The importance of one little letter and four numbers

To all of the supporters, volunteers and adopters of Catkins Animal Rescue, I am proud to report that today we received our official 501(c)3 status!!!  This means that all donations made to the rescue are tax deductible!  Of course, there is still A LOT of work ahead of us (zoning for the kennels and the cattery, licensing for the dogs and registering with the state), but Catkins is more determined than ever to serve the homeless and needy animals of the northwoods!  This is an incredible day for us and all of the animals and volunteers are celebrating!!

With this good news and some special donations, we are now able to take in three "junk yard" dogs that are living chained in feces and standing water.  The dogs, Calvin, Klein and Bono should be appearing on our website shortly.  We are also excited to begin working with several other local shelters and some new out of state rescues!  Every animal that is safe is a success story and the more people we can work with the more animals we can save!!!

PS. The above picture was Calvin's home before Catkins was called for help.

A special Thank You!!

Things have been VERY busy here this month in both good and bad ways.  We've had wonderful adoptions, a fabulous spay day and as "director" I've made some wonderful connections in the rescue world that have been able to help animals that Catkins doesn't have room for.  At the same time Catkins has seen a lot of human callousness this month and sometimes the frustration feels overwhelming.

What keeps me and my volunteers going?  

You guys and your adoptees!  On one of the roughest days of the month I got a notice in my mailbox that there was a package too large to deliver.  I went and picked it up to discover a wonderful lady with a heart of gold sent the doggies several months worth of treats and dental chew bones.   Deb was helping to care for some stray kittens and asked Catkins to help find them loving home when she had move all the way to Georgia.   Even half a country away, she is still thinking of us and our animals waiting for homes.  

Jasper and Liz's card was another perfectly timed piece of mail that both the volunteers and I needed after a heartbreaking day.  Remembering how much fun (and trouble!) those kittens were and how happy they are now, helps us continue what we do.   Additionally, we can't thank Liz enough for all of the awareness she has spread about appropriate animal care to her students!

The pictures and stories we see here remind us that no matter how frustrating a situation may be- the light at the end of the tunnel is the wonderful homes you guys provide for these critters.

So thanks to all of you for keeping me and my volunteers going!  

Congratulations!!! March Adoptions!

What a great month for adoptions!!  We had three of our longer term residents home this month!

A special congratulations to Breeze, a wonderful bluetick coonhound who waited nearly six months for the perfect home- and she found it!!

Also a special congratulations to Phoebe, a brown tabby kitty who waited six months at a local shelter before running out of time there and coming  to us and waiting for another six month before finding a fabulous new mom!

AND a special congratulations to Nora, a russian blue kitty who was lucky enough to find a fabulous new dad after waiting with us for almost an entire year.

Of course, as happy as I am to report that each of those three pets got wonderful new homes, I am equally happy to congratulate:

Gabana (Border Collie/Black Lab)

Vera (Border Collie/Black Lab)

Jasmine (DSH Tortie)

I wish all of these great pets and their new families lots of the very best!!

Happy Birthday, Jasper!

Today is a special day. It is Jasper's birthday. If you haven't read all the posts I've put up about him, you need to know he's a very special boy. He's sitting right here as I'm writing this, making sure I get it right! I adopted Jasper from Catkins almost a year ago. His mother, Hera, was alone and was about to be shot when Laura rescued her. I'm so grateful to Laura for taking such good care of Jasper (Cumquat) until I could bring him home. It is also Grizzly's birthday (Jasper's sister). Happy Birthday, Grizzly!

In the news!!

Check out the article written about the successful Spay Day that Northland Veterinary Services put on for Ashland/ Bayfield Animal Control, the Chequamegon Humane Association and Catkins!!

Spay and Neuter Day Rescues Animal Shelters

March Madness!!

March has been a crazy rescue month so far- and we're not even halfway through!!  We had a very exciting Spay Day on March 8th: 13 of our kitties were fixed and all 4 of our puppies were too! It was also a very exciting day for two special kitties: Jasmine and Cooler Ranch.  Jasmine was spayed and once she was fixed, her charming personality won her the heart of one of the vet techs at Northland Veterinary Services!  We were so excited to see Jasmine go phenomenal home- but no sooner was she headed to the home of her dreams then we had a new kitty in need of our help! 

The Northland Veterinary Services in Iron River was kind enough to spay a feral female kitty so that she could go back to living outside but not contribute to the cat population.  They were in the process of shaving her belly when they found the head of a .22 bullet under the tissue of her abdomen.  The bullet was safely removed prior to Cooler Ranch's spay surgery- we all considered it a miracle that the shot hadn't caused injury to any internal organs!  Prior to surgery a close check over revealed that Cooler Ranch had wounds all over her body from what appeared to be barbed wire, so after surgery the wounds were cleaned and the hair around them shaved.  Now Cooler Ranch is spending her recovery time with us and we are working to see if she can ever be an inside cat.  If she truly is feral, then she will be released with a family that cares for several outside cats.

Versace, the border collie that had been hit by a car, also had a big week!  This Monday it was time for his X-rays!  It was the moment of truth when we walked into the vet's office.  After Versace charmed the pants off of everyone he met, it was off to get his radiographs.  To get clear radiographs, Versace had to go under anesthesia and we had to leave him with the vet to sleep it off.  We were greeted by an ecstatic staff when we got back!  Versace's leg looks great!!  So he is now ready for adoption and a new home- but as his foster mom, I have to admit that I'm not ready to let him go!!

We have also had a few other dogs pass through our doors- and our cars recently.  Being on of the very few rescues in the area, we've recently begun taking in animals on a temporary basis for other rescues and foster organizations.  We were proud to assist an American Staffordshire Terrier get out of a tricky situation that would have had him euthanized in under a week- within 24 hrs we had him in a wonderful foster/adoptive home and we were blessed enough to have several larger state organizations and national organizations offer their assistance in placement!  It involved a full day of driving, and luckily our four legged passenger was a very good sport, and seeing him in a safe and loving home may the adventure more than worthwhile. 

We also have assisted an elderly lady with her beloved Doberman, Andy, and we are very excited that after spending a few days with us he will be under the experienced care of Wisconsin Doberman Rescue.  

 A year ago today I lost my beloved cat, Harold.  He was 21 years old and he was the reason I first got involved in rescue.  After I lost him, I wasn't sure that I was going to be able to continue in animal rescue.  Just looking at the past couple of weeks and everything that Catkins has accomplished, I think that Harold would approve- and maybe even be mildly impressed.   So far March has brought a lot of changes!  We've had some great adoptions, been able to work with some wonderful rescues and had a hugely successful spay day!!  I am very excited to see what the rest of March has in store for us!

Congratulations!!! February Adoptions!

I would like to congratulate these cats and dogs and their new families!

King (above) (Chihuahua/Terrier)

Kong (Chihuahua/Terrier)

Secret (DMH black and White)

Shadow (DSH black)

Snowball (DSH Grey)

Bear (DSH Black)

Aurora (DSH Dilute Tortie)