Street Animals - Sterilize is Protect!

In recent months, a few kittens started to emerge at my backyard. They were looking for food and affection. How they were fed, the colony grown. They were wild, but I manage to conquer their affection. At the moment, the colony has 14 elements: 1 senior male (Oliver), 3 adult males (Blue, Summer, Tiger), 1 adult female (Mummy), 3 young females (Cookie, Lady, Julie) and 6 newly born kittens. Sometimes, there are other male cats seeking to reproduce. They start fights, causing wounds in the ani...

Save a life! Help the homeless cats!

Oliver is gentle with every person, but is always involved in fights with other male cats. Blue is very calm and loves to snuggle at my grandfather lap. Summer is a little scared, but loves affection. Tiger is also sweet, but is afraid of Oliver and disappears frequently. Mummy is a sweetheart and has 2 beautiful kittens. She takes care of them with a lot of love. Cookie is blind in one eye. She was the most wild of all, but not anymore. Lady is easy to love. Julie is a young mom and after 3 weeks rejected the 4 kittens. Now I am responsible for taking care of them. They are numerous, but I am in love with all of them!

I am able to feed them all, but I cannot support the veterinary costs. I was seeking for the best solution for these animals, so I began trying to find an appropriate family to each of them. The problem is that the kittens are poorly friendly with strangers. Nobody wants to adopt them. Hopefully it will be easier to adopt the newly born kittens. In alternative to adoption, I started a partnership with the association Animais de Rua (“Street Animals”).

The sterilization of the cats is important to maintain healthy colonies. It reduces parasites such as fleas and the search for partners to reproduce. If all cats are sterilized no more kittens will be born on the streets.

These animals need someone to take care of them. They have been abandoned before, they were born on the streets, but they didn’t lose hope. If we all help, we can make the difference. We can make them, healthier and happier kittens.

Esterilizar é Proteger! Salve a Cookie!

About the author

I'm 24 years old. I'm finishing university. I will begin my professional activity next year. I hope helping even more.

We have adopted a kitten, very energetic and with a strong personality. She is poorly friendly with strangers or other animals, even cats. She runs away and hides whenever we receive visits. She scares up when she see the other cats across the window.

My dog was adopted, 13 years ago, as a puppy. He was a little confused and had reduced mobility. He died a few days ago. I'm happy to know he has lived a long and happy life!

Now I gather all my efforts to help these abandoned and unloved kittens.

The Association

The main objective of the Association Animais de Rua (“Street Animals”) is the development of TNR activities (Trap-Neuter-Return). Feral cats are not friendly and are unlikely to be adopted. The association has a policy of not killing, therefore is against the public shelters that kill the animals (unless they have an incurable disease which is causing intense suffering). The solution to the problem of wildlife colonies that breed in the public domain without any kind of control, involves neutering these animals.

All animals captured by the association are sterilized and medically treated. During the surgery of feral cats, ear-tipping of the left ear identifies that the cat has been neutered and treated, when later seen from a distance. Later, the animals are released into their environment, where they will be fed and controlled by the Association and by individuals who assume their protection. Once neutered, these animals will no longer be reproduced, and the population of stray animals will decrease dramatically.

A controlled colony is a healthy colony (only fed with water and food in clean containers), quiet (less likely to roam, spray urine and fight) and it’s important to control the rat population.

The friendly animals are kept in foster care until they are adopted. If there are insufficient resources to foster or shelter, the cats may be returned to outdoor colony locations in the same manner as feral cats, as we seek families that want to adopt.

Association Animais de Rua:

www.animaisderua.org 

www.facebook.com/animaisderua

Association Animais de Rua S. Miguel Center:

www.facebook.com/animaisderuanucleodesaomiguel

Budget and due dates

Through the Association Animais de Rua (“Street Animals”), neutering the animals costs 40€ for female cats and 20€ for male cats. The total for my colony is 240€ (4 males and 4 females). Feeding costs are my responsibility.

Once it's assembled the required amount, the animals will be collected by the association and taken for neutering, followed by a short recovery period. Later they will be returned to their normal space, my garden, where I will continue to care for them.

The remaining amount (260€) will entirely for the Association Animais de Rua (“Street Animals”). Then, more abandoned animals (cats and dogs) can be neutered, having a healthier and happier life!

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