Winnipeg Lost Cat Assistance

23/04/2025

Comments are not working. Again. They're there but I can't read them. I also don't have any filter options.

22/04/2025

SOOO CHATTY NOW

Shadow has found his voice! He's just adorable, with his big, fat cheeks and cute little face. Unfortunately, he went from having improved p**p, back to pudding - we still have some interventions to try, but he's gained enough weight so he can be neutered. That's the good news.

The bad news is none of the other cats, available for adoption or foster, have had any interest. So, I am making the only decision I can make and that's to stop doing rescue until they have all been adopted. WLCA can't live beyond its means because it's a one-person show. I also refuse to compromise my standards when it comes to screening applicants for adoption.

I also won't transfer cats to other rescues or shelters who have differing processes that could leave the cats vulnerable to cruelty. We have seen how "normal-looking" individuals have been able to obtain animals for hideous purposes. There will never be a time where WLCA cats will appear on Kijiji or Craigslist or any giveaway or rehoming sites.

Unlike some other independents who have agreements with shelters, or rescues, who have access to public spaces to permanently place their rescues for adoption, WLCA does not have that option as they've all been spoken for. That doesn't mean I give up. It just means I will have to go back to rescuing one-at-a-time as in the past. At this time, I only have two foster homes, one of which has asked to stop fostering. They have three WLCA cats, and there are no interested parties so far. So, I will have to seek new avenues by other means of advertising.

I am also hard at work developing the new WLCA website. It won't be too long before it's ready to go, but it's a lot of writing, and decisions about how to present the historical resources people currently have access to via Facebook. It's a lot of work, but looking really good.

So, a mixed day this Tuesday. If anyone out there needs a friend for their cat, or dog, or perhaps it's time to adopt again after losing a dear companion, please message the page for more information about Lucky, Dot, Blue, Hygge and Shadow!

17/04/2025

I NEED LONGER TERM, OR FOSTER-TO-ADOPT, HOMES

Blue, Dot and Lucky have been together in the same foster home for some time now and they absolutely love each other but it is a lot of work for someone who has their own dogs and three other cats. I didn't envision these kids staying with their foster this long, but here we are. They have been amazing to accept them, and previously Archie and Mimi, into their home, but they have just adopted a new dog and that is also taking up time as the dog needs a lot of TLC.

So, I'm looking for a foster or a foster-to-adopt home (or homes) for Dot and Blue - either together, or separately, so long as there are other cats in the home that will interact with them. They are good with dogs and love other cats. Blue and Dot are still young - under a year - and are active and sweet, but Dot will take some time to warm up to her new place and people. Change is hard for her and why she relies on Blue so much. But, she also really likes Lucky, so I think she will do great with other resident cats if they show her the ropes.

Lucky, as you recall, was part of a trio from our volunteer who passed away last year. Lucky is stunning and has done really well with being introduced to other cats, so I have no doubt, that over time, she'd be fine with accepting resident cats. She is also getting accustomed to being in the vicinity of dogs and is doing good with that as well. What's she's not good with is handling for nail trimming and grooming even though she is fine sitting in laps, being pet and playing. She has been a challenging cat from the time she was found as a wee girl. But I know there's someone out there for her as well. She is a six year old, "adults-only" cat. - no kids in the home. Lucky is spayed, vaccinated, tattooed, dewormed and has been indoor-only her whole life.

Dot is just under a year old, has been spayed, tattooed, virus tested, vaccinated, dewormed and Blue is about eight months old and has been neutered, tattooed, vaccinated, dewormed, virus tested and has had bloodwork done. We have been trying him on different foods to see if that improves his output consistency, and he will have to be a foster until he becomes officially adoptable.

If you are interested in fostering, or adopting, please message the page. These kids can't be in foster care forever. They need their permanent homes. It's been almost a year in care for Dot and five months for Blue. Perhaps some of you who have expressed disappointment that Hygge is not good with other cats, can take a second look at Dot, Blue or Lucky.

NOTE: A photo of Lucky can be found in the comments below.

17/04/2025

CRITICAL THINKING TIME

It has been brought to my attention that there has been information circulating in north, and northwest, Winnipeg communities about raccoons having rabies. There has not been any concrete proof that sick raccoons have turned up with this fatal disease in this area. The Winnipeg Regional Health Authority has not received any animals that have tested positive for rabies to March 31, 2025.

There are other conditions that affect raccoons and would cause them to behave in a way that is similar to rabies.

Panleukopenia, aka distemper, and H5N1 have similar symptoms and can be mistaken for rabies. Until there is official word from Manitoba health that, in fact, these raccoons did have rabies, we should also consider other conditions.

Do not take community reports at face value because there is no official proof. However, in Manitoba, it is imperative animals get vaccinated for rabies and our core cat vaccines include distemper. For our cats safety and for human safety, please ensure your cats are vaccinated.

If you see raccoons acting erratically, call Manitoba Conservation.

16/04/2025

STILL WAITING! WHY??

Our beautiful, smart, active, funny, snuggly Hygge has been in our care for 166 days since he was surrendered back to us by his adoptive family for stress-related diarrhea. That problem has long since resolved and he is sooo ready for his forever home. He loves his foster home to bits, but they went into fostering to help, not because they want their own cat again.

I cannot help anymore cats at this point, even though people send me all kinds of links where I'd love to help, it's just not possible until some of the cats under WLCA's care find homes of their own. I still have Dot, Blue and Lucky in addition to Hygge. Shadow is still working on healing and will eventually go back to the home that found him for foster care, but he's a pretty big expense right now.

Hygge needs a home with NO CATS, would prefer no dogs either, however, he would be OK with a quiet senior dog that ignores, or avoids, cats. The dog he lived with in his former adoptive home relentlessly chased him, causing much stress and anxiety.

I really, really need to find this cat a home. He's an amazing boy. He tries to feed himself out of the cupboard and when he can't open the treat bag himself, he carries it down to his foster mom and plunks it down at her feet so she can dole out a treat. I mean, what cat has the presence of mind to do that? He loves zooming around the house, but also curling up in bed and changing up his foster parents' hairstyle while they sleep.

He is one-of-a kind and deserves an amazing home to call his own. Please help me find one for him. Social media and brochures have yet to hit the mark, but I know his people are out there.

Hygge is three years old now, healthy, neutered, vaccinated, dewormed and waiting patiently. Interested parties can message the page for more information.

12/04/2025

SHADOW UPDATE!

Yesterday was a hard day. I had picked up that poor, injured boy on my way back from bringing Shadow some new food, medication and B12 injectable solution. He was started on a carb-free, novel-protein diet and today, I got some great news!

Shadow - had his first solid p**p!

I know this sounds a little gross, but this cat has had anything but solid p**p. It's been watery, milkshake-y, pudding-y and nothing had really been helping except for his antibiotic when he was on it would result in a thicker liquid. So, I decided to carry on with it for two more weeks but also change his diet. He got his new food last night and in the morning, he had his first solid p**p. Yayy!!

So, this means he's either allergic to poultry or he is carbohydrate intolerant. I'll be adding carbs back in once he's had good p**p for a week. He's also gained about a kilogram since he was picked up and soon, he'll be well enough to be neutered. Yes!

Thank you to everyone who donates to help cats like Shadow!

10/04/2025

Stopped on route 90 near Ellice to pick
up what seemed to be a deceased orange and white tabby cat. Thank you to the car that stopped and blocked traffic for me. As I was scooping him up, trying to get him into a bag, he started moving and he meowed, so I ran him to the car and took him to WHS as fast as I could, but he passed away en route.

Deceased is a big, beautiful, orange tabby with white areas including his tail. Intact male, probably 2-3 years old.

What he was doing on Route 90 across from Wholesale club is anyone’s guess. RIP big mister.

Send a message to learn more

05/04/2025

WEBSITE UPDATE - NEED YOUR OPINION

I've been working hard developing the new WLCA website over the past couple of weeks and have made quite a bit of progress on it. It's shaping up nicely. I have a question for all of you followers:

When navigating a website, for resources like documents on lost and found, adoption, etc., do you prefer links that download PDFs to your device/computer so you can read them at your leisure or do you prefer web pages that you might have to re-access?

Upside to PDFs: zero loading time - instant download, can be saved to any device, can be easily printed and distributed or forwarded - no need to re-access the document online and also protects against inaccessibility if server is down.

Downside: reading them on a phone is sometimes challenging as one has to move the document around to read it. Text can be too challenging to read on small devices unless zoomed in.

Upside to web pages: format well on small devices with easier to read font sizes, can save link for reading later, can forward link to others.

Downside: loading times are variable even if pages are optimized, printing page may yield unexpected results, pages are at the mercy of the server (if it's down, you can't get to the page). Some pages will require a lot of scrolling.

28/03/2025

SHADOW UPDATE

Well, after p**ping out a couple of 3ft-long dead tapeworms, shadow is starting to gain weight. He has put on 300 grams in a week and is currently eating three cans of food a day. He cannot keep dry food down at all, so it's going to be a longer recovery as canned doesn't have as many calories as dry. His p**p is not watery diarrhea anymore, but there's still a long way to go to proper consistency. He is currently on metronidazole, pre-and pro biotics and once his meds are finished, if there has been no improvement, he may be on different intestinal meds.

He's been a good boy, allowing to be pilled and his nose is looking a lot cleaner now that the Convenia antibiotics have been at work. He will continue to be monitored for weight gain, and output, until all systems are functioning as well as they can be.

Photo: Shadow just got his pill (not so tasty).

21/03/2025

POOR BOY!

Well, it's a good thing we had our spring auction! Shadow saw the vet yesterday and this senior kid is a mess. He is very thin, dehydrated, has a raging urinary tract infection and upper-respiratory infection, diarrhea, lots of broken teeth and is FIV+. He was estimated to be 8-10 years old.

After living outside for, at least, three years, Shadow finally caved and asked for help by becoming friendly enough to approach his caregiver.

When the vet took him out of his carrier and placed him on the ground, it looked like he could barely stand and a neurological problem, or diabetes, was part of the differential diagnosis.

Not wanting to miss something, we did a full bloodwork panel, a urinalysis, FeLeuk/FIV testing, parasite treatment, antibiotics, sub-q fluids and after all that handling, he was walking in a more normal manner. The vet suspected his UTI was contributing to pain that caused him to not want to walk, or to walk in an awkward manner.

Imagine having that problem for so long that you can't even walk right. Yet, he didn't show any outward symptoms until a few days ago, when he was promptly trapped.

His bloodwork wasn't all that bad, all things considered. His kidneys are working well enough, he is concentrating his urine and is not anemic (which was a nice surprise). His white cell count is good and he is just showing signs of inflammation and dehydration.

The vet care was a $600 touch.

He is now back in boarding (which also carries daily fees) on a high-calorie diet, with fiber and probiotics added, is being monitored for fluid intake and output and we hope the antibiotics get to work really quick on him. If he gains sufficient weight over the next couple of weeks, he'll be a candidate for a neuter (more money). In the future, if he gets to 100%, he'll need a dental to remove all those broken teeth (even more money).

In the end, after all costs considered (vet care, including dental, boarding, food, litter, medications, supplements, vaccinations, other prophylactic treatments, etc), this cat is likely to eat up $4-$5K to get him to adoptions.

Hopefully, he hangs on, doesn't have anything more sinister going on and will have a great retirement as someone's best friend.

Thank you to everyone who participated in our auction and for the many top-ups on individual invoices. I hope to have a grand total by Monday!

20/03/2025

AND NOW YOU KNOW

I would like to extend a thank you, again, to everyone who chipped in to provide cremation services for two cats last month. It meant the world that Nami (black cat) could be cremated and returned to her family.

WLCA had been entrusted with the bodies after necropsy. This is not standard practice, but we advocated for the option in order to provide closure to the family and to help with healing.

I had said, early on, that their stories would be told, when possible. We thank Chris Kitching of the Winnipeg Free Press for his diligence on this case, and Nami's family for having the courage to speak out. It is important to realize that people who are looking to rehome their pets DO care and would never purposely put them in the hands of a killer.

Nero, the white cat, has not been recovered deceased, or found alive yet, and my motto is "Where there is no body, there's always hope." Please continue to be vigilant if you see a pure white cat in your area. He has a tattoo and could be anywhere.

The second cat that was cremated had also been found at the same location where Nami was found and it didn't feel right to cremate Nami and not the other cat. Although we have no idea who the cat is, you have provided dignity to a cat that suffered, terribly, at the hands of a stranger.

The cat was named Giiwedin. The word refers to the north wind and it was fitting that this cat's spirit ride the north wind home. Their ashes are in safekeeping in a loving home - where they should have been all along.

NOTE: The Free Press Article is behind a paywall, but you can provide your email address to read it.

Screenshot: Winnipeg Free Press online article

18/03/2025

MEET SHADOW

Shadow was just trapped today by a community cat manager. He had been cared for since 2021, when he showed up, and has been coming and going ever since. He has never allowed anyone to get close in the last three years. Thanks to the fallout from the pandemic, this manager wasn't able to get him done when they wanted and then he became a little inconsistent with his attendance at the feeding station.

Two days ago, he showed up with a brutally gunky nose and it was time to get him in. He went from being a skittish boy to allowing pets, perhaps indicating he knew he needed help. But after a small pet, he backed away and couldn't just be picked up.

He is now, safely, in boarding and will be assessed this week by a vet. He will be tested for viruses, neutered and the whole nine yards after his upper respiratory infection has cleared. We hope that won't take long. Looks like Shadow is going to be a sweetie.

Please join the WLCA Auctions group and participate in our auction this evening because this kid is worth it!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/954211892912422

15/03/2025

AUCTION COMING UP MARCH 17-20!

A preview of just a few of the items available! Join the WLCA Auctions group if you would like to participate! You cannot bid if you don't join.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/954211892912422

14/03/2025

COURT DATE CONFIRMATIONS

We have had several people provide differing information about when court dates for animal cruelty cases are slated. I have been able to get the confirmed dates, so anyone who wants to attend any demonstrations outside, can do so on the right day.

For Lima and Cabecz, there is a publication ban, so the public may not be allowed into court. For Jensen, no one knows if he needs to attend his hearing. It may be a simple lawyer-only situation and it may just be paperwork.

So, should anyone be preparing to attend, or demonstrate in support of victims and against animal cruelty, the verified dates are:

Chad Kabecz: March 17, 9:30 am
Randy Jensen: March 18, time not specified
Irene Lima: April 4, 9:30 am

NOTE: TIMES AND DATES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITH NO NOTICE.

Photo credit: (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Daniel Crump)

13/03/2025

SUMMIT BRIDGE CAT KILLER UPDATE

Freep article behind paywall, but here’s how it starts…

Note: Only intelligent comments will be allowed to go live.

13/03/2025

DON'T FORGET!

Our online auction is March 17-20. Remember to join our auction group to get in on the bidding!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/954211892912422

ALSO

Anyone donating items for the auction MUST have their APPROVED items in to the drop off location by Saturday, March 14 (unless I approved a later date in advance). We will not accept anything beyond that date as photos have to be taken, etc. It's not an easy job and there aren't many days left to do the work.

Also a note that some people have added items that were not approved for auction. Those items may, or may not, be auctioned. If they're not, they will go to Sally Ann unless you message that you want to pick the items up.

Thanks!

06/03/2025

WE CAN ONLY DREAM. OR CAN WE?