Mary's not so feral ferals

08/23/2023

06/01/2023

Toronto's feral cat educators and advocates. Learn how to help community cats at our monthly Trap Neuter Return course and earn your TNR certificate. Qualify for free spay-neuter services.

05/12/2023

Please donate and help them.

04/26/2023

2 signatures are still needed! Stop Windsors unethical ban on feeding feral cats. Implement a humane citywide TNVR plan

04/26/2023

What a cool idea for an old bookshelf.

04/20/2023

Trap Neuter Release (TNR) programs save cats’ lives. While we would like to see every cat have a cushy life indoors, we have to accept that some cats are happiest in their outdoor home, living life on their own terms. For them, TNR is essential to control the population and also to improve their quality of life. Several years ago, these fellows were brought to the Humane Society as stray cats. But it was clear that they were "community cats" and the best option for them was to neuter them and return them to the familiar place they came from. Soon after their release, they made their way to Peggy and Tom’s house. Tom and Peggy recognized that they were altered because of their ear tips, but didn’t want to see them hungry out on their own so began to feed them and provided an outdoor shelter so they could escape the elements.

Fast forward a few years...and the Town of LaSalle passed a by-law saying that you can’t feed cats except as part of a “trap, neuter or spay, and manage program approved by the Supervisor”. A neighbour complained to the Town’s by-law department about this pair, and a $255 fine was issued. Peggy and Tom reached out to the Humane Society for help. We confirmed for the Town that these are cats who were TNR'd under our stray cat intake agreement with LaSalle. We also confirmed that they are community cats who are microchipped to the WECHS as free-roaming cats. But these arguments fell on deaf ears, and the fine of $255 was upheld.

So now, community cats need YOUR help!
🐾 Send an email to LaSalle’s mayor at [email protected] telling her that a bylaw that prevents people from feeding cats who have been responsibly TNR'd is inhumane!
🐾 Donate to help us cover the cost of Tom and Peggy’s ticket. Any funds raised above the amount of the ticket will be used to help advocate for community cats, and against feeding bans like this one (Windsor passed a similar bylaw in 2021!).
🐾 Be a responsible community cat caregiver. While that doesn’t guarantee that you won’t run into issues (these caregivers are very responsible!), it does reduce the risk that your neighbours will complain or advocate for feeding bans.
🐾 Share this post and help spread the word to others who care about cats!

04/19/2023

04/19/2023

Think we havea lot of kitties.

04/18/2023

As inflation pushes up the cost of pet care, the local pet food bank is also seeing a surge in demand.

04/17/2023

"BEAT THE HEAT" FREE SPAY PROGRAM FOR MOTHER CATS!

Do you have a pregnant cat, or a cat who has recently given birth?
Has your cat had multiple litters?

PLEASE BE PART OF THE SOLUTION AND SPAY YOUR CAT!

Pride Rescue is pleased to offer a Beat The Heat Program for pregnant or nursing mother cats and their families -- we will provide your cat with a FREE spay, microchip, FVRCP & Rabies vaccination and flea treatment -- all YOU have to do is surrender your litter of kittens to the rescue, so that they too will be spayed/neutered and will be found loving and responsible homes.

EMAIL US AT [email protected] using the subject line "Beat the Heat" if you need to surrender a litter and to have your female cat spayed.

PLEASE TELL US the name, age and colour of your mother cat(s) and the number of and date of birth of their kittens so we can determine how soon we can spay your cat for free!
Please include the full name, phone number(s) and mailing address of the cat owner/care giver, so your cat's microchip is registered correctly at the time of spay surgery.

IMPORTANT INFO
** Mother Cats must be under the age of 7 years to be part of this program.
** Yes, we will provide FREE spay for both owned and unowned/stray Mother Cats in need.
** No, your income is not a factor in qualification for this program, having a Mother Cat and kittens in need IS.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO DONATE TO THIS FANTASTIC FREE SPAY PROGRAM, PLEASE DONATE BY PAYPAL OR ETRANSFER TO : [email protected]

04/14/2023

⚠️ Attention cat lovers! ⚠️

Reading an article this morning on CBC Windsor about pet food banks has me concerned. The article was about how challenging it is right now for many individuals in our community to afford pet food on top of their regular bills with rising prices. Specifically the article talks about wet cat food vs dry.
Trust me when I tell you that I completely understand how hard it is to have to decide whether to pay my Enwin bill or buy cat food. I've been living this way since I officially began this rescue in 2013. I have always chosen to buy cat food which is why Enwin hasn't been paid on time and I've been behind with them for the last decade.

When money is tight, cat guardians often turn to dry food which is usually the cheaper, more convenient option. But feeding your cat a 100% dry food diet comes with some very real health risks. Cats are by nature an animal with a low thirst drive. This means that not drinking a lot of water on top of an exclusively dry diet means that their bodies are ALWAYS in a state of dehydration. Chronic dehydration is the NUMBER ONE CAUSE OF ALL BLADDER PROBLEMS as well as a leading cause of kidney disease.

It is the bladder issues that I want to urgently address. When cats don't drink enough fluids, their urine becomes more concentrated because they don't need to void as often. This can and usually does result in their bladder being in the perfect condition to form crystals that can turn into bladder stones (as well as bladder infections!). The formation of bladder crystals and/or stones will eventually lead to life-threatening health effects when they can no longer urinate. The bladder is like a balloon with the urethra being the drain, but if the urethra gets blocked, the bladder keeps filling up until it eventually bursts!

This is especially true for male cats due to the anatomy of their urethra. It is also true for skittish cats, semi-feral cats or cats being bullied by another cat, because these cats often hold their urine until it is safe for them to access a litter box. While there are other variables which can increase or decrease the occurrences of crystal and /stone formation in the bladder, the overwhelming single cause is feeding an exclusively dry diet!

I would like to add that urinary dry foods are NOT a magic bullet and will NOT guarantee that your cat does not have bladder issues. Some cats are just more prone to these issues than others. It is also counterintuitive to expect any animal to have good bladder health if they are being fed a diet containing only 4 - 8% moisture.

Ok, so now you know all this but still haven't won the lottery what do you do?

I have a few suggestions that I use when money is so tight I'm having to make tough decisions.

1. Buy them some wet food. Any wet food they will eat. Then add as much water to the food as they will tolerate and still eat. Getting a cat to ingest their fluids through food, rather than relying on them drinking plain water, is the best and most reliable option for good bladder health.

2. Buy zero sodium or low sodium animal based broths from the grocery store and add this to as much wet food as you can afford. Never ever use full sodium products meant for humans!
Pickier cats will prefer this option over plain tap water.

3. Encourage your cat to drink from a tap with slowly dripping water. Cats instinctively prefer moving water which is more oxygenated vs standing water in a bowl.

4. Make LOW SODIUM tuna broth ice cubes and add to their water. Playing with the cubes or the smell of the tuna may incourage them to drink more.

Remember, your cat is 'just fine' until they aren't. Most people are too busy to notice their cats have stopped using the litter box or are struggling to urinate. On top of this cats instinctively mask all signs of illness or injury until it gets so bad they cannot do so any longer, and once you are in this position with your cat, it is now a veterinary emergency. Or a euthanasia.

It gives me such anxiety to know that there are people whose cats are extremely vulnerable to these bladder issues and if only they had known how to avoid a medical emergency, or worst case scenario, losing their precious family member.

Dry food is not an ideal diet for cats. All dry food is bad no matter how much it costs.
It is a convenience food developed for the benefit for humans and the shareholders of the companies who sell it. Cats are predators who are biologically designed to eat a diet with 60-70% moisture like birds, rodents or rabbits as they would do if they had to fend for themselves in nature.
Many of us do feed SOME dry food for either economic reasons or convience, but it is critical to the heath of your feline family members that you understand the detrimental effects that a 100% dry food diet will have on those you love.

Please share and help me to educate people on this crucial diet issue.

04/12/2023

The self-described "Youngest Old Cat Lady," Ashley Morrison, will always be a shining star in the cat rescue world. With hundreds of thousands of social media fans and countless cats and kittens saved due to her love for animals. But more importantly, she was a bright light who brought incredible fo...

04/11/2023

VET ASSISTANCE NEEDED

Pride Rescue is in the process of rescuing some puppy mill dogs, and we are seeking a vet clinic who can assist us to provide care for these dogs, specifically, a vet clinic who can provide spay or neuter surgery at the same time as providing dental extractions/cleaning for small breed (4-7 lbs) adult dogs (3-6 years) who have moderate to severe dental issues.

Our current vet clinics have a wait list for dental care, and we are facing needing to spay or neuter, then book a second visit and anesthetic to have this care completed for these dogs, and while we can do this, we would much prefer to have these dogs face only one anesthetic event to minimize the risks to their health and well being.

ARE YOU A VET, OR DO YOU WORK WITH A VET CLINIC WHO MAY BE ABLE TO HELP US TO HELP THESE DOGS?

We would very much appreciate any help or suggestions on vet clinics who may be able to partner with us to save these little lives!
Please send us a private message, or e-mail [email protected] if you can help, or know a vet clinic who can!

THANK YOU FOR HELPING US SAVE LIVES!

04/06/2023

04/03/2023

Lol do true

04/01/2023

Keep looking for your list pets

04/01/2023

Phase 1 Cat Spay and Neuter Vouchers are now available in LaSalle. The first phase runs from February 1 until July 31, 2023.

For more information visit www.lasalle.ca/cats