Why FosterCat?

Foster Cat, Inc. is all about saving lives. It’s as simple as that. We are an all-volunteer non-profit organization dedicated to the proposition that all cats and kittens deserve safe, loving, permanent homes.

Our foster parents provide temporary care for cats and kittens in their homes until they can be placed for adoption. Their compassion provides the second chance that so many stray, abandoned or homeless kitties need, and the satisfaction of knowing that they have helped save the lives of these helpless animals.

FosterCat provides training and support, medications, food and litter as needed, and absorbs all veterinary expenses associated with the care of our kitties. If you love kitties and would like to be a part of our lifesaving team, consider opening your heart and home to cats or kittens in need. We promise you won’t regret it! If you can’t foster, you can still help save lives as a volunteer or supporting member. Click on “How You Can Help”, above, for more information.

 

 

Tickets Available for FosterCat, Inc.'s FIFTH ANNUAL SPAGHETTI DINNER

DATE: Saturday, September 11, 2010


Mark your calendars for Saturday, September 11, and come out to enjoy a good meal and help FosterCat raise funds to care for our kitties. We'll again be serving from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Wallace Memorial Presbyterian Church at 1146 Greentree Road. Meat and meatless sauces will be served and take out will be available.

 

We will need volunteers to help sell tickets, distribute fliers, make sauce, and/or help out the day of the event with set up, serving, manning tables, and clean up. So please plan to help if you can and are available.

 

BUY TICKETS ON LINE OR BY PHONE

 

Click on the buttons below to buy your tickets now!

 

Ticket prices are $9 for adults and $4 for children. For ticket information, please contact FosterCat, Inc. at 412-481-9144. Tickets can also be conveniently and securely purchased via PayPal on our web site.

 

If you click on the "Add to Cart" button for an adult ticket, a new window will be created with your PayPal shopping cart. To add a child's ticket, simply return to the FosterCat homepage and click on the "Add to Cart" button for a child's ticket and it will be added to your PayPal shopping cart. You can adjust ticket quantities from there.

 

Be sure to print out your receipt and bring it with you to the dinner. This will show our volunteers that you paid in advance and they will issue your tickets at the event. See you there!

 

Adult Ticket
Child Ticket

 

 

Are We Almost There?

If you have kids or have ever been a kid, you probably remember hearing or saying those words while riding in the car. I certainly can. And I can remember my mother (who was probably ready to strangle us after being asked that question a dozen times) telling us that yes, we would be there in just a little while longer.

 

I can’t help but think that Hampton must have been asking that question as he traveled the long journey to his own permanent home. That journey began in January, 2009, when someone found him roaming the streets of the North Side and turned him in to the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society (WPHS). He was two years old and had been neutered, so he must have belonged to someone at one time.

 

After being examined and vaccinated by the WPHS vet, Hampton was delivered to the Cranberry PetSmart for adoption. A month later, one of our volunteers happened to be at the store picking up one of our cats for a cage break and was asked by one of the PetSmart managers if she could take Hampton home. The manager explained that Hampton had had blood in his urine for several days and they had been trying to reach WPHS to tell them to come pick him up, but no one had returned their calls. It was a Friday night and the manager was concerned about Hampton not getting any medical attention over the weekend. Our volunteer contacted our president, who told her to go ahead and take Hampton home. She in turn, contacted our liaison at WPHS to let her know what had happened and to tell her that we would be willing to take Hampton into our program and see that he got the veterinary attention he needed.

 

As it turned out, Hampton was suffering from a sever urinary tract infection and was treated with appropriate medications. The vet also recommended feeding him a prescription diet (Feline C/D), since he had had the infection for quite some time and had developed scar tissue in his bladder, which made a recurrence more likely.

 

Hampton was treated and a subsequent urinalysis indicated that the infection had been cleared. We moved him to a more permanent foster home and over the ensuing months, he made a number of visits to PetSmart for adoption without success. Feline C/D is expensive and we knew this would discourage some potential adopters.

 

As the months went by, Hampton began to show some signs of stress in his foster home. His foster mom thought he might be happier in a foster home with fewer animals, so Hampton went to a new foster home, with two dogs and no other cats. He got along well with the dogs and seemed to be happier there, but after a few months, the foster parent advised us that she was moving to an apartment that only allowed two pets, so she could no longer provide foster care for Hampton.

 

At about this time (October, 2009), we had placed a kitten with a young woman and she had decided that the kitten was too active for her. I asked her if she might be interested in trying an adult cat. When she agreed that she would like to try, I told her about Hampton. I explained his history with us, and told her that he would need to be kept on a prescription diet that would hopefully prevent future urinary tract problems. She agreed to take Hampton on a temporary trial basis, and after a few weeks, decided to adopt him permanently.

 

Follow up calls indicated that Hampton was adjusting well to his new home. We had given his new mom all of his vet records and suggested that she continue to use our vet, who was familiar with Hampton’s medical history and she had agreed that that made sense.

 

In January, Hampton’s adoptive mom called to tell me that he had gotten ill over the weekend and she had taken him to an emergency vet, who had diagnosed a urinary tract blockage and had indicated that immediate surgery would be necessary to correct a life threatening condition in Hampton’s urinary tract. The charges for emergency care and subsequent hospitalization and surgery totaled nearly $3500.00.

 

Since it had been such a short time since Hampton had been adopted, we felt that we should absorb this expense and we communicated that decision to his adoptive mom. She indicated that she planned to keep Hampton, as the veterinary surgeon had told her that while he could make no guarantees, he believed that the surgery had corrected Hampton’s problem and that there would be no recurrences of blockage.

 

We were relieved and happy for Hampton and assumed he would now go on to enjoy a full happy life. A few months later, however, his adoptive Mom contacted us to tell us that she wanted to give Hampton back. She said she couldn’t live with the stress that he might have a recurrence and besides, her mom was frightened of him, since Hampton would always jump in her lap and want her to pet him when she came to visit.

 

The thought of having to put Hampton into a cage again was heartbreaking, but we told his adopter that we would take him back as soon as a foster home became available. It was now May and we were in the middle of kitten season, so all of our current foster homes were full.

 

In the providence of God, I received a new foster parent application from our website a few days later. Lynne and her husband had no pets, but had enjoyed the companionship of cats over the years and wanted to try fostering. She told me, however, that they spend their winters in Florida, so she would only be able to foster until the fall.

 

I scheduled an appointment to visit her and get her set up the following week. During the visit, I told her about Hampton and asked if she would be willing to foster him. She agreed and I made arrangements for Hampton’s mom to deliver him to his new foster home.

 

I checked to see how Hampton was doing a few days later and he seemed to have settled in well and Lynne said they were enjoying him. I told her we would let her know as soon as an adoption cage became available.

 

Imagine my surprise (AND DELIGHT), when Lynne emailed about a week later to tell me that she and her husband wanted to adopt Hampton. They thought he was a really great cat and had no problem with keeping him on the prescription diet. Lynne said they would deal with whatever medical needs Hampton had and would not be giving him back.

 

Lynne and her husband have since adopted another kitty and he and Hampton have become great friends. Here’s hoping they like riding in the car.

 

So, Hampton, by God’s grace, I think we can say that you are finally there!

 

 

Attention Cat Lovers in the South Hills Area

FosterCat, Inc. is seeking responsible, cat loving caregivers to provide temporary love and care for homeless cats until permanent homes are found. FosterCat, Inc. is a local 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization. Contact FosterCat, Inc. at 412-481-9144 or click here to learn more about becoming a FosterCat foster parent and to submit a foster application.

 

 

Visit FosterCat's Adoptables at these places:

Come see some of our cats at the Cranberry, Monroeville, Northway Mall and West Mifflin PetSmart Locations!

 

 

Animal Abuse Hotline for Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has established a statewide toll-free hotline for reporting cases of animal abuse. Concerned citizens observing incidents of abuse may contact the Society at (866) 601-SPCA.

 

 

Our Mission

The mission of FosterCat Inc. is to develop and sustain an organization to provide temporary foster care for cats and kittens in private homes until permanent homes can be found.