How did two investigators end up inadvertently starting a sick and injured cat rescue? Easy! We merely need to wait for the Cat Distribution System to glitch and over deliver.
At first, we merely took in Mandarin, a feline leukemia positive grizzled warrior of cat wars. He was soon joined by his four similarly affected children, so the idea was born to start a suite just for them, as there really wasn’t any other place for them to go.
We had been participating in T-N-R efforts in El Paso for quite a while, trapping, transporting and holding for Sun City Cats; starting from our own neighborhood and then assisting others who trapped as far out at Clint. It was easy – trap, hold, transport to the clinic, bring back, watch and return. Then, one week, everything changed.
First, we got a call from a trapping duo who informed us that they found a tiny kitten in the area and asked for advice. We told them to turn the place upside down and see if there were others. With the assistance of their dog, they located three more babies and after a short time in our quarantine area for check up and clean up we realized that their mom had been trapped the day before and was being held at our house. Shortly after, we got to experience the unbridled joy of reuniting a mama cat with her babies – Mama Gracie, who had been very friendly with us when she was in the trap, immediately switched from trap to the kennel with her babies and began nursing. We can still hear the purrrsss that were coming out of the young mother and her brood.
“Ah, well”, we said. “We’ll let the babies grow and then we’ll get everyone adopted.” Famous last words.
A few days later, an officer from Animal Services asked for assistance. Five kittens, maybe 4 weeks old, needed a temporary home and medical care. We said yes and shortly after we had 5 fuzballs with panleukopenia, ocular herpes, calcivirus and toxoplasmosis in our care. Two of them succumbed to their illnesses and three others fought with everything they had, aided by supportive care from our magnificent veterinarians and their staff. While the babies eventually survived, it soon became obvious that all the sickness had left its mark – they all ended up with chronic intestinal issues that will require a lifetime of care.
Within the same week, we got a call from our vet, asking for assistance. The crew at a local oil change place rescued three kittens they found loitering near their shop and needed a place for them to go. “Sure!”, we said and we went to pick them up. It became obvious pretty much immediately that the kittens were ill and off we were through another round of viruses and bacterial infections that left us with another batch of furballs with chronic problems.
Why did we take all these kittens in? Because they didn’t have any other place to go. The animal welfare situation in El Paso has been bad for years, but it turned terrible with the advent of COVID. People who adopted pets as companions dumped them once the quarantine was over. Our local Lost and Found Pets page on Facebook began featuring a lot more found pets and our no-kill shelter and rescues got overwhelmed pretty quickly.
But, we decided to persevere and ensure that the kitties in our care live out their lives in peace and quiet. We are small but mighty and with your assistance, at least a little part of the cruel world will brighten up and become a safe and loving haven for cats that no one wants.