The best things in life are rescued!
Resources
Kitten Season!
Is there really such a thing as kitten season? Absolutely! To learn more about kitten season, what it is, what to do and what not to do, and how you can help, just click the link to the left.
Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR)
Trap-Neuter-Return, or “TNR” for short, is the humane approach to controlling feral cat overpopulation. It’s a community-based program that involves concerned citizens like you trapping free-roaming cats in your neighborhood, bringing them to a clinic to get them spayed or neutered, and then returning the cats to the exact location where you trapped them so they can live out the rest of their natural lives, ideally with a caregiver also providing food, water and shelter for them. The Solano County Sheriff's Office provides low cost spay/neuter for feral colonies. If you have a feral colony, please consider TNR. For more information on why it is important to TNR feral colonies and why it works, check out the link on the left.
Solano County Sheriff's Office Vaccination Clinic offers low cost vaccinations on Tuesday's, Wednesday's, and Thursday's -- no appointment necessary.
Declawing: why it's a bad idea!
Before you make the decision to declaw your cat, there are some important facts you should know. Declawing is not like a manicure. It is serious surgery. Your cat's claw is not a toenail. It is closely adhered to the bone. So closely adhered that to remove the claw, the last bone of your cat's claw has to be removed. Declawing is actually an amputation of the last joint of your cat's toe. When you envision that, it becomes clear why declawing is not a humane act. It is painful surgery, with a painful recovery. And remember that during the time of recuperation from the surgery your cat still has to use its feet to walk, jump, and scratch in it's litter box, regardless of the pain it is experiencing.
Hopefully after reading this you realize that declawing is too drastic a solution, but you're still concerned about keeping your household furnishings intact. Are there solutions? Yes! There are actually several. You can teach your cat to use a scratching post, or cardboard scratchers, and you can trim their front claws. Since you can't keep your cat from scratching, you must rechannel this natural instinct. Whatever you choose to provide for your cat or kitten, make sure you entice them into using the scratcher, whether by play, by sprinkling a little catnip, or providing treats. It is important to start young before they've had a chance to mark their territory with scratching. You have to be diligent and persistent, but you can do it!
