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Feline Friends of Destin>
Santa Paws is coming to town... 2007
December 15, 2007
Feral Cat Facts
An estimated 60 million feral cats live in the USA The
mortality rate among kittens can reach 50% as the sick
and weak perish.Most ferals are born, suffer and die
without anyone ever knowing of their existence.Working
together allows us to save more lives.
A day in the life ofa feral cat...
Many of us have encountered stray cats slinking through our
back yards, roaming the parking lots outside our work, or
hanging out near the dumpsters by our apartment buildings.
Some of us have found our garages or bushes being used as
nurseries by mother cats and their new kittens. We may try
to help these feline visitors by putting out food, or
trying to catch them and keep them as pets. But some of
these cats are feral cats; they run from any attempt at
petting them, and hiss and scratch if we try to grab them.
If we continue to take care of female cats or kittens for
more than three or four months without intervention, we
will find ourselves with a pregnant cat ready to deposit
more unwanted, human-shy kittens in our vicinity.
The new standard for controlling feral cat populations is
commonly referred to as trap, neuter, return or simply TNR.
The method is just what it sounds like. Rather than
trapping and killing ferals, the cats are sterilized and
returned to their area. This immediately begins the process
of reducing the population. The spayed or neutered cat will
no longer add to the population by producing kittens, but
will defend its territory. Rather than creating an opening
for another fertile cat, the infertile cat discourages
other cats from moving in, and discourages reproduction. As
all the cats in one area are caught and sterilized, the
population ceases to grow.
Feline Friends of Destin is a special group of unpaid
volunteers, that work together to help local feral cats by
providing TNR which includes veterinarian care, food and
water, fielding emergencies and of course raising the funds
to provide these services. Every cat is evaluated, spayed
or neutered, vaccinated and then returned to a feeding
station where he or she will be monitored for the rest of
his or her life.Please help us by helping them this year by
making a tax deductible contribution to
Feline Friends of Destin.PO BOX 822 DESTIN,FL 32540) to
assist us with the costs associated with TNR. Your gift is
greatly appreciated and from all of us, Happy Holidays!
Special Needs Kitties need to be adopted too!
Max and Baby Doll
Max, an orange male tabby is “Mr. Mom” to one of our
rescued calico kittens. This kitten, found under the Back
Porch restaurant and due to a birth defect that affected
her mobility, she was unable to seek food or water and was
very close to death. Scooped up by one of our volunteers,
the kitten was given immediate vet care and with the extra
attention from Max, she is now doing well. We are looking
for a special forever home for “Max” & “Baby Doll” where
they can stay together. If you can help, please call Linda
@850-424-3284 or 850-217-4736.
Humphery Black longhair neutered male
In the summer of 2007 an elderly woman went out to her
front porch to see what was making a yowling noise outside
the house. She found a longhaired black cat skinny and
hungry
on the front steps. She brought him indoors but her cat
was indignant and chased him relentlessly. The woman took
him to The Cat Clinic of Destin and said she would take him
back but only as an outdoors cat.Cherie felt he deserved a
chance and was too nice a cat to be outdoors so called
Lenny and I to ask if we would foster him until a home
could be found.He was named Humphrey and came extremely
stressed out.He did not want to be touched or loved, posing
to scratch or bite anyone attempting such a thing. After
three months of consistent love and care Humphrey has
become one of the most endearing, well adjusted and
beautiful cats we’ve ever
known. All Humphrey needs now is a rhinestone collar and a
permanent forever home.To adopt him call Maryetta at
850-837-6991.
Why We Love to Volunteer For Feline Friends of Destin
See what our wonderful volunteers say below:
Sonja -One day I was letting a litter of six kittens out to
play, a nice lady adopted the smallest female kitten that
was constantly meowing at her for attention. After I
completed the adoption, she asked if I would watch her new
kitten while she shopped for supplies. Gladly agreeing, I
set the kitten on a play condo shelf. The kitten seemed to
understand that this was her big day, fell asleep until her
new owner returned with her supplies. A month later, the
same lady returned to Petsmart with the black kitten in
tow, smiled warmly and said she just loved her kitty; right
then I knew that by volunteering at FF, I was not only
helping out the kitties but the people as well. Back to
cleaning the litter boxes!
Jackie -I have always considered myself an animal person.
One always hears about the tragedies of cruelness and
carelessness, and such stories would make me sad for days
at a time. Then I started volunteering for Feline Friends.
All the wonderful work that is done through this
organization is so inspiring and uplifting. Not only do we
rescue cats and kittens from kill shelters, finding forever
homes for abandoned or unwanted animals, but for all the
feral cat colonies in Destin, we provide food and medical
attention to prevent them from being a community nuisance.
I find this aspect particularly rewarding and unique to
this organization. Certainly these colonies stem from
abandoned animals and would otherwise be collected and put
down. I have always prided myself on the motto “if you
don't at least try to be part of the solution, you're part
of the problem". Even the smallest act of kindness can mean
the difference between life or death. Thank you Feline
Friends for the opportunity to make a difference.
Rachel & Hannah – Saturday volunteers at Petsmart and
occasional home fostering. We fostered two feral
10-week-old kittens (brother and sister tabbies) during the
summer of 2007 that were due to be returned to outdoors
without some TLC and socialization – after weeks of no
playing (hard for a kitten I am sure!), hiding, and eating
when no-one was looking, they successfully rehabilitated
and made their way to Petsmart where they were adopted out
together. It was so rewarding to see them evolve from two
scared-stiff (quite literally) kittens to mischievous and
happy playmates who loved their toys and purred loudly at
last!!
Gloria- I want to share my experience with the “Naughty 9”,
nine very sick little kittens from at least 3 different
litters (as far as I could tell) that Feline Friends
rescued from the local animal control facility. They were
infected with coccidia (diarrhea) and serious upper
respiratory infections (eyes and noses would be pasted shut
in the mornings). What a challenge and what fun watching
them get better and grow into lovely youngsters, each with
its own personality.At the beginning I had to create a
chart with each kitten’s identifying name and the a.m. and
p.m. dosing of meds.I had a bowl of warm water and using
cotton balls would clean each kitten’s face just like its
Mama would have; this became our bonding time. Then I’d set
up the vaporizer,corral the kittens in a big wire cage, and
cover it with a sheet.
Donna- "I have just recently joined the volunteer crew with
Feline Friends; however, my experience with caring for the
cats and kittens that have come under the shelter and care
of this organization has been an uplifting and joyful one.
The cat adoptions that I have been involved with bring hope
to my heart that there are so many kind-hearted folks in
this area and their love has extended to opening their
homes and hearts to a cat or kitten that is in desperate
need of a loving home and companionship. It is my prayer
and hope that all abandoned and homeless kitties will find
a loving home. As it is with us humans on this earth, every
cat and kitten deserves a home filled with love and safety.
Please help us keep them safe."
Linda- When my husband and I first moved to this area in
2004, a very skinny "mama" cat would appear in our backyard
on a regular basis -- almost daily. She was very shy and
afraid. We started feeding her and she would be at our
house every morning. For several years, she ate at our
"feeding station" (at the time I didn't know what it was)
in my backyard. We watched her have two sets of kittens
that were born somewhere else but as they got older would
also show up with "mama kitty" for feeding time. They were
all so very thin and scared. They had kittens and their
kittens would also eat at our feeding station. In the
spring of 2006, we became acquainted with Feline Friends
and their TNR (trap, neuter and release) program. We
ordered a trap. Our goal was to trap every feral cat and
kitten in our neighborhood. By this time, we were feeding
approximately 6 to 10 cats twice a day at our feeding
station. We watched the mama cat struggle to raise her
kittens and sadly saw her get skinnier and skinnier. We
set our first trap in the spring of 2006 -- the first cat
we trapped was "mama kitty"! From there we were successful
in trapping all of mama kitty's adult kittens and their
kittens. Eventually throughout the summer of 2006 we
trapped, had neutered/spayed through Feline Friends, and
returned to their environment over twelve cats and kittens.
Mama Kitty became semi-tame (she allowed us to pet her and
sometimes pick her up). We are so proud to have stopped
the "kitten" re-production cycle in our neighborhood plus
provide food through our feeding station that we still
maintain. We are now working to trap another feral colony
in this area. To date, we have trapped seven cats and
kittens in this colony with only one remaining to be
trapped! The Trap, Neuter and Release program works!
Anne & Joe- Stubby was named because, according to the vet,
he is a cute Pixie Tail Manx. He was very shy, or so we
thought, orange Tabby that would run away from everyone and
was very vocal. We trapped him and he got the usual little
crop on his ear so he could join the feeding station. In a
few weeks Stubby was rubbing up against all the cats in the
neighborhood and our dog Ivy, and would run into the house
to try and greet every cat he could, even the ones who
didn't welcome it. It was now certain that Stubby was not a
feral cat at all but a stray kitty that someone just
deserted. It seems he is the most outgoing little guy we
ever met. Now Stubby is the most popular kitty in Crystal
Shores. Thanks to Feline Friends everyone knows and loves
him. He follows all the dog walkers around our block as he
vocalizes how happy he is to see you. Stubby makes our day
every day!
Jane-This past year I have acted as Volunteer Coordinator
for the adoption center at PetSmart. In doing so I have
worked very closely with our volunteers. I would like to
take this opportunity to thank, and to praise, each one of
them. They have shown such devotion to the animals in
their care - whether it be in the adoption center, in
foster care, or at a feeding station. I have sometimes
been amazed at their dedication and willingness to go above
and beyond, in order to properly care for each cat and
kitten. It has been my honor to know and work with these
volunteers. Individually they bring their own unique gift
to Feline Friends. Collectively they are Feline Friends.
Not only have the animals been blessed by them - so have I.
Merry Christmas, Volunteers!
This newsletter is dedicated to the ones that didn't get
the chance they deserved. If you would like to make a tax
deductible donation, please make it to
Feline Friends of Destin
Click on our Donation Link SUPPORT US
Feline Friends of Destin is a non-profit organization
dedicated to TNR (trap, neuter, return) of feral cats. We
are an all volunteer organization DEPENDENT solely on
donations. We are a registered 501-C3 non-profit
organization.
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