Mama Kitty

Kitten season is stressful not only for us animal workers, but also for the mama kitties. These cats were often once someone's family pet that they neglected to have spayed and then left to roam the neighborhood. If she is not caught and spayed, a female cat can have roughly 3 litters per year, with an average of 4-6 kittens per litter.



If a mama cat finds her way into a shelter with her babies, she will inevitably stay in that shelter longer then her babies. Many people will often over look mama cat and instead choose to adopt one of her cute and cuddly babies.



Mama Kitty (MK) was destined to be one of those over looked mamas



Mama Kitty came into a near by shelter with four beautiful Siamese and Russian blue babies. Because the babies were too young to be on their own, the entire family went into one of our amazing foster homes. Once the babies were old enough to be separated, they were placed into loving families. Mama Kitty needed some time after her babies left before she could be placed up for adoption. It was during that time that her foster family decided that she had already found her home! She was such a good attentive mama to her babies and yet still found time to play with the resident boys. She won the entire family (the two leggers, and four leggers) over with her sweet and gentle disposition.

Luckily for Hopalong, the fosters still continued fostering and Mama Kitty has proven to be an asset with the subsequent litters. She takes charge of them, shows them the ropes, and even gives them their daily baths! And right now, she is anxiously awaiting her next litter of youngins to play with.

Mama Kitty was lucky to find her forever home quickly because many mama cats often stay in the shelter or in foster homes for a few months after their babies are adopted. So, if you are looking to add another feline friend to your house, consider the fact that kittens only stay small for a little while. Please take the time to consider adopting a mama cat.

Pet Survivor Program

Nikko and Gypsy are two very sweet senior dogs that came into Hopalong through our Pet Survivor Program. Nikko, the white 15 year old male, and Gypsy, the black 11 year old female, became part of the Hopalong family when their ailing owner had to move into an assisted living facility that didn't allow pets. Because he made arrangements for them prior to entering the facility, we ensured that these two sweet, family dogs never entered a public shelter.

Many people love their pets like family, but few people actually create a plan in the event of tragedy. It can be difficult to think about these things, but it would be even more difficult for these (often older) pets if they ended up in the shelter system.

Kittens Are Here!

It seems to be that time of year again: the days are longer, the weather is warmer, the flowers are in bloom and kittens are popping up everywhere. As a rescue worker, kittens always bring mixed emotions. All year long we work with people educating them about the importance of spay and neuter; but every year, we see kittens in shelters by the hundreds. And while it saddens me to see all these kittens, I also get that warm fuzzy feeling when I pick them up and they start purring in your ear.

Meet Paul:


Paul is one of the first kittens of this year. We estimate his birthdate to be at the end of January. Both paul and his brother Bert, were born to a feral mom. They were rescued early and with the help of some great foster moms, we were able to socialize them. We neutered them, tested them for Feline Leukemia and FIV. They have been de-wormed, vaccinated and microchiped. Both are now available for adoption.

The first kittens are always exciting. And I always have to remind myself that we wouldn't have so many great kittens if we didn't have so many great foster parents to care for them until they are ready to be adopted out.




Oh, yeah. . .we were able to get mom fixed too.

Crafty

Crafty came to us from a shelter that we don't visit very often for dogs - the Hayward Animal shelter. HAS has a wonderful group of volunteers and rescue groups that help out weekly to ensure that the most adoptable animals find great new homes. We help out when we are needed with the dogs, but our help is most needed for the cats.

One day while visiting the shelter looking for some cats/kittens, I came across two 3 month old pit bull puppies. They were everything that you would expect from the breed: they were happy and active with goofy personalitites - plus they were just adorable. After spending some time with them, I knew that they would be perfect for our program. I brough them back to the office and everyone here fell in love with them too- we even had some staff members fostering them for awhile!

Crafty and Spring were spayed and Neutered; they were also vaccinated and given microchips - we don't take any chances with our babies! Eventually they went into "regular" foster homes where they were taugh basic manners and attended some obedience classes. They started going to mobile adoption events where they were the stars of the show.

Crafty was eventually adopted from our website, but his sister spring is still available for adoption. So if you know anyone who is interested. . .




Have them fill out an application

The Story of Dusty and Daisy

My best friend and I were having a writer's day early in November. We heard cats crying and we went out to see if we could help. The cries led us to a home on my street. In the back of the house was an abandoned chicken coop behind a tangle of used auto parts, beer cans and spare wood. We could see Daisy and Dusty locked into a 1 foot by 4 foot section of the coop.


There was no evidence of food or water and no litter box. The cats looked panicked and dirty and smelled terrible. I could not reach in to pet them through the chicken wire. We talked to the children who lived in the home, and they told us Daisy and Dusty belonged to an uncle who had to give them up when he moved. They said the cats had been there for about a month. I asked if I could talk to the uncle and talk to him about signing the two girls over to me so I could re-home them. On Thanksgiving day, the children came to the door saying their uncle had come to visit and would we come down to get the cats. The cat's owner did not speak much English, but he told me he was very sad this had happened to the cats, and cried and kissed them goodbye when I packed both girls to bring them back to my home. Daisy was so friendly and so sweet, she took to our family right away. Dusty was shy for the first few weeks, sitting far away and watching me with her sapphire eyes. It took about a month to get the girls back to a decent weight, and smelling better. A pre-adoption physical revealed serious dental issues for both Daisy and Dusty - with Daisy having a great deal of teeth removed. She had 1 remaining fang and all the teeth on one side removed. Daisy also had a bad case of ear mites that had scarred her ears. After their surgery, both girls recovered quickly.

Daisy is a total people cat and sweet love bug. Even given all of the pain she had to be dealing with, she was generous with her purrs and affection. Dusty had grown comfortable enough to regulary demand belly rubs. We knew it would difficult to find forever homes for the 7 year old girls, as they did not show well in the cages at the mobile adoptions. We were fortunate to have found wonderful homes for both ladies. Dusty used her sweet deep blue eyes to win the heart of her "soul mate". The lucky new adopter had said that she and Dusty belonged together because they had so much in common. Daisy met her new life companion at Your Basic Bird in Berkeley. She is now the benevolent alpha cat in a four cat home full of love and kitty perks. She has been re-named Ruthie, and her new mom posts pictures of her on facebook.

Pearl Found a Home

Pearl, a beautiful white lab/shepherd, has been with HAR since the winter of '08. She came to us through a joint rescue effort to help with a horder situation in Gabbs, Nevada. There were 58 dogs living in deplorable conditions after their owner died when a neighboring racher contacted the Nevada Humane Society. To help ease them of this huge burden, HSUS EARS and Best Friends Animal Sanctuary were able to trasport some of these animals to Contra Costa Animal Services in Martinez.

Hopalong/Second Chance took in Pearl and Pawl (a sweet, 6 year old, black lab boy). Once here, they were seen by a vet where it was determined that pearl had a severe heart murmer and was deaf. After some time in a foster home, it was also apparent that she was also almost blind. Pearl was clearly a special needs dog and it would take just the right owner to care for this girl.

Here at HAR, we believed that the perfect home was out there, and we kept our fingers crossed that one day we would get a call asking about Pearl. And, recently, we did.

Pearl, now Zuma, was adopted into a quiet household with another dog - Enzo, a 7 year old black chepherd mix. The family reports that Enzo has taken the big brother role quite seriously and is teaching her the ropes on their daily walks. Zuma is even getting trips to Point Isabel where she is getting to meet other dog friends and gets to visit with her foster family.

Zuma's new family says " My husband and I are very thankful for [the fosters'] dedication to this special dog, and that the timing worked out for us to be the lucky ones to give her her forever home"

Long Time Lexi

Lexi has been with us for an entire year. She came to us from the stockton shelter as a youngster - an energetic and crazy youngster! While Lexi was at the office, she would hang from the top of one of our two story cages and howl to get out. It was obvious that she had been in the shelter for a while before we came to get her. But we figured that some time and stretching room in a foster home would help quell some of that energy and that she would be quickly adopted; who can resist her princess-like beauty?

Lexi went into a foster home where she eventually had the run of the house. She could often be found climbing the curtains and taking flying leaps off of the refrigerator. It became very obvious that it would take a while before she was ready to go into a cage again at one of our sites or for a mobile adoption event. But then her foster got a job offer in another state and had to move. Luckily one of the foster's friends decided to take on the "Lexi Challenge". Again, lexi would be found in places she shouldn't and also got a little fiesty from time to time - what woman in her right mind wouldn't? And so it was that Lexi became a long termer. She was quite happy in her foster house and the foster family was glad to have her - but we weren't ready to give up on her yet.

Its funny how things work out in the end: One of our staff member's family was visiting the office on the day that Lexi came in - and she regulary asked about her. Lexi just stuck in her mind as something special - despite her caged craziness. The staff member figured that Lexi would be too much cat and tried to steer her towards calmer/older cats to no avail! After a lot of discussion and preperation, the family member decided it was time to bring lexi home and to make it work.

Lexi - renamed Frankie - spent the next two weeks in the office where she was able to get used to the house's sounds and smells. . . and the pitter-patter of little doggie feet. Eventally she was given more and more freedom and introduced to the rest of the pack. Frankie is enjoying her canine companions more then any of us thought possible. Frankie's mom even had a cat-safe fence built so she can romp and play with the dogs safely in the yard. It seems to be doing her a world of good because she hasn't not climbed the curtains once! (does it still count if they are verticle blinds???)