Bodhi Adopted! Three New Arrivals!

Bodhi went home on Saturday.  He will be the only pet living with two young men.  They are both firemen!  Bodhi is a first responder cat!!  

Three cats arrived at the store today.  They are Gino and pseudo-siblings Flip Flop and Salsa.  

Gino is a total love bug and will be all over you!!  He came into the Shelter in September of last year with a ruptured eye.  The eye was subsequently removed.  He does not even notice!  He walks right out of the kennel and into your lap and onto your shoulder!  He is about one year old.

Gino

Flip Flop and Salsa came into the Shelter last year two weeks apart (late May and early June) and from two different towns.  As often happens they were put in a cage together to keep one another company.  They are now fast friends and act like siblings!  They were born outside and then came to the Shelter so neither have ever lived in a home.  At the shelter they were permitted to get exercise time and ran around the room loving the freedom.  Although they may start out shy they will come around! Flip Flop is a boy and Salsa is a girl.

Flip Flop

Salsa

Help is needed for the mornings on the following days this week: Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday (April 1, 2, 3 and 5).  Please let me know if you can cover any of those dates.  In addition look ahead to the rest of the month and let me know if you can cover any of the days!

Here comes the Easter Bunny!!

Happy Tails, Virgo!! Hope for Venus!

Virgo left the store yesterday and will be living with a fourteen year old cat named Frank.  They have had multiple cats in their home in the past and hopefully will be adopting Venus as well.

Venus was brought to the Shelter yesterday with an injured paw.  It is not known exactly what happened however she has a significant slice in the pad of one of her feet.  Dallas, Driscoll, Venus and Virgo were out at the same time yesterday while the volunteer was cleaning.  A fight broke out between the cats.  Somehow Venus was injured.  She subsequently ran up the front of the cages and hid in the rear of one of the top shelves.  Initially we thought she hurt herself on a piece of metal running up the cages.  However there was blood on the floor and the front of the cages indicating she was hurt before she ran up.  She will be fine however needs cage rest for now.

We are processing a good application for Dallas and Driscoll.  Hopefully I will have good news for them in a day or two.

Please be very careful when letting the cats out to exercise and socialize.  We caution adopters not to allow new cats to immediately socialize with their resident cat when they go home.   The same applies to Petsmart.  If cats are caged together and interacting together than allow them to have exercise time together outside of the cage.  If they are not caged together please use caution when putting them together.    It is a confined space and cats cornered will feel stressed and that will lead to fights.  Also, once a cat is upset you have a good chance of being bitten or scratched trying to return the cat to a cage.  Some volunteers note: ..."everyone got out to play..."  This does not necessarily mean they were all out together.  Please err on the side of caution and have separate play and exercise time and allow the cats freedom in small groups.

Gentle reminder....  Refill the water, litter and food for the next volunteer if it is needed.

The schedule is complete for the rest of this month.  Thank you all for everything!

You all did a wonderful job holding down the fort while I was gone!  I was so happy to see that Oscar and Serena left together.  They will be the only pets in their new home.  They gained a young mom and dad along with two human siblings - an eight year old and a six year old.  Also, Miss Piggy and Fozzie left together as well.  That is awesome! They are joining a twelve year old terrier mix, mom and dad and two kids, ages thirteen and three.  

Three new cats were brought to the store while I was gone so most of you probably already know them.  Venus and Virgo - sister and brother duo - are litter mates that came into the Shelter in May of last year at about six weeks old.  They were born to a feral mom at a location where the feeder sporadically cooperates with trapping.  Sadly we never seem to get every cat fixed there. They were in a foster home with kids this summer.  Virgo is the outgoing of the two.  The foster mom said Venus would shyly watch Virgo playing with the humans.  It was like she wanted so badly to play but was too shy and timid.  These two are bonded and need to go home together! One adoption fee covers both of them.

Venus

 

Virgo

Bodhi came from the same home as Venus and Vogel but is not their sibling.  He is a friendly little guy!  He may be shy at first but he'll come around.

Bodhi

I would like to welcome a new volunteer, Hillary, to our ranks!  Hillary started by doing evenings last weekend.  Welcome, Hillary!!   We love new volunteers!

Please take a look at the schedule and let me know if you are available to cover any of the remaining days in March.

We made it through the winter!! Happy Spring!! Yay!! 

Meet Jingle and Sugar Plum!  As their names imply - they came into the Shelter in December of last year.  They were born outside and fortunately were brought to us at about 4 to 5 months old.  They are not littermates.  They came from the same address as Peppermint and Patti.  Hopefully the situation there has now been resolved.  They do not need to go together. Jingle has a round face.  Sugar Plum has more angular features.

Jingle

Sugar Plum

We have a good application for Serene and Oscar and will be scheduling a time for the family to meet them.  If all goes well more cats will be brought to the store by the end of the week.

Miss Piggy, Fozzie, Patty and Peppermint were brought to the store last week.  Sadly Peppermint somehow injured one of his rear legs.  He was brought back to the Shelter for observation and cage rest.  We thought he would find comfort staying with his sister so brought them both back to the shelter. He is doing better but the issue has not resolved.

Fozzie and Miss Piggy look like they could be siblings but they are not.  They came into the Shelter in mid-November.  They came in about the same time and at the same age.  Being short on cages they were put together and became fast friends!

  

We were told that Dallas and Driscoll are making a mess of the big cage!  On Saturday we will have a staff member bring a bigger litter box and hopefully that rectifies the problem.

Toni picked up another roll of brown paper to cut so we are doing well in that department!  Thank you, Toni!

Please take a look at the schedule and let me know if you can cover any of the open dates.

The Calm AFTER the Storm!

Now to catch up after Winter Storm Kenan!  PetSmart had notified us requesting the cats be brought to the Shelter prior to the storm last week.  So Driscoll and Dallas, Serena and Oscar came back.  They were brought to the store on Wednesday along with five others - two sets of litter mates and one single polydactyl.

The poly's name is Dominick and he already may have an approved application!  The applicant is meeting him this afternoon. We will see how that goes!  The applicant is meeting other cats as well. 

Rolls and Royce are six month old brothers.  They are wonderful!  And they are going to be BIG boys!! They came into the Shelter at the end of January.  Rolls is a silver tabby and Royce is solid gray.  We definitely prefer that they be adopted together.  They will do fine in a home with cats, kids and dogs.

Rolls

Royce

Yoshi and Mario are another set of brothers that will make wonderful pets!!  They came into the Shelter the first week of November last year at about 8 weeks.  They are accustomed to people as they have been interacting with the staff since they were babies!  This is another pair we would like to see go together.

Mario

Yoshi

Toni is back from her hiatus which included a trip across the country to California to visit family.   The Thursday morning regular spot is covered again. Yay!  In addition - Toni will be cutting the rolls of brown paper.  Welcome back, Toni!  We missed you!

Please take a look at the February schedule and let me know if you are available to cover any of the open dates.  All open dates are in the evening and are Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays - with the exception of one - the evening of Thursday, February 17.

Winding Down One Year and Starting a New One!

Happy New Year, All!   The end of 2021 was good for our PetSmart cats! Lots of litter mates went home together.  At the end of November Mufasa, Sarabi and Kiara went home together.  In December Tater Tot and Russett went home together,  Rogue, Phoenix and Mystique left together and Finn and Haddie left together.  That's a lot of litters staying a family!

Oreo and Chess left today and are joining an older Chihuahua and younger cat, mom and day and a nine year old child.  It is so nice when bonded litter mates go together. 

Four cats arrived today at PetSmart - two sets of litter mates.  They are Oscar and Serena, and Driscoll and Dallas.  Let's hope the trend continues and they get to go home together.  Please let potential adopters know that the fee is waived for the second cat when you adopt litter mates.

Driscoll and Dallas arrived at the Shelter in mid-June last summer. At that time we estimated their age to be eight weeks.  They were scared little boys however have come around.  They have been living in a cage for the last six months so remember that is their "safe" space.  They do not like to be picked up and will struggle and be wiggle worms if you try.  They love wet food!!  Whoever adopts them will quickly win them over with it!  (In the picture below Dallas is the kitten on top and Driscoll is in the litter box.)

Oscar and Serena are brother and sister and came into the Shelter in June of last summer as well at about eight weeks old.  They are left from an initial litter of five.  The person who found them fostered all five so they are sweet and social!  You can tell them apart by their eyes.  Serena has yellow eyes and Oscar has copper colored eyes.  

Serena & Oscar

The calendar for 2022 has been completed.  Take a look at it and let me know if I made any mistakes on your dates.  Please let me know if you are available to cover any of the open dates. We continue to have difficulty getting the evening cleanings covered on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. 

Thank you all very much for your help throughout 2021.  Petsmart is so important to the Shelter!  The Shelter needs to place nine cats for every dog.  It is a challenge and every year we meet that challenge because all of you help us by volunteering at the adoption center.   Here's to a good year!!

Aleathea left the store last Friday.  She will be the only pet living with a young couple.  They are very excited to have an addition to their little family!

Ebbitt left today and will be living with a single woman.  He will be getting a lot of attention!!

Below are three littermates that arrived at the store today: Rogue, Mystique and Phoenix. They are adorable!!  They came into the Shelter in early August at about four weeks old.  Momma was feral.  She was spayed and vaccinated and is living back in the neighborhood. These three were in foster care for several weeks with a dog and an adult cat.  They will acclimate to any household!

Phoenix

Rogue

Mystique

And here is three siblings from the Potato Litter -  Tater Tot, Yukon, and Russet!  They are from a litter of nine that came into the Shelter in early June of this year. They are about five months old and are friendly cats!  All three were in foster for a time with staff members.  Tater Tot was in one home and Yukon and Russet were in another. Tater Tot has some minor vision problems.  He will do fine with cats and small dogs.  He may get a little nervous around small children reaching for him that he can not not see coming.  Yukon and Russet will do fine with cats kids and dogs! 

Russett

Yukon

PetSmart store associates will be taking care of the cats Thanksgiving day so the volunteers get a day off!

Staff at the Shelter cut a lot of sheets of brown paper and dropped it off at the store.  Let me now when the supply starts to run low.

Please take a look at the schedule and let me know if you can cover any of the available time slots.    We regularly are in need of volunteers to do the evening cleanings on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  During the holidays and over the winter some of our regulars are away so check for the additional schedule vacancies.

Lefty and Lance Find A Home!!

Lefty and Lance left Petsmart last weekend!  They were adopted by a young couple who have three other cats.  The adopters have been watching Lance and Left for a long time patiently waiting for a home.  They could not watch any longer!!  

Two cats arrived at the store - Aleathea and Ebbit.  They are brother and sister.  They are about four months old.  They were born to a feral mom and fortunately arrived at the shelter at four weeks old.  It would be very nice to see them go home together!  Look how cute they are!

Please take a look at the November schedule and let me know if you are available to cover any of the open dates.  We continue to need help on Friday, Saturday and Sunday for the evening cleanings. 

Goodbye, Climby and Furry!! Be good!!

Climby and Furry left Petsmart on Tuesday to begin what will surely be a nice life!  These two were in foster care with Barb A for quite a few weeks.  A couple and their nineteen year old grandson had been contemplating adopting a cat for a couple of years.  Once they saw Climby and Furry their minds were made up - it was time and they wanted two! Knowing Barb was attached to these kittens I asked if she was available to send them home.  I am so glad I did!  When Barb arrived she realized she knew the adopter and is thrilled with this home!  

Two new cats arrived at the store today (Friday) - Snowball and Penny.  We would like them to go home together.

Snowball and Penny need a true to life forever home!!  They were originally surrendered to the Shelter in May of 2020 as kittens.  Here is their story... One day they showed up at someone's house and were taken care of for a short time. The couple had grandchildren who are allergic to cats and could not keep them.   Seven days after arriving at the Shelter they were adopted together.  Now - here we are a little over a year later - and the adopters show up at the Shelter one day with Penny and Snowball announcing they are moving and can not take them.  No heads up and no appointment. 😠 In addition they left behind with us a third cat not adopted from us who is having trouble acclimating to his new situation. 😢  Penny and Snowball lived with small children - ages 6 and 8. They are wonderful cats!  Friendly and nice and they have been together since birth. 

Snowball (rear) & Penny (front)

Help is needed this month for the below dates.  Let me know if you are available to cover any of them.

Saturdays  AM: Oct 9, 16, 30

Saturdays  PM:  Oct 2, 9, 16, 23, 30

 

Sundays    PM:  Oct 3, 10, 17, 24, 31 

Monday    PM:  Oct 4

 

Fridays     AM:  Oct 30

Fridays     PM:   Oct  8, 15, 22, 29

 

 I am hoping Lowe's had finally received a shipment of brown paper!

Latest Adoptions and Arrivals

Pinky left yesterday to a very excited family!! She is joining a human couple, a ten year old Chihuahua named Talullah and a teenage cat named Roxy.   Mimosa left last Saturday and will be the only pet and a wonderful companion for an older single man.  

Lefty and Lance are back at the store.  Toni attempted to introduce them to a young family but they were not a good fit.  These boys are going to need a kind heart and a quiet home.  Their time will come.

Climby and and Furry are friendly siblings who are going to make someone very happy!  They are now approximately four months old.  This brother and sister came into the Shelter in late June as tiny kittens - maybe three weeks old.  They have been in a foster home with one of our Petsmart volunteers - Barb A - and are totally socialized!  These feisty kittens will acclimate to a home with cats, kids and dogs.  Ideally they get adopted together! 

Furry

Climby

And then there is the Lion King trio - Kiara, Mufasa and Sarabi.  This litter came in at seven weeks old in early June. They are about five months old now.  There was a fourth sibling but he was adopted.  They were born outside and had a rough start.  Mufasa has scar tissue over both eyes but is otherwise a healthy little boy.  Kiara has scar tissue over one eye and and over part of the other eye.  She, too, is otherwise healthy.  All three have been living in a cage since June 10.  They are happy and friendly and will acclimate to any household. 

Mufasa

 

Kiara

Sarabi

You guys are going to have your hands full with all these youngsters!

Help is needed for the rest of September for the evening cleanings on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Please look at the schedule and let me know if you can cover of them.  Otherwise the next time we need help in the morning is Friday, October 1.

I have not forgotten about the brown paper.  Hopefully Lowe's gets restocked soon.

All New Arrivals!!

Four cats arrived at the store on Friday.  (And, do not worry about Lance and Lefty.  They are fine here at the Shelter!) 

We went to purchase rolls of brown paper at Lowe's last week and they only had one left.  We grabbed it and Toni will be cutting it for the cages.  We need to get more rolls as soon as the supply is replenished at Lowe's. (Thank you, Toni!)

Pinky came into the Shelter just last week.  She was reported to be a stray - however she was spayed when she came in so someone took care of her at some point.   She is a nice cat that someone obviously abandoned.  Pinky is about nine years old and qualifies for our Senior For Senior Program.

Litter mates Dove and Goose came into the Shelter in early June at about eight weeks old.  It would be great to see them get adopted together.  They came in with other litter mates after being born outside.  Of the two sister Dove is the shy one and brother Goose is the outgoing one.  They are adorable!  Should someone adopt them both the fee for one is waived.

Darling Dove

Goofy Goose

Mimosa came into the Shelter from a local campground in late August.  She had given birth to three kittens.  Barely a kitten herself, she is about a year and half old.  She was living outside and being fed by a kind caretaker so has had some interaction with people.  She is a little nervous but warms up if you are patient with her.

Mimosa

As you can see we have many black and white cats and kittens! We are planning to bring a couple more cats to the store before the weekend.  

Below are the September dates that need coverage.  If you are available to cover any of the dates please let me know:

Friday     AM Cleaning:  September 3

Friday     PM Cleaning:   September 3, 10, 17, 24

Saturday PM Cleaning:   September 4, 11, 18, 25

Sunday   PM Cleaning:   September 5, 12, 19, 26

Adoptions & Arrivals

I will be doing some back tracking here!  Pokey went home on July 31 and will be living in an adult only household with another cat that is three years old named Ace.  Ace was adopted from us in May of 2020.  We knew him as Simba!

Phoebe left on Saturday, August 7 and gained a really nice family!  She will live with a King Charles Cavalier, a 21 year old Calico (that is not a typo - the cat is indeed 21 years old!), mom and dad, and two kids.  She will have a wonderful life!

Velma left on Saturday, August 7 as well.  She will be a companion for an eight year old girl.  Let's hope the two have a long life together!

Two new guys arrived last week...Saturn and Sparkler. These four month old cuties are not litter mates and do not need to go together.  If they do, though, then wonderful!  Each of them are the last remaining kitten of their respective litters.  To save cage space at the Shelter we put them together. Saturn is a male and Sparkler is a female.

Saturn

Sparkler

We have a good application for Shaggy and Daphne and are waiting to hear back so we can make an appointment for them to meet.

Help is needed for the below dates and times for the remainder of August.

Fridays (Aug 13, 20, 27) PM Cleanings

Saturdays (Aug 14, 21, 28) PM Cleanings

Sundays (Aug 15, 22, 29)

Tuesdays (Aug 17, 24, 31)

Toni is cutting the last of the roll of paper.  We will try to get additional rolls at the store over the weekend.

Thank you all for your help!! Stay well!

Two Out - Three In!

Two of our cats left yesterday!  Patriot went to an active household.  He is gaining three canine siblings, two feline siblings, mom and dad, two adult human siblings and one pre-teen sibling. Wow! A lot going on in that house - but he is up to the task! Chandler went to a quieter home and is joining one cat, mom and dad and a seven year old girl.  He is going to have a nice life!

Three new guys arrived today.  Shaggy, Velma and Daphne are all litter mates.  They came into the Shelter in mid-May at about three to four weeks old.  After intake they went into a foster home for six weeks.  They are nice kittens and will make very nice pets!  They came from an area where we have been facilitating TNR for years.  However sadly the caretakers never seem to get that last cat.

 

Please take a look at the schedule and let me know if there is any dates you can cover.

The below picture will help you stay cool!

Three New Arrivals!

Three cats arrived at the store on Friday - Phoebe, Chandler and Patriot. Phoebe and Chandler came into the Shelter in early June.  They are littermates and are instant pets!  Both are good with kids, cats and dogs. 

Chandler

Phoebe

Patriot is a handsome boy that was left behind when his owner moved.  He really wanted to be a part of the family next door and would not leave their property.  Unfortunately they have a dog that is not cat friendly and they were very concerned that Patriot would get hurt.  Patriot likes to play and can be a handful!

Patriot

Please take a look at the schedule and let me know what days you can cover.  

Finally Cats Arrive!

I know many of you were worried about Erma.  She was in our isolation room for about two weeks where she was treated for an an abscess that had developed on her face. At the time she had a good application and we were worried it would fall through.  The applicant came from Philadelphia to the shelter to met Erma and loved her!  She came back several days later and took her home.  She now lives with two young adults and a one year old cat named Wilma May.  It is so very heartwarming when a senior cat like Erma gets adopted!

The two brothers, Lefty and Lance, are still at the store.  We have had a couple of inquiries about them however no suitable applications.

I know everyone likes seeing more cats brought to the store and it seems odd when we have so many at the Shelter yet so few at the store.  That is because we take care to make sure the cats that go to the store are resilient, can quickly adapt to the change in environment and can handle seeing so many different people  coming in to care for them.  It is very stressful for a cat to handle the amount of activity that takes place at Petsmart - people knocking on the window, dogs encouraged to jump up, kids peering in and no place to hide, different volunteers coming in twice a day, etc. We worry every time we send a crew down!

So...meet the four that were brought to the store yesterday - Willy, Baby, Pokey and Luna.  Just a gentle reminder...they settle in at their own pace.  Read their behavior and give them space if they ask!

One eyed Willy is seven months old and is a wonderful boy! Fortunately a kind woman who does Trap-Neuter-Return saw him and knew he needed help.  He was suffering from a severe case of glaucoma and an eye needed to be removed.  He came in on April 13 of this year and had surgery at South Paw Animal Hospital a few weeks later.  The surgery went well and he is ready to lead a full life in a loving home!

Pokey is a social two year old tabby cat that was surrendered because his owner was moving and could not bring him.  The owner had Pokey since he was a kitten so he is accustomed to the life of a domestic cat.  The owner reports he is good with cats, kids and dogs.  Let's get Pokey into a home again!

Pokey

Baby shares Pokey's story - one we hear too often.  She was surrendered because her owner moved and could not take her.  She is seven years old and is, as the name suggests, a baby! She is needy and loves being fussed over! She will make a great companion!

Baby

Luna is about six years old and needs a break!  She was left behind by her owner in February of this year.  A neighbor was keeping an eye on her and twice thought that a dog in the neighborhood had hurt her. The first time they saw she was wounded they took her to the vet.  The second time they called animal control.  They could not take her in however were not going to stand by and see her hurt again. It is time Luna's luck changed! 

Luna

We have many kittens coming into the Shelter!  Do not be surprised when they start to arrive at the store.  Please encourage anyone you encounter with unfixed cats to contact the Shelter and we will work with them to get the cats spayed or neutered at no charge to them. Cat clinics are still being held every Thursday next door to the Shelter under the auspices of Animal Outreach of Cape May County.  At this time their website has not been updated to allow for on line appointments or to obtain information. For now tell people to call the Shelter and we will facilitate the process for them.

Please take a look at the calendar and let me know if you are available to cover any of the open time slots. Our Tuesday morning cleaner started a new job so that time slot is no longer covered by a regular.  If you are interested in picking it up let me know.  Otherwise during the week is usually covered unless I send out an email.  Help is regularly needed for Friday, Saturday and Sunday PM cleanings.

Thanks for your help!  You will love the new arrivals!