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HomeMy WebLinkAboutGrant Request - CRAFT - Bottle-Can Project CAT RESCUE, ADOPTION & FOSTER TEAM (CRAFT) Past, Present & Future ___________________  Tiny skeletons in the tall weeds. The location, a worn-out house right in the heart of Redmond, was home to at least 25 cats and kittens that were living in a dumpster and beneath the house. The neighbors had tried in vain for over a year to get local authorities or the shelter to help these unfortunate cats. Finally a jogger who lived blocks away saw the cats rummaging for food in the dumpster, and called around enough to learn about CRAFT. The next day CRAFT volunteers approached the resident, who agreed to cooperate as long as the cats did not go someplace where they would be euthanized. 17 cats and kittens were loaded into carriers, and since that time volunteers have brought in 6 more. Even though she signed a release form for all cats to be removed, the resident became less than cooperative after the first day, which happens all too often, so the remaining cats are being caught at the neighbor’s. All of the cats had a bacterial intestinal infection, which was treated immediately. They were also treated for parasites, vaccinated, etc. Two weeks later, they were spayed and neutered and ID chipped, and were then ready for new forever homes. Several of the cats had given birth in the past month or two, but the babies could not have survived this kind of infection. Thus, tiny skeletons in the tall weeds. Another challenging day in the life of the CRAFT volunteers. ___________________ Prior to this rescue, CRAFT had received 14 cats and kittens from Canyon City, Oregon. The authorities there were rounding up cats from the home of an elderly person who was unable to care for them, and the cats were to be destroyed as there is no shelter in that area. A local woman talked them into waiting, and contacted CRAFT. CRAFT agreed to take in the remaining 18, some of which were mom cats with tiny kittens. ___________________ Before that, CRAFT accepted 23 starving cats from a farm outside Redmond where the resident decided it was time to ‘thin out’ the cat numbers by shooting them. His sister asked us if we would take them and for help in getting them out of there. ___________________ Prior to that, over three month’s time CRAFT rescued a total of 96 cats and kittens from a ‘collector’ situation in Madras. The two big shelters took in about 30 cats each. Jefferson County has no shelter for cats and must place immediately or euthanize those that come to the dog pound. About a dozen of these cats required specialized veterinary care, but all have new forever homes. One of these kittens was Lyle. ___________________ About the same time, CRAFT became aware of a group of 16 Munchkin cats living in squalor for years in a makeshift ‘kitten mill’ pen in a Bend backyard. All had health issues, and the females used as breeding stock all had uterine infections that were life- threatening. All have since been adopted, including several that required extensive veterinary care. Here’s the Munchkin ‘pit’. ___________________ On top of the larger rescues, CRAFT rescues or accepts individual cats or smaller groups of cats from a variety of situations. Some are abandoned or abused, others come in as strays, and far too many are surrenders from desperate people who often have ended up without jobs or homes. The two local shelters either turn them away at the door, or accept the cats only to euthanize most of them. ___________________ CRAFT cannot help these forgotten or abandoned cats without the help of the community. Grants and corporate donations are hard to get, and most government funding goes to the shelters that take in dogs. Much of CRAFT’s income goes to spay/neuter, the only real long-term answer to the problem of too many unwanted & abandoned pets. By the Numbers 2006: 494 cats cared for by CRAFT 2007: 569 cats cared for by CRAFT 2008: 588 cats cared for by CRAFT 2009: 1,023 cats cared for by CRAFT 2010: 1,134 cats cared for by CRAFT 2011: 1,268 cats cared for by CRAFT 34% from the Redmond area 23% from Terrebonne/Madras 14% from the La Pine/Sunriver area 13% from the Bend area 5% from the Sisters area 11% from other parts of the State CRAFT’s Wish List  Good quality dry & canned cat food  KMR kitten formula & bottles  Good quality canned & dry kitten food  Clay litter; scoopable litter  Cleaning and laundry supplies  Occasional handyman help  Trees, shrubs and flowers, & an irrigation system for landscaping around the sanctuary  A 10 x 20 storage shed for cages, carriers, litter and supplies  Fold-down cages  Quality live traps  Professional grooming services  Professional bookkeeping services  Gift cards for purchases of vaccines and medical supplies  Volunteer help with cattery chores, grooming, on-site adoption days, off- site adoption events, advertising, fundraising events, outreach to retailers & others regarding services & supplies, trapping & transporting, etc. More Numbers – Expense Breakdown Veterinarian fees: 58% Prescription meds: 5% Non-prescription meds: 4% Litter: 7% Food: 6% ID chips: 4% Supplies and equipment: 5% Building maintenance: 6% Other (advertising, fees, professional services, postage, etc.): 5% ___________________ Cat Rescue, Adoption & Foster Team P O Box 6441, Bend, OR 97708 (mail) 65480 78th St., Bend (sanctuary) (541) 389-8420 info@craftcats.org www.craftcats.org Nonprofit federal ID #26-3044332