The kitties are in urgent need of a very special kind of foster home.
Cats with a skin infection called “ringworm” often find themselves in danger of euthanasia, even though the condition is entirely curable. Our ringworm program here at SAFe Rescue is often a last resort for infected kitties with nowhere else to go.
(Note: Ringworm isn’t actually a worm—it’s a fungal skin condition similar to Athlete’s Foot. Want to learn more? Check out our “Test Your Ringworm IQ” blog!)
Right now, though, our Isolation Room is at full capacity and we don’t have space to take in any more cases. We worry what will happen to all the kitties out there who still need help…
If you or anyone you know has experience fostering ringworm kitties in your home—or if you’re willing to learn the treatment and disinfection protocol—we would LOVE to hear from you right away!
To get started as a foster home, you can fill out the “Foster Information Form” on our website, and let us know that you’re interested in learning more about fostering ringworm kitties.
Thank MEW!
“Take a Chance on me!” We’re not sure if Chance is an ABBA fan, but we’re sure that’s the song he was singing when he arrived at SAFe Rescue. Although he is obviously adorable and lovable, little Chance has already survived more suffering than most homeless kitties endure in a lifetime.
Unhappy, injured kitty
Chance started out in Eastern Washington, where he lived outside on his own. When he hurt his paw, he didn’t have access to the medical care he needed. Chance’s wound became severely infected, and (with the bones in his paw exposed) he could hardly move. Once Chance was rescued, his leg had to be amputated right away.
Arriving in Seattle
We knew about the hardships Chance had endured before he came to us, so we were expecting to meet a timid, scared kitten. But when he arrived in Seattle, there was no shy kitty to be found—instead we opened his carrier to meet a little snuggle bug, emphasis on snuggle!
In foster care
Chance went to foster care to finish healing, and his foster family soon discovered that he adores kids. He bonded with his human foster sister, and he was at her side every day for play time and nap time. With TLC, Chance recovered quickly. He learned to tackle stairs and find his way around like a normal kitten. (Although with his missing leg, he does have a kangaroo hop!)
Going home!
Two weeks later, Chance was ready to come back to the Adoption Center to find a family… Which he did, the very same day! Chance went home with a friendly new kitty sister, Kristi, and—to his great joy—three human sisters to love him.
Now, Chance doesn’t look back or let his past trouble him: instead, he’s looking forward to a lifetime of love! Good boy, Chance.
Chance’s portrait copyright K.A.Moore Photography.
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Finding a home is hard enough when you’re a senior kitty—when you’re 16-year-old cat with a thyroid condition who needs daily fluid injections, finding a place to call your own can seem almost impossible! Fortunately, Minnie didn’t give up, and we wouldn’t give up on her either. For over a year, this talkative, friendly senior cat got daily medical care at SAFe Rescue’s Adoption Center and in foster care. Her endearing quirks won over the whole rescue team. (You could always tell when Minnie hadn’t had her breakfast yet by the persistent meowing!)
Minnie was happiest when she had a kitty house to curl up in. Once, when Minnie was in between foster care and didn’t have her favorite house with her, the rescue team had to improvise. She thought her cardboard house—lovingly decorated with her name and even a little garden outside—was purr-fect!
Minnie has been lucky to have a series of wonderful foster homes during her time at SAFe Rescue. When we heard that Minnie’s latest foster mom was moving out of state, we thought it might be time for Minnie to pack up and find a new place to stay… But it turns out Minnie will be packing up her kitty house for a much happier reason. Minnie’s latest foster has decided to be her adopted mom, and she’s taking Minnie with her. Congratulations, Minnie, enjoy the rest of your golden years with your new favorite person!
(Portrait of Minnie by K.A.Moore Photography.)
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We believe that having a kitty is one of the biggest joys in life, the kitties in our care at the rescue and at home warm our hearts every day. That love, and genuine warm fuzzy feeling is what inspires us to keep looking for new ways pet ownership can be more accessible.
Veterinary care can be expensive, especially if your pet becomes very ill or sustains a serious injury. We know that your kitty (or doggy) is a beloved family member, and we want to help offset the added financial stress during those challenging times and make the joy of pet ownership feasible for everyone.
To that end, SAFe has partnered with Trupanion to offer every adopter 30 days of pet insurance, free, to protect their new family member. All adopters need to do is call Trupanion within 24 hours of adoption to activate the benefit and the new kitty will be covered, with no waiting period! The plan will cover 90% of veterinary costs for new injuries or illnesses. Adopters may choose to extend the coverage, but there is no obligation to do so.
Bringing home that new adorable fluffy kitty gives you the warm fuzzies like no other, but our goal is to ensure that every day with your kitty best friend is equally as heartwarming without the cost of veterinary care weighing you down. We are excited to offer this free benefit to our adopters.
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Seattle Area Feline Rescue is proud to announce an exciting new partnership with Brokers Supporting Pet Rescue. Now, the purchase or sale of your home can be a life-saver for cats and kittens in need!
Brokers Supporting Pet Rescue (BSPR) is a network of animal-loving Pacific Northwest Real
Estate Brokers working together to help rescue animals. BSPR will make a donation equal to 10% of the net commission on every home sale or purchase to a local pet rescue organization their client chooses—and supporting the kitties at SAFe Rescue is one of the new options!
Working with a BSPR Broker is a seamless, impactful, easy way for you to create a significant donation to support Seattle Area Feline Rescue. Donations are made on behalf of BSPR’s clients average between $1,000 and $3,000. With a gift of that level, you can bring a lot of cats to safety and have a big impact of the rescue’s life-saving programs!
Brokers Steven Lynn and Lori Sciacero explain their vision to have a positive impact for animals in need: “BSPR was created to combine our love of animals and the desire to help our clients find the
perfect place to call home. By partnering with Seattle Area Feline Rescue, we are able to make
a difference by generating significant donations to an organization that’s solely dedicated to
saving and serving kitties and cats in need.”
If you or any animal lovers you know are planning to buy or sell a home, find a BSPR broker by emailing info@brokerssupportingpetrescue.com or calling 206-823-BSPR (2777). BSPR brokers can be found in locations throughout Washington state.
The kitties will thank you!
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Joey is a special kitty in many ways, and his epic tale is one you won’t soon forget. Joey’s journey started in Eastern Washington, where he was living outside a shotgun factory and fending for himself.
From his loving nature, you can tell that Joey had once been loved and cared for. But hard times can affect us all. When Joey’s person passed away, he was left on his own. By the time he came to SAFe Rescue, he had a plethora of medical issues including an Upper Respiratory Infection so severe you could hear his snuffling across the rescue, and a painful, swollen mouth caused by a condition called stomatitis. It was obvious that Joey would need medical care, so we immediately started treating him.
Further diagnostics unveiled a past even sadder than we originally realized. Radiographs revealed that Joey had a fractured nose bridge and a BB gun pellet lodged in his throat. Although we could see Joey had been mistreated, he didn’t let that affect his sweet, attention-seeking nature.
The next step in Joey’s medical care was a dental procedure to help alleviate Joey’s mouth pain. He needed to have almost all of his teeth extracted. During that time, the vet also discovered that Joey was diabetic. Poor, unlucky kitty! As Joey recovered from his dental surgery, we began insulin treatment to regulate his diabetes.
Without the continued support of our community, we might not have been able to give Joey the extensive medical care he needed. But SAFe Rescue is lucky to have such a generous, caring community of people like you surrounding us. Because of you, Joey—the kitty who fell on hard times—was “SAFe” and loved here.
Joey’s luck continued to turn! The veterinarian at Cascade Pet Hospital who had been caring for Joey during his medical treatment, was (not so slowly) falling in love with him. By the time Joey was cleared for adoption, the doctor wasted no time making him her own. Joey now has a human mom and dad, as well as two kitty sisters. We couldn’t be happier for him! Joey is, without a doubt, one of the nicest kitties you will ever meet. Now Joey has it all: looks, personality, and now a purr-fect family of his own to look out for his medical needs and give him love and pets every single day.
Joey’s portrait by K.A.Moore Photography.
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While July 4th may be a fun summer holiday for you, your furry friend probably feels less enthusiastic. Cats never really appreciate sudden, loud noises, so an entire night of crashing and booming is sure to make even the most calm kitty a little uneasy. Here are a few ways to make sure you keep your cat safe on July 4th:
Create a safe space: Make sure your best feline friend has a safe, quiet place to retreat during the festivities. A bedroom or large closet with a warm comfy bed, her favorite treats, and some water will be sure to lessen the stress.
Keep kitty inside: Indoors is always the safest place for kitty—but even if your pet goes outside normally, keep her in on July 4th. Fireworks are frightening and disorienting even to cats who are used to the great outdoors.
Keep windows closed: When the weather is hot, we tend to open windows, but even the smallest opening can be an escape route for a panicked or determined kitty. Screens are not always enough to keep a cat in, so shutting the windows is the safe way to enjoy this fourth!
Use white noise: In his purr-tection room that you set up for him, turn on the TV or radio to a calming station or movie (maybe a nice bird movie?) to drown out the noise of the fireworks.
Visit the vet: If you have an especially anxious kitty, plan to visit your vet’s office before the holiday to inquire about medications that can be used as needed to lower anxiety in high-stress situations.
Update your microchip: most importantly, check to make sure your kitty’s microchip information is up to date with your current contact info and address. Unfortunately, statistically July 4th is the day of the year when the most cats (and dogs, too) go missing. The above precautions should ensure that kitty stays safe at home with you, but it is always good to prepare and make sure that—in a worst-case-scenario—you can still be reunited with your furry friend.
Although 4th of July may never have your kitty jumping for joy, your kitty will thank you with purrs and cuddles for trying to make the festivities a little bit less stressful for him!
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Planning is underway for this year’s Nine Lives Gala—and we’re seeking Auction Committee Members to help create a life-saving night for the kitties! Committee members are a driving force behind this memorable event. The work is fun, fast-paced, and essential to the rescue’s mission to save homeless felines.
Nine Lives Gala is Seattle Area Feline Rescue’s biggest fundraising event of the year, and includes silent and live auctions, dinner, and entertainment. This year’s Gala will take place at Shoreline Community College on Saturday, September 29th.
Committee responsibilities include:
- Monthly planning meetings (with a few possible additional meetings added as the event draws closer)
- Independent work on an event focus area (For example, helping procure donations, picking up items, or recruiting guests…)
- 1-2 September work parties to help prepare for the event
- Set-up help the afternoon of the Gala and volunteering at the event. (Or, recruit friends and family to join you instead: as a Table Captain, you’ll spend the evening relaxing with your guests!)
You don’t have to join the Committee to be part of the excitement!
Are you feeling inspired to help with one particular aspect of the event? Or do you want to help out, but don’t have time to commit to the committee? Never fear!
* We’re especially in need of volunteers to procure items and/or sponsorships. (Procuring can be fun: it’s like trick-or-treating for the kitties, but without the tricks!)
* We always love to have help with paperwork, data entry, and item pick-ups!
* If you have a special skill or expertise you’d like to put to use to help the event, let us know!
Please contact Shelley Lawson, Shelley@SeattleAreaFelineRescue.org, to learn more.
We can’t wait to hear from you!
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We’re not going to lie, having a kitty IS all fun and games! But amidst the purring, cuteness, and cuddles, there are a few not-to-be missed steps to ensure your kitty thrives. The most important is to take your feline friend to the vet! Working with your veterinarian to find the schedule of feline vaccines that’s right for your kitty will keep her protected against certain diseases—and also prevents the spread of disease in your community.
Two of the “core” feline vaccines are Rabies and FVRCP.
- Rabies is a viral infection spread by bite wounds from an infected animal, and can be fatal for both animals and humans. Vaccinating your pet against rabies is a legal requirement in Washington state. Rabies is not a thing of the past—there have been cases of rabid animals in the Puget Sound area in recent years—so keeping your furry friend up to date doesn’t just comply with the law. It helps keep yourself, your kitty, and your community safe.
- FVRCP is also known as the vaccine for feline distemper. The letters FVRCP stand for the viruses it protects against: Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis, Calicivirus, and Panleukopenia. All three are potentially life-threatening viruses that can affect your beloved kitty’s health.
When you take your kitty to their first check-up, your veterinarian will go over these important vaccines with you and create a vaccination schedule for your kitty. For more information, you can also visit the American Veterinary Medical Association’s Feline Preventative Care Guidelines.
Still have questions? Be sure to ask your kitty’s veterinarian! Here are two of the most common questions regarding vaccines:
“My kitty is indoor only, why would I need to vaccinate her?”
Good question! We’re glad to hear that your kitty is living a happy, healthy life indoors. (Staying indoors greatly lowers your cat’s risk of accidents, predators, parasites, and illness.) There are still important reasons to vaccinate your kitty. Rabies vaccination is legally required, and both the Rabies and FVRCP vaccines are safety precautions.
- Vaccinations ensure that if your kitty accidentally escapes and ends up outside or in a shelter after going missing, she will be safe and protected from the most dangerous viral threats to cats.
- If you need to board your cat while you take a vacation, the kitty will be required to be up to date on their vaccines.
- If you have a kitty friend visit, make sure all the cats are vaccinated.
- Are you and your cat going through a stressful life event? Vaccines can also help prevent viral flare-ups.
“Are there any other vaccines that my cat will need?”
A licensed veterinarian is the best person to consult about which vaccines your cat needs. Rabies and FVRCP are generally considered the two “core” feline vaccines, and the most necessary. There are also a few other additional “lifestyle” vaccines, that may be important depending on your kitty’s age, health, and living situation.
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Babette has perfected many skills: being adorable and sweet, making kitty burritos, purring as loudly as possible… And now, finding a furr-ever home! Babette came to the Pacific NW from California—Long Beach to be exact—in search of her time to shine with a family of her own.
Not a lot was known about Babette before she came here, except that she was a momma kitty at one point and that she tested positive for FIV. FIV (Feline Immunodeficiency Virus) affects a small percentage of cats nationwide, and it’s a non-progressive retrovirus that is usually asymptomatic (meaning kitties can have the virus without getting sick). In fact, statistics show that the most common cause of death for FIV positive cats is old age. FIV+ kitties like Babette do not usually require much special care; they do best when they stay indoors, eat nutritious diets, and have their standard annual veterinary visits. (Curious to learn more? Check out our blog on FIV.)
Although Babette’s condition is very manageable, FIV is often misunderstood. Sometimes shelters do not have the resources to to keep FIV+ kitties, or fear that they are “unadoptable.” That makes a positive test result very sad news in some cases. But not to worry, FIV+ kitties like Babette are “SAFe” here!
Once she arrived at SAFe Rescue, Babette went for a dental evaluation. While she was homeless, she ended up with a sore mouth and some broken teeth. (Poor kitty!) After dental surgery to make her more comfortable, Babette got the green light to be listed for adoption. She eagerly awaited her person.
A few days later, Babette showed off all her purr-fect skills that she had been working on for so long to a potential adopter. Not only was the adopter impressed, she was in love! Now Babette is happy and safe in her new home with all the love and yummy food she deserves.
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