By Nomi Berger

​Have you ever thought of getting involved in the world of animal rescue, but didn’t quite know how?

Here then, are twelve different ways – one for each month – for you to resolve to make a difference in the lives of rescue animals this year. Even if you choose only one, that choice will make all the difference in the world.

1. Contact a local cat rescue and ask to volunteer for them. Since volunteers form the backbone of every nonprofit organization, no group can function successfully without them. Some of the areas always in need of extra hands include reference checking, updating email lists, attending adoption events, planning and attending fundraisers, distributing flyers, pamphlets and brochures, and transportation.

2. Refer ONE feline-loving friend to the same rescue to volunteer alongside you.

3. Click onto their web site and make a monetary contribution to them online either as a onetime payment or as recurring monthly payments.

4. Read about the various other ways you can help: from purchasing items for them from their ”wish lists” to regularly using the online “stores” featured on their site.

5. Follow their Face Book page, “like” them, “comment” and “share” their postings on a daily basis, and vote for them in every online competition.

6. Instead of accepting birthday gifts this year, ask your family and friends to make contributions to the rescue in your name.

7. Host a small fundraiser (bake sales, garage sales and yard sales are among the most popular) and donate the proceeds to them. You will receive not only their gratitude, but a tax receipt as well.

8. At your place of work, keep a container on your desk with the rescue’s name on it, and encourage your co-workers to deposit their spare change inside. Once the container is full, bring the change to the bank (already rolled, please), mail the rescue a check, and start again.

9. Sign petitions calling on your city to ban the sale of cats in all pet stores unless they’re from animal shelters, rescue groups or people surrendering them for free.

10. Turn your old car or truck into a tax-deductible contribution by donating it to the
rescue.

​11. Foster an available cat. Learn precisely what’s required of you, then welcome one very needy and deserving animal into your home temporarily, until he or she can be placed in a permanent home.

12. Adopt a rescue cat and save two lives – the life of the one you’re adopting, and the life of the one immediately taking his or her place.

As for next year? Either continue working your way down this list, or resolve to draw up a list of you own.

by Nomi Berger
 
“There’s no place like home for the holidays,” according to the popular 1950’s song.  But for many, there IS no home. Not even for the holidays.
 
The “many” are those kittens and cats, abused or abandoned, surrendered or sick.
 
The “many” are those kittens and cats, perhaps safe for today, while tomorrow remains a question mark.
 
With 2016 drawing to a close, we celebrate some of the “many” we were able to save and place in loving forever homes thanks to the compassion and generosity of our many loyal supporters.
 
Now, as you gather with your families and four-legged companions, we ask that you remember those without either families or companions. As you celebrate at home with those you love, we ask that you remember those with no home and no love.
 
Because this is the season of giving, we hope that you will remember them AND us with the gift of a seasonal donation. For only your continuous support will allow us to remain true to our mission of rescuing and adopting out kittens and cats from Northeast Texas kill shelters.
 
Because our needs and theirs are so great, no contribution is ever too small to make a great difference.
 
To learn how YOU can make a difference this holiday season, please visit us at:
http://www.thecatsmeowrescue.org/help-us-help-them.html.

by Nomi Berger
 
As the thermometer plunges and the days grow darker earlier and stay colder longer, there are entire colonies of cats that could not survive without the compassion and warmth of humans.
 
With North American winters becoming increasingly more severe, feral cats are faced daily with the terrible reality of either starving or freezing to death. But there are solutions, if members of the human community act humanely to provide the homeless cats in their neighborhoods with the shelter, food and water they lack and need.
 
In regions where snow falls and accumulates, blocking their usual safe places to live during the warmer months, these homeless cats’ “homes” virtually disappear. Offering them alternative places to live is both affordable and easy.
 
New or used doghouses provide the best protection as long as the opening is narrowed (6 to 8 inches is best) or covered with a flap to both keep out the elements and other roaming animals. Rubbermaid and Tupperware storage bins are two excellent alternatives, as are heavily insulated meat packing cartons – all with small openings carved into one side
 
For added warmth, insulation and comfort, place fresh straw (no clothing, which can stick to the cat’s body and freeze) on the floor. Straw helps to retain heat and repel moisture. Because cats will huddle together for warmth, provide a colony of cats with several shelters that can accommodate from three to five cats each. If caring for fewer cats, use a smaller shelter that requires less body heat to keep it warm.
 
Make certain to raise the shelters off the ground and situate them far from foot or street traffic in as quiet an area as possible. And after a snowfall, ensure that you shovel out the entrances to these shelters to prevent them from clogging up with snow and trapping the cats inside.
 
Food and water are the next in this trio of necessities. And because most feral cats are terrified of people, leaving some food near the entrances to the shelters will, by their scent alone, entice them close, closer, closest. Then, only a few paw prints away are their new winter homes.
 
Establish a “feeding station” NEAR each shelter to provide easy access for both you and the cats, then try to establish a regular schedule for feeding and water changing. The cats will quickly become accustomed to this routine while also growing accustomed to and less fearful of your approach.
 
Feed them larger than usual portions of easily digestible wet food, and on the coldest days, provide them with dry food as well, since the wet food can quickly freeze. But spraying insulation foam onto the underside of plastic dishes will help to keep the wet food from freezing at all. For water, use deep rather than shallow bowls and warm or hot rather than cold water. If possible, change the water twice a day, adding a pinch of sugar each time, to both keep it from freezing as quickly and to provide the cats with an extra energy boost.
 
And so, simply by acting humanely, we as caring communities can help those most helpless and vulnerable in our neighborhoods stay safe and stay alive this winter.

by Nomi Berger

With the holidays approaching, it’s time to think not only about celebrating, but also about cat safety. Any changes in a cat’s regular routine – a home suddenly filled with new scents, sounds and strangers -- may send even the least “scaredy-cat” cats scampering for cover.
 
Be conscious of and careful about the plants you bring into your home. Despite their obvious beauty, holly, mistletoe and poinsettia are toxic to cats and should be kept out of reach, while a single leaf from any form of lily is lethal. The oils of a Christmas tree can irritate their mouths and stomachs, causing vomiting, while the prickly needles are hazardous to their entire GI tracts.
 
To err on the side of caution, consider buying an artificial tree and artificial plants instead.
 
Consider next the breakable ornaments and dangling tinsel, shiny ribbons and artificial snow, ropes of small lights and flickering candles. All eye-catching eye candy to curious kitties with batting paws, small, sharp teeth and swishing tails.
 
Hang delicate ornaments higher on the tree and resist placing any in decorative bowls on low surfaces. Not only can cats choke on them, but the sharp edges of any broken pieces can lacerate their mouths, throats and intestines. Drape tinsel higher on the tree as well, and keep ribbons on gifts underneath the tree to a minimum. If tinsel or ribbons are swallowed, they can twist and bunch inside a cat’s intestines, causing serious, sometimes fatal, damage if not caught quickly enough.
 
Artificial snow is toxic and should be avoided at all costs. Lights, large and small, solid and flickering are another danger, not only because they are hot and breakable, but because of the electrical cords holding them together. If bitten, they can cause electrical shock if not properly grounded, and if frayed, they can cause severe lacerations to your cat’s tongue.

Place all lighted candles out of reach to reduce the risk of singed fur and pads, paws and tails, and lower the chance of them being tipped over, leaving burning wax everywhere or worse, starting a fire.
 
As appetizing as holiday fare is for people, it can prove agonizing, even lethal for pets. The most notorious offenders are:

Raisins and grapes: A handful of raisins can cause sudden kidney failure in a cat. Also avoid giving her grapes, while watching for signs of toxicity should she accidentally eat some. Signs that usually occur within 24 hours are lack of appetite, lethargy, weakness, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and decreased urination.

Onions and garlic: The sulfoxides and disulfides in both destroy red blood cells and can cause serious blood problems including anemia.

Fat trimmings: They cause upset stomachs, vomiting, and diarrhea.

Bones: Whatever the size, shape or texture, they all spell the same thing: danger. From throat scratches to stomach perforations to bowel obstructions. To safeguard against these painful possibilities, all leftovers, particularly bones, should be carefully wrapped and promptly disposed of.

Alcohol: It’s traditional to celebrate the holidays with more alcohol than usual – in cooking and in drinks such as eggnog and fruit punch. For safety’s sake, keep these temptations (including partially eaten plates of food and half-empty glasses) out of the reach of your cat to avoid intoxication and alcohol poisoning.

Chocolates: Although chocolate has long been taboo for cats, most chocolates are wrapped in foil for the holidays. Now, not only can your cat get sick from eating the chocolate, the wrappers themselves can get stuck in her throat or cause problems as they work their way through her digestive tract.

Christmas pudding, cake and mince pie: Filled with potentially toxic raisins, currants, and sultanas, they are also made with fat and suet, and laced with alcohol -- from scotch and brandy to sugary liqueurs.
 
With some strategic planning beforehand, you and your cherished kitty companion can enjoy the happiest and healthiest of holidays.