Bideawee's Feral Cat Initiative

10/16/2025

Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day Action Idea #5:
Donate to support Bideawee's Feral Cat Initiative!

The people who perform Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) to improve the lives of community cats in their neighborhoods and reduce the number of kittens being born on the streets are among the most generous in animal rescue, giving selflessly of their time and personal financial resources to make a difference. We are so thankful for all of these boots-on-the-ground volunteers!

Bideawee's Feral Cat Initiative supports the lifesaving work of thousands of TNR caretakers and the cats they help in the New York City area and Long Island — and even across the USA and around the world — through our free educational webinars, online Help Desk, reduced-cost spay/neuter clinics, cat food giveaways, transportation, and more. If you are able, donate today to help us help even more feral and stray community cats and the people who care for them. Any amount saves lives!

Make your gift online: https://bit.ly/DonateFCI
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Each October 16, our friends at Alley Cat Allies shine a spotlight on cats around the world through their and campaigns. Bideawee's Feral Cat Initiative encourages you to observe Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day all month by taking action on behalf of the cats who share your life — from your pampered indoor pets to the feral and stray community cats who call your neighborhood home.

Learn more about Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day: https://globalcatday.org

10/16/2025

Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day Action Idea #4:
Foster a cat or kitten!

Have some extra space, time, and love to give? Bideawee is looking for volunteer foster caretakers on Long Island and in NYC to provide kitties with safe, loving, temporary homes as they prepare for their future forever homes. We have foster openings for both adult cats and kittens.

We are SO thankful to our foster volunteers for helping us save — and launch — these precious lives! Every cat or kitten fostered makes room for another one to be rescued and brought to the safety of our Adoption Centers.

Learn more and apply: https://bideawee.org/foster
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Each October 16, our friends at Alley Cat Allies shine a spotlight on cats around the world through their and campaigns. Bideawee's Feral Cat Initiative encourages you to observe Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day all month by taking action on behalf of the cats who share your life — from your pampered indoor pets to the feral and stray community cats who call your neighborhood home.

Learn more about Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day: https://globalcatday.org

10/16/2025

Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day Action Idea #3:
Adopt a cat or kitten!

Sometimes during Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR), friendly stray cats and feral-born kittens young enough to be socialized are removed from colonies for adoption placement in indoor, forever homes. Bideawee has dozens of sweet cats and kittens — some with a little fashionable street cred — eagerly waiting to meet you. If you've been thinking about adding a feline friend to your family, Global Cat Day is a great incentive to meet your match at Bideawee!

View available cats and kittens: https://bideawee.org/adopt
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Each October 16, our friends at Alley Cat Allies shine a spotlight on cats around the world through their and campaigns. Bideawee's Feral Cat Initiative encourages you to observe Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day all month by taking action on behalf of the cats who share your life — from your pampered indoor pets to the feral and stray community cats who call your neighborhood home.

Learn more about Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day: https://globalcatday.org

10/16/2025

Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day Action Idea #2:
Build a shelter to protect outdoor cats from winter weather!

Tens of thousands of feral and stray community cats who live outdoors year-round in NYC and Long Island will soon seek out refuge from cold, wet winter weather. Providing insulated shelters for your feline neighbors not only offers them a safe, warm, dry place to rest, but also means they won't have to climb into dangerous crawl spaces or car engines to find cover.

Building life-saving winter cat shelters is the purr-fect creative fall project for cat-loving families, scouting groups, and school clubs! Our step-by-step video guide shows how to safely construct simple cat shelters out of foam shipping boxes.

Watch video: https://bit.ly/KidsCatShelter
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Each October 16, our friends at Alley Cat Allies shine a spotlight on cats around the world through their and campaigns. Bideawee's Feral Cat Initiative encourages you to observe Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day all month by taking action on behalf of the cats who share your life — from your pampered indoor pets to the feral and stray community cats who call your neighborhood home.

Learn more about Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day: https://globalcatday.org

10/16/2025

Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day Action Idea #1:
Learn how to help community cats by taking a Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) certification workshop!

"Are you ready to be part of the solution for feral and stray cats? In this virtual course presented by Neighborhood Cats and hosted by the Community Cats Podcast, learn what TNR is, why it works, and how to get started. Our expert instructors will teach you best practices for Trap-Neuter-Return and colony management. We'll cover getting along with neighbors, preparations for trapping, trapping itself (including entire colonies at once), feeding, winter shelter and more. Take advantage of the interactive format, extensive handouts and video footage of actual projects."

Learn more and register: https://bit.ly/LearnTNRNC
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Each October 16, our friends at Alley Cat Allies shine a spotlight on cats around the world through their and campaigns. Bideawee's Feral Cat Initiative encourages you to observe Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day all month by taking action on behalf of the cats who share your life — from your pampered indoor pets to the feral and stray community cats who call your neighborhood home.

Learn more about Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day: https://globalcatday.org

10/16/2025

Celebrate Global Cat Day and National Feral Cat Day on October 16!

Each October, our friends at Alley Cat Allies shine a spotlight on cats around the world through their and campaigns. The event's motto, , is a rallying call of this global truth: Cats have lived alongside people for thousands of years, have a place in our communities, and are beings of inherent value who deserve to be protected.

October 16 is a day for each of us to become a cat advocate! Bideawee's Feral Cat Initiative encourages you to observe Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day all month by taking action on behalf of the cats who share your life — from your pampered indoor pets to the feral and stray community cats who call your neighborhood home.

5 Ways to Go to Bat for Cats:
• Learn how to help community cats through Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR): https://bit.ly/LearnTNRNC
• Build a shelter to protect outdoor cats from winter weather: https://bit.ly/KidsCatShelter
• Adopt a cat or kitten: https://bideawee.org/adopt
• Foster a cat or kitten: https://bideawee.org/foster
• Donate to support the work of Bideawee's Feral Cat Initiative: https://bit.ly/DonateFCI

Learn more about Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day: https://globalcatday.org

10/15/2025

It's ! 🌬️❄️🏠🌡️🐱 Straw is by far the best choice for cat shelter bedding. Its structure keeps cats warm and dry — plus it's eco-friendly and sustainable. Right now it's early fall around New York City and Long Island, and straw is abundant in local hardware stores, garden, craft supply, and other stores, as well as online. But choose your cats' straw carefully! Avoid these 4 common mistakes:

1) Don't confuse straw with hay, which is unsuitable for bedding. Most of you know this, but it bears repeating. Hay is used as feed, contains moisture, and is green; straw is hollow, dry, and yellow.

2) Don't buy chopped straw. Sold as garden mulch, it flattens out when used as bedding, so it's less comfy and less insulating. But straw with naturally long strands makes for cushy bedding that cats can mold around their bodies as custom-fit nests that hold in body heat.

3) Don't buy treated craft straw. Preservatives, and coatings may make craft straw look pretty for years to come, but these chemicals affect the natural insulating and drying properties of straw, and they may not be safe for cats. Opt for straw labeled as "natural" and has no additives.

4) Don't buy a tiny bale! When ordering straw rather than buying it in-person, be sure to check the measurements in product descriptions to avoid the mistake that at least one anonymous rescuer admitted to making. The straw bales looked perfect in the online photos — and the price was right — but when the order arrived, the actual "bales" were teeny-tiny!

For more cat shelter info, check out our recorded webinar, "Building Shelters for Outdoor Cats":
Recording: https://bit.ly/BFCIBSV
Handout: https://bit.ly/BFCIBSH

Or to get started quickly with our Super Simple Foam Box Shelter, watch our all-ages step-by-step video: https://bit.ly/KidsCatShelter

10/14/2025

Bideawee's Feral Cat Initiative encourages you to observe Alley Cat Allies' Global Cat Day/National Feral Cat Day on October 16 by taking action on behalf of the cats who share your life — from your pampered indoor pets to the feral and stray community cats who call your neighborhood home!

An action for cats in honor of Global Cat Day and National Feral Cat Day—October 16—can be anything and everything that improves their lives! You can... 🌎🐈

🐈 Do Trap-Neuter-Return ( ) for community cats
🐈 Bring your family or neighborhood together to build outdoor shelters for cats (we have ideas at alleycat.org/ShelterGallery)
🐈 If you work in a veterinary clinic, hold a low or no-cost spay and neuter, vaccination, or microchip clinic
🐈Hand out educational materials in your community (You can find all of Alley Cat Allies’ educational materials at alleycat.org/Shop, including PDF downloads)
🐈 Contact your local officials and ask them to support cat-friendly policies
🐈 And so much more!

Find more ideas at GlobalCatDay.org/Take-Action and get ready for the big day! Be sure to POST about your action and use and !

10/14/2025

Learn more and apply to adopt bonded BFFs, Mila & Maxi:
Mila: https://www.bideawee.org/adopt-pet/mila/211831234
Maxi: https://www.bideawee.org/adopt-pet/maxi/211831238

10/14/2025

To support the New York City TNR community, Neighborhood Cats is making winter shelters available at or below cost and providing straw for free.

These shelters consist of a Styrofoam box wrapped in heavy plastic, a plywood extension "porch" for feeding in bad weather, and a shingled roof. They measure 49"L x 12"W x 14"H, weigh about 18 pounds, and come stuffed with straw. Extra straw is available while it lasts. Shelters are $30 each.

The next pick-up will be on Staten Island (ZIP 10312) on Saturday, October 18, and Sunday, October 19, 2025, noon to 2:00 p.m. both days.

Reserve your shelter(s) now: https://bit.ly/NCSheltersSI

10/08/2025

It's ! 🌬️❄️🏠🌡️🐱 In the colder months, we talk a lot about using STRAW and NOT HAY for cat shelter bedding. But how can you tell which is which? This video from Simple Sustainable Living goes into detail on what hay and straw are made of, how they are harvested and processed, their material properties, what each is used for, and how to tell the difference. Watch this to become an expert in picking the perfect straw for your winter cat shelters!

The Difference Between Hay and Straw
by SSLFamilyDad
https://youtu.be/yXgwQ79AdYE

For more cat shelter info, check out our recorded webinar, "Building Shelters for Outdoor Cats":
Recording: https://bit.ly/BFCIBSV
Handout: https://bit.ly/BFCIBSH

Or to get started quickly with our Super Simple Foam Box Shelter, watch our all-ages step-by-step video: https://bit.ly/KidsCatShelter

Most people don't know that hay and straw are different! Check out this video to learn how different they are and what the uses are for both.Get SSL Family M...

10/01/2025

It's ! 🌬️❄️🏠🌡️🐱 When we teach folks how to build winter shelters for stray and feral community cats, we insist that these shelters should be lined with straw for bedding. NO hay, blankets, towels, or cat beds — no exceptions! Why is this so important?

Hay and straw may look similar, but they're very different materials. Often still greenish, hay is dried grass or alfalfa that is used as animal feed. Because it's food, hay can attract other animals to cat shelters. It also easily absorbs water from rain, snow, or breath condensation. Like hay, cat beds, towels, and blankets (even fleece!) easily absorb and hold water. Wet bedding can make cats sick from mold or hypothermia, and may even freeze solid.

Fresh straw is yellow and glossy, and it consists of the hollow stems of grain crops like wheat or oats. Unlike hay or fabric bedding, straw tends to stay fluffy and dry, creating toasty pockets of warm air where kitties can snuggle. Cats can burrow into straw, making a cozy custom nest that hugs their bodies and holds in their body heat.

October/November is a great time to get straw for your winter cat shelters! Ask your neighbors, community festivals, local stores, restaurants, religious organizations, orchards, and others that use straw as autumn decorations if you can take it when they're done. And hardware, garden, craft supply, and other stores often sell straw at reduced prices after Halloween.

For more cat shelter info, check out our recorded webinar, "Building Shelters for Outdoor Cats":
Recording: https://bit.ly/BFCIBSV
Handout: https://bit.ly/BFCIBSH

Or to get started quickly with our Super Simple Foam Box Shelter, watch our all-ages step-by-step video: https://bit.ly/KidsCatShelter