Tucson Feral and Stray Project - TNR/Rescue

03/09/2025

To ALL the ROCKSTAR WOMEN OUT there RE-PAW-SENT-ING... HAPPY INTERNATIONAL WOMAN’S DAY💗

I may not be loved & adored by everyone but my kitties and fosters do & that’s all that matters to me🐾

Dedicated to my Herbie Bug😿

03/06/2025

02/19/2025

Research shows a cat’s purr can heal bones and promote tissue repair:

Cats may purr when snuggled in your lap, but the soothing rumble isn’t just a signal of happiness.

Research suggests that the vibration is produced by muscles within the larynx, which dilate and constrict the glottis as the cat breathes. This results in a sound with frequencies ranging from 20Hz to 150Hz — known to correspond with therapeutic healing frequencies for bones and tissues in humans. Studies find that bones respond to the pressure of a cat’s purr by hardening.

In fact, cats often purr in stressful situations, during recovery, or even when facing death, hinting that the purr may function as a form of self-soothing or physical rejuvenation.

Behavioral experts, such as Marjan Debevere and Gary Weitzman, highlight the varied meanings behind a purr. Cats might purr to express nervousness, communicate with other cats, or simply as a way to encourage humans to feed them.

As researchers continue to study feline communication, one thing is clear: the purr is more than just a simple expression — it’s a biological marvel that deepens our understanding of the bond between cats and their humans.

Learn more: https://pubs.aip.org/asa/jasa/article/110/5_Supplement/2666/550913/The-felid-purr-A-healing-mechanism

02/13/2025

It’s a MANTRA, you must USE… If YOU FEED IT, YOU FIX IT!

Be kind. It’s not their fault. Feed & fix them if you possibily can (or find help with the fix part. Ask me how!). 😿

If you are feeding stray or feral cats, they are YOUR cats. They depend on YOU for food, water and shelter—YOU are their caregiver. If YOU can afford to feed them, YOU can afford to fix them. Look for low-cost clinics in your area. In Bucks County (Pennsylvania), the Bucks County SPCA has a $40 package which includes spay/neuter, distemper and rabies shots. It can’t be beat!

If you’ve got money for beer/wine/dinners out, manicures/pedicures, weekends away or other luxuries, you have money to get that cat fixed. Make it a priority.

We know you love those community cats you feed. If you truly care about them and their welfare, you will have them spayed or neutered. Constant reproduction is very hard on their bodies, not to mention the endless cycle of unwanted litters. Make the appointment. GET THEM FIXED! 🐈❤️✂️

02/12/2025

BEFORE YOU GET OFFENDED when someone suggests you neuter your cat please read this.

1. When a cat becomes pregnant, it is not through choice. There is no romantic liaison.... it literally is the equivalent of sexual assault.
The male cat’s p***s is barbed and causes excruciating pain for the female.

2. Every rescue is dependent on volunteers. Volunteers who lose family time, money, sleep, weekends and evenings caring for and fundraising to ensure unwanted cats get the correct care.

3.Animals have no voice... So when somebody speaks on their behalf, stop getting upset.

4.Uneutered Male cats will wander miles in search of females. They will fight ferociously and cause terrible injury to other males in the process causing sepsis. And dreadful life threatening diseases.

5. Every litter of kittens born in your home and sold adds to the problem by stopping a rescue cat being adopted.

6. Rescues are full to capacity with cats which have been bought on a whim of Facebook and surrendered or abandoned due to boredom or inability to afford vet bills, Neuter, Vaccines, Food, Flea and worm treatment

7. Each rescue has a waiting list. They spend literally thousands of dollars a year on Vet Treatment. Food, Litter. Flea and Worm Treatment, Electricity, Shelter Rent, Fuel... These are just the basics.

8. Behind the scenes volunteers nurse kittens every 2-4 hours, feed ferals everyday, clean litter boxes and field calls from people several times a day. All this while fundraising constantly. Worry about cats who have been surrendered and are traumatised by being torn from its surroundings and carry the guilt of the decisions they have to make.

9. Rescues have volunteers who drive for miles. Trapping stray and dumped cats, picking up unwanted cats and spending hours on the phone trying to find spaces and homes for unwanted pets.

10. Volunteers spend their free time and energy picking up the pieces from people who allow cats to have kittens and refuse to neuter.

02/09/2025

When you see a Cat outdoors roaming around they are often Community Cats. Many are identified by the tipped Ear or notch which a BADGE of HONOR to have the corner part of the ear cut off. Some people don’t like how the ear tip looks, or how painful it might be (it’s done under anesthesia during their spay/neuter surgery) also means, someone cared enough… Enough to take time out of their day for that community cat, abstained, dumped, strayed, lost or born to be TNR’d.

Community Cats is a term used to describe outdoor, unowned, free-roaming cats. These cats can be friendly, feral, adults, kittens, healthy, sick, altered and/or unaltered. They may or may not have a caretaker. A caretaker is a person who conducts TNR and often manage to provide care to a community cat, but who is not the legal owner. By this definition, the only outdoor free-roaming cats who are not community cats are those who have an owner. Community cats—who have a dedicated caretaker who provides them with spay/neuter services and regular feeding live contently outdoors.

To volunteer their time to load up trapping supplies, go to the trapping location, set traps, monitor traps, and wait hours in most cases to fill traps. Then to bring them home in the traps and get them set up somewhere overnight and care for them. To drive them to the vet the next day, wait in line, and check them in for surgery. To use their own funds (or vouchers) to get them fixed and vaccinated.

In that time they care for them and make sure they are healing from surgery for a day or two. Then they drive them back to the trapping location and release them back to their outdoor home. All takes hours for a Community Cat that many seem to think are just feral, and so many people hate was cared for…

To take the time to give them a better life. To stop the cycle and try to tackle the overpopulation and suffering. To help curb the testosterone driven territorial fights and spraying. To help that female not get pyometria from having litter after litter until she dies. To try to keep the numbers down so less people feel less declined to threaten their lives.

Many ear tipped cats get rescued and adopted into homes too😻

01/28/2025

Female kittens born and are now 4-months-old are able to become pregnant (and they WILL mate with any male cat—even their brother from the same litter)! With a 63-day gestation period, these young girls will have a litter of their own kittens to care for by mid-April or end of March. The vast majority of kittens born in winter will not survive the elements. If the thought of kittens freezing to death breaks your heart, take action NOW to trap-neuter-return (TNR) the cats you’re feeding. By getting them STERILIZED, you can stop the cycle of birth and death and prevent so much suffering.

A Mama Cat can also get pregnant 2 days after giving birth and those baby kittens can become pregnant as young as four months of age. It’s an overwhelming job for those of us trying to control the population of unwanted cats. Leaving the mama to continue to reproduce is in my opinion a form of cruelty. All Mama’s deserve a better life, their situation is not their fault.

▪️A cat can get pregnant when she’s just 4 months old
▪️A cat can have 3 litters every year
▪️A cat can get pregnant while nursing kittens
▪️A female cat in heat can attract male cats from up to five miles away
▪️A cat usually has 3-5 kittens per litter, but can have up to 8 kittens
▪️In just 18 months a kitten can become a mother, a grandmother, and a great grandmother

Cats are prolific breeders. An unspayed female cat is almost always pregnant, nursing, or both. Cat overpopulation is at a crisis level. Please do your part to stop the cycle of reproduction by spaying and neutering your pet cats and TNR’ing (trap-neuter-return) all outdoor cats you’re feeding. There are so many resources available to help with spay/neuter.

Kittens are born year round, but there is usually an influx this time of year. Give the poor mom has a break and get them spayed! Help males live longer by not roaming, get them neutered!!!

01/27/2025

‘And, if you ever did
Come back
To me
What, would I tell
Of the times you had missed
Or, the times I had missed you

~Athey Thompson

~ Art by Dillon Samuelson
Mac Jaffe “Krampus with cat”, 1901

01/01/2025

HAPPY MEW YEAR 🪅

May 2025 bring you many PURRS, WAGS, and TAILS🐕🐈‍⬛🐈🦮

Rescuing cats remind me that it’s okay to be a little broken, and it’s okay to take your time trusting again. More so in rescue work, it teaches us to appreciate the small moments – every purr, every cuddle and wag, and every gaze is precious… A rescue animal doesn’t change you into someone else but helps you become the best version of yourself

Even in the darkest of times, a rescue animal lights up our lives. Animals possess the uncanny ability to turn the most despairing situations into stories of resilience and hope. Also, every rescue animal is a living lesson in perseverance, resilience, and the transformative. And a rescue doesn’t change you into someone else but helps you become the best version of yourself…

Thank you RESCUE COMMUNITY🐾

12/31/2024

🚨 Say NO to Fireworks🚨

As we welcome a NEW YEAR 2025, let’s remember to celebrate responsibly and consider the impact fireworks have on our COMPANIONS. ANIMALS, and community.

🎆 Why AVOID fireworks?

One-third of all dogs and cats in the United States are reported missing in their lifetimes, more than 80% are never found, and between 9,450,000 and 9,632,000 pets that wind up in shelters in the US are killed.

“Sadly, only 14% of lost pets are returned to their owners, according to nationwide statistics. And worse, 30-60% of lost pets are euthanized because they cannot be properly identified and returned to their homes.

Here are some simple tips on keeping your pets safe:

- Distress to Pets: The loud noises cause extreme anxiety and panic for animals.

- Safety Hazards: Fireworks can lead to injuries or fires in residential areas.

- Environmental Harm: They contribute to air and noise pollution.

- Community Disruption: Many residents, especially children and the elderly, are negatively affected by the noise.

Let’s keep our ANIMALS and neighborhood safe and peaceful by choosing alternative ways to celebrate, like laser lights, music, or sparklers.

TOGETHER, we can PROTECT our ANIMALS and community and make this New Year’s Eve enjoyable for everyone🪅

11/29/2024

I’m GRATEFUL for those who use the effective practices of TNR, Community Cat management, and rescue work🐈‍⬛

Thankful for ALL who spend their last dollars on cat food and showed up ECERDAY for their kitties

…to making shelters, helping the sick and injured, those who need rescuing, and TNR’d.

So many fewer CATS and KITTENS will suffer because of those who care to make a difference🙌

11/18/2024

🚨🚨🚨REMINDER: as the WEATHER is getting COLDER and hitting FREEZNG temps🌨️❄️☃️there are CATS, KITTENS🐈and even other animals🦔🦝🐿️ SEEKING shelter INSIDE the ENGINE compartments of PARKED vehicles. As the TEMPERATURES continue to drop, PLEASE be AWARE that any wild or domestic FELINE can SEEK REFUGE from the COLD and in a ENGINE compartment of the hood🚘

IF you PARK outside, PLEASE remember to BANG🥁 on the HOOD of your car BEFORE you START it… And while you’re at it, check UNDER the FENDERS on the TOP of your TIRES called the wheel walls🛞

ANIMALS trapped UNDER HOODS hoods CAN get INJURED or DIE if they CANNOT escape BEFORE the VEHICLE is STARTED 🆘

IF you are NOT able to PARK your CAR in a garage, TRY to get in the HABIT of doing a QUICK CHECK for CATS before you START the ENGINE. Community Cats especially will SEEK WARMTH by SITTING between the ENGINE and the HOOD🚗

🚘 BEFORE STARTING your CAR, TAP or KNOCK on your HOOD loudly and HONK your horn🔊 This should WAKE UP up the ANIMAL and hopefully give it TIME to ESCAPE.

IF you SEE frequent ANIMALS that are coming AROUND or around your CAR, you SHOULD definitely TAKE precautions because once you START that ENGINE and those BELTS start going, you can quickly INJURE an animal.

ANIMALS can TUCK themselves into TIGHT SPACES, so WAIT a FEW minutes to MAKE SURE any HUDDEN animal has TIME to CLIME out. You CAN also OPEN your HOOD and DOUBLE CHECK for any animal stowaways🐈

SADLY many CATS that are considered COMMUNITY CATSor indoor/outdoor cats can be DISPLACED in a AREA that is foreign to them.

IF you are DRIVING and happen to HEAR something that could be an animal YOWLING in pain or CLAWNG to ESCAPE or if you SEE or SMELL anything weird in your ENGINE compartment, STOP as SOON as it is SAFE to do so and CONTACT your LOCAL SHELTER, RESCUE or EMERGENCY VET🏥

📸 Look at this post on Facebook https://justsomething.co/nissan-reminds-drivers-to-knock-on-the-hood-to-check-for-sleeping-cats-before-turning-your-car-on-in-wintertime/?

11/18/2024

🚨🚨🚨REMINDER: as the WEATHER is getting COLDER and hitting FREEZNG temps🌨️❄️☃️there are CATS, KITTENS🐈and even other animals🦔🦝🐿️ SEEKING shelter INSIDE the ENGINE compartments of PARKED vehicles. As the TEMPERATURES continue to drop, PLEASE be AWARE that any wild or domestic FELINE can SEEK REFUGE from the COLD and in a ENGINE compartment of the hood🚘

IF you PARK outside, PLEASE remember to BANG🥁 on the HOOD of your car BEFORE you START it… And while you're at it, check UNDER the FENDERS on the TOP of your TIRES called the wheel walls🛞

ANIMALS trapped UNDER HOODS hoods CAN get INJURED or DIE if they CANNOT escape BEFORE the VEHICLE is STARTED 🆘

IF you are NOT able to PARK your CAR in a garage, TRY to get in the HABIT of doing a QUICK CHECK for CATS before you START the ENGINE. Community Cats especially will SEEK WARMTH by SITTING between the ENGINE and the HOOD🚗

🚘 BEFORE STARTING your CAR, TAP or KNOCK on your HOOD loudly and HONK your horn🔊 This should WAKE UP up the ANIMAL and hopefully give it TIME to ESCAPE.

IF you SEE frequent ANIMALS that are coming AROUND or around your CAR, you SHOULD definitely TAKE precautions because once you START that ENGINE and those BELTS start going, you can quickly INJURE an animal.

ANIMALS can TUCK themselves into TIGHT SPACES, so WAIT a FEW minutes to MAKE SURE any HUDDEN animal has TIME to CLIME out. You CAN also OPEN your HOOD and DOUBLE CHECK for any animal stowaways🐈

SADLY many CATS that are considered COMMUNITY CATSor indoor/outdoor cats can be DISPLACED in a AREA that is foreign to them.

IF you are DRIVING and happen to HEAR something that could be an animal YOWLING in pain or CLAWNG to ESCAPE or if you SEE or SMELL anything weird in your ENGINE compartment, STOP as SOON as it is SAFE to do so and CONTACT your LOCAL SHELTER, RESCUE or EMERGENCY VET🏥

📸 Look at this post on Facebook https://justsomething.co/nissan-reminds-drivers-to-knock-on-the-hood-to-check-for-sleeping-cats-before-turning-your-car-on-in-wintertime/?