement that killing is kindness has grown in size and influence to the point that the long and deadly hegemony of shelter killing is finally on the run.
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To read the article: www.nathanwinograd.com/?p=14610
 
Poor cat she looks like an alien cat somewhere from space.
Eyeinfections can really be bad if it´s not treated, this time it´s gone to far for antibiotics to help.
[video=youtube_share;zFqiHqs-dWE]http://youtu.be/zFqiHqs-dWE[/video]

She was only a little kitten, too young to die.
Maybe she wouldn´t survive an operation where they remove her eyes but she deserved to get a chance
In next video the surgery is over at 0:30
[video=youtube_share;xoMGyL-65IU]http://youtu.be/xoMGyL-65IU[/video]

You can scroll down and see she now has become an american..living in Boston
Rania is a kitten from Turkey from the beginning.

http://blog.myletsadopt.com/2014/09/23/rania-has-lost-her-eyes-please-help-us-save-her-life/

Should a kitten from far away be sent to USA when there are so many cats who are killed in sheltere there?
Years ago I would have said no but now I´ve learned cats and kittens are killed in shelters although there are people there who want to rescue them-and have place and can care for the cats. There are shelters that don´t even try to adopt them out or try to find the owners.
 
Re: to catlovers

Cats rescued from the pot benefit from Animals Asia fund

After 19 cats were rescued from China's meat trade, a local animal welfare group has provided health care and successfully re-housed them thanks to Animals Asia support.

The 19 cats were confiscated by the Shijiazhuang authorities after being stolen by unscrupulous cat meat dealers.

Thankfully saved from the cooking pot, the felines were luckier still to receive care, vaccinations and housing from Yi Mi Ai Stray Cat Rescue.
Homes were eventually found for 11 of the cats, while eight were released back in to local communities.
For those released, their care continues with volunteers and local residents providing food and water while also monitoring their general health.
The Yi Mi Ai group's ability to care for the animals, provide vaccinations and source homes was a direct result of Animals Asia's TNR (trap, neuter, release) fund.
Suki Deng, Animals Asia China Cat and Dog Welfare Manager said:
"Trap, neuter, release is the humane, sustainable response to the issue of strays. Applied broadly it enhances the health of the cats, prevents disease and will help decrease the growth of animals and also their impact on urban environments. TNR continues to save animal lives in China and combat the issue of urban strays."

https://www.animalsasia.org/intl/me...t-are-beneficiaries-of-animals-asia-fund.html
 
Many pounds kill neonatal kittens despite foster parents willing to bottle feed them. They kill puppies despite rescue groups willing to save them. They kill rabbits without ever giving them a chance for adoption. And they kill community cats despite the cost-effectiveness of neutering.

Because too many pounds are not voluntarily implementing the programs and services that make No Kill possible, animals are being needlessly killed. To combat this, we need laws that mandate the programs and services of the No Kill Equation--programs which have proven so successful at lifesaving in shelters and communities which have implemented them:
http://bit.ly/JV5dor
Here are four model laws from the No Kill Advocacy Center and a guide on how to get them introduced and passed:

Animal Rescue Act: http://bit.ly/13jSZJY
California law makes it illegal for pounds to kill animals when non-profit rescue groups are willing to save them. Before the California law went into effect, only 12,526 animals were being transferred from these "shelters" to rescue groups statewide in a given year. The rest were being killed at largely public expense. That number now stands at 58,939—a 370% increase in annual lifesaving, all at no cost to taxpayers. In fact, it saves taxpayers almost $2,000,000 a year in costs related to killing.

Companion Animal Protection Act: http://bit.ly/1d8YwMC
CAPA bans cruel methods of killing, ends the practice of convenience killing (killing when there are empty cages), ends the practice of retribution killing (killing when rescue groups are willing to save them), ends the practice of allowing animals to languish without care, and ends the practice of killing healthy "owner surrendered" animals within minutes of arrival.

Gas Chamber Ban: http://bit.ly/12y3YEw
Webster’s dictionary defines euthanasia as “the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy.” Unfortunately, in many animal "shelters" across the nation, animals are not being killed because they are hopelessly sick or injured, but rather out of convenience, as “population control.” In fact, millions of healthy and treatable animals needlessly lose their lives in our nation’s pounds every year, and for many of them, their lives are taken not in a “relatively painless” way, but in one of the most prolonged and excruciating ways possible: the gas chamber.

Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act: http://bit.ly/19kZ7sK
Today, there is currently no means of ensuring that animals are not placed into the hands of convicted animal abusers. An “Animal Abuser Registry” modeled on those laws which currently exist to protect children, would require people convicted of these types of crimes to register with the state. The registry would then be available to shelters, rescue groups, pet stores, breeders, and the public. Abusers would not be permitted to have animals and it would be illegal to give or sell an animal to them. By knowing the right lies to tell and which truths to omit, convicted animal abusers can potentially acquire animals from those who lack access to valuable information that would help them make better, more informed choices. This law would strip abusers of this advantage with nothing more than a few strokes of a keyboard.

Here's a step by step guide to passing legislation: http://bit.ly/1ezUM3K


https://www.facebook.com/nathanwinograd
 
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