October 16 is National Feral Cat Day

Hello again from the Cats of Cal U. In case you didn't know, October 16 is National Feral Cat Day! Ferals like us across the country will be getting a lot of attention and love. That makes us very happy.

We are doing well, but we still miss our dear friend Ed (see previous post). Somebody put up this sign in our bus stop:



Here at Cal U, our human friends are planning a Trap-Neuter-Release event close to October 16 (depending on clinic availability). It looks like it will be during the following week. There are at least five of us here who have not been spayed or neutered yet, and we need to take care of them soon so we can all be healthy and not have dozens of kittens running around next spring. A successful TNR operation helps to stabilize the size of the colony and eventually reduce the number of community cats. We are trapped and transported to the clinic, kept in a safe, warm place overnight, and then returned to the colony the next day as good as new.



Our friends could use some help with this. They need one or two people to help with trapping in the evening. Also, funds are needed for our surgeries. You can sponsor a cat for a mere $30, which includes the surgery, rabies vaccination, and ear tipping. (Ear tipping is the universal sign that tells people this cat has already been neutered. The vet snips just the very tip of the left ear while we're under anesthesia.) Of course, donations of any amount are welcome.



A GoFundMe account has been set up for us. The donations will be used for our surgeries, as well as our ongoing care and feeding. It can be found here (or you can search for "Cats of Cal U" on the GoFundMe website). If you can lend a trap or help with trapping, please email pammy.murphy@gmail.com.

For more information on feral cats and what you can do for the cats in your neighborhood, go to www.alleycat.org.

Here are some more pictures:

This is one of our cozy shelters. Soon it will be getting cold,
so we're glad we have these warm little houses to snuggle
up with each other in.

We're waiting for that nice lady to feed us, but we're not getting too close.

Okay, go away now so I can eat!

Did I hear a food bag?

NOM NOM NOM

A Sad Farewell to A Wonderful Caregiver

 

We are the Cats of Cal U. 

On Sunday morning, April 17, 2016, our lives were changed forever. Our main caregiver, a man who has been feeding us for years, has built us shelters, has trapped us and transported us to the vet for spay/neuter surgery and then brought us back, has raised our kittens on his back porch and socialized them so they could be adopted out to loving homes, our friend and champion, died in a house fire when he went back in to save his own three cats. He got his girlfriend out safely, but could not leave his babies behind. His name was Ed Marks, and he died as he lived—as a hero for cats.












We are left to wonder why his truck is not pulling up in the morning, and the gentle soul with the gray ponytail is not getting out to bring our food and talk to us. We wait for him every day and come running at the sound of his truck. We don’t understand why he left us.















We live along a beautiful river bank on a university campus, and our colony is the result of students who went home for the summer and left their pets behind to fend for themselves. Ed, with the help of several of his co-workers, took it upon himself to care for us. These people give of their own time and money to keep us healthy and warm. Ed bucked the administration and stood up for our rights, and for this we love him. What was once an uncontrolled colony is now a sustainable colony of about 40 cats. Most of us are spayed or neutered. A couple do slip through every year, and they are caught in the following summer's trapping. 

  

This year, the trapping will take place without Ed. His friends in the community have rallied around to make sure we get fed and vetted. We have seen many of the ladies crying, and we feel sad for them. We wish we could tell them we will be okay, but the truth is, we will miss Ed as much as they do. Someday we will see him and his three kitties at the Rainbow Bridge. But until then, rest easy, gentle friend. You were a prince among men.

The Cats of Cal U need people to carry on Ed's work. We need volunteers for feeding, trapping and transporting, and we need food. If you would like to help the Cats of Cal U, please visit our GoFundMe page at https://www.gofundme.com/2su9u24.

For more information on feral cat colonies and how you can help them, go to www.alleycatallies.org.