The Blog
Rescue stories, adoption guides, and everything we’ve learned fostering cats in the Central Valley.
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When a Rescue Is Failing Its Animals
Rescue hoarding and failing organisations are real. How to tell a struggling rescue from a dangerous one, and how to report it properly.
More Stories
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When You Disagree With a Rescue’s Decision
Turned down, overruled or unhappy with how a rescue handled something? How to raise it constructively,…
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How Rescues Decide Which Cats They Can Take
Why a rescue says no — how intake decisions are actually made, what capacity for care…
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Joining a Rescue Board: What You Are Actually Signing Up For
What a nonprofit board member actually does, the legal duties involved, and why small animal rescue…
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Colony Cats in Storms and Flooding: What Caretakers Can Do
Preparing a community cat colony for storms and flooding — shelter siting, what happens during, and…
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When a Colony Outgrows Its Site
Too many cats in one place — how to tell when a site is over capacity,…
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Getting Permission to Do TNR on Someone Else’s Property
Most colonies live on land you do not own. How to approach a property owner, what…
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How Many Cats Are Actually There? Counting a Colony Properly
Colony counts are almost always wrong. How to census a community cat colony accurately, why it…
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The Cat Nobody Ever Sees: Helping a Cat That Hides From Visitors
Why some cats vanish when guests arrive, whether it matters, and how to build confidence without…
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Pica in Cats: When Chewing Becomes Dangerous
Cats that eat wool, plastic, cables or litter — what pica is, the medical causes to…
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Cat on the Counter: Why It Happens and What Works
How to stop a cat jumping on kitchen counters — why they do it, why punishment…
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Yes, You Can Train a Cat: Clicker Training Basics
Cats train readily with reward-based methods. How clicker training works, the first three behaviours to teach,…
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Choosing a Vet for Your Cat: What Actually Matters
How to choose a veterinary practice for a cat — what cat-friendly means in practice, the…
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Caring for a Senior Cat: What Changes and What Helps
Practical day-to-day care for older cats — home adaptations, feeding, grooming, monitoring, and the changes that…
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Dementia in Cats: Recognising Cognitive Decline
Feline cognitive dysfunction explained — the signs beyond night-time yowling, what to rule out first, and…
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Your Cat’s Blood Test Results, Explained in Plain English
What the main values on a feline blood panel mean, why one abnormal number rarely means…
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After the Operation: Spay and Neuter Recovery Care
What to expect after your cat is spayed or neutered — normal recovery, wound care, activity…
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Diarrhoea in Cats: When to Wait and When to Worry
Cat diarrhoea explained — the common causes, the red flags that need a vet, why kittens…
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Heartworm in Cats: Rarer, Harder to Treat, Worth Preventing
Feline heartworm explained — why cats are atypical hosts, why there is no treatment, and why…
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Heart Disease in Cats: The Illness With No Warning
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is the commonest feline heart disease and often silent. The emergency signs, how it…
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Talking About Adoption Without Losing the Room
How to make the case for adopting rather than buying in a way that persuades —…
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Hosting a Cat Adoption Event at Your Business
Thinking of hosting a rescue adoption event? What venues need to provide, what the rescue handles,…
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Staying Safe as a Rescue Volunteer: Bites, Zoonoses and Backs
Practical safety for animal rescue volunteers — handling injuries, cat bite infection risk, diseases people can…
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Why Fosters Quit — and How to Keep Them
Most foster carers stop within a year. The reasons are predictable and fixable — mentoring, clear…
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When a Colony Cat Stops Showing Up
A regular colony cat has vanished. What it usually means, how long to wait, how to…
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A Friendly Cat Turned Up in the Colony: Now What?
A sociable cat among feral ones is usually lost or abandoned. How to tell, how to…
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Burnout in Rescue Work: Recognising It Before It Ends You
Compassion fatigue and burnout in animal rescue — the warning signs, why caretakers are especially at…
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Community Cats in a Wildfire: What Caretakers Can Actually Do
Colony cats cannot be evacuated like pets. What caretakers can realistically prepare, what to do during…
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Cat First Aid Basics: What Helps and What Harms
Practical cat first aid — what to do for bleeding, burns, poisoning and collapse, what to…
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Building a Catio: Safe Outdoor Access Without the Risks
How to build or buy a catio — sizes, materials, Central Valley heat considerations, planning issues,…
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Leaving Your Cat: Boarding, Sitter or Neighbour?
Cattery, pet sitter or a neighbour dropping in? The options compared on stress, cost and safety,…
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Separation Anxiety in Cats: Yes, It Is Real
Cats do get separation anxiety. The signs, why it is mistaken for spite, and the routine…
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Lumps and Bumps on Cats: What to Do When You Find One
Found a lump on your cat? What the common causes are, which features are concerning, and…
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Itchy Cat: Allergies, Over-Grooming and Skin Problems
Why cats scratch and over-groom — fleas, food and environmental allergies, stress, and how vets work…
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Constipation in Cats: When Straining Is Not What You Think
Feline constipation explained — why it is confused with urinary blockage, the causes, home measures that…
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Cat Eye Problems: What Needs a Vet Today
Runny, red or squinting cat eyes explained — which signs are urgent, common causes, and why…
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Cat Flu: Upper Respiratory Infection Explained
Cat flu and upper respiratory infection — the causes, why it recurs for life, when it…
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Feline Asthma: The Cough That Looks Like a Hairball
Feline asthma explained — why the cough is mistaken for hairballs, the emergency signs, triggers to…
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Evacuating With Cats: Wildfire and Emergency Planning
How to prepare for evacuating with cats — go-bags, carrier readiness, catching a hiding cat under…
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Knowing When It Is Time: End-of-Life Decisions for Cats
How to assess a cat’s quality of life, what euthanasia actually involves, and how to make…
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How to Choose Which Cat Rescue to Support
How to pick a cat rescue worth your money or time — what to check, the…
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What to Do If You Suspect Animal Neglect
How to report suspected animal neglect or cruelty — what counts, who to contact, what to…
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How Rescues and Vets Work Together (And Why Fees Differ)
How animal rescues and veterinary practices actually work together — shelter medicine, discounted rates, and why…
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Donating Professional Skills to a Rescue: What They Actually Need
Rescues need accountants, lawyers, builders and writers more than they need more hands. How to offer…
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Handing Over Colony Care: Planning for When You Cannot Continue
What happens to a community cat colony when the caretaker moves, becomes ill or dies —…
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Do Cats Actually Control Rodents? An Honest Answer
Whether working cats genuinely reduce rodent problems, what the evidence shows, and how barn cat placements…
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Mass Trapping: How to Handle a Colony of Twenty or More
Trapping a large cat colony in one operation — planning, holding space, clinic capacity, volunteer roles,…
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How to Start a TNR Group in a Town That Has None
Starting community cat work where no programme exists — finding a vet, funding surgeries, recruiting volunteers,…
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Why Does My Cat Meow at Night? Causes and What Helps
Night-time yowling in cats explained — unspent energy, hunger, cognitive decline and medical causes, and what…
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Cats Fighting at Home: Reading Conflict and Fixing It
How to tell play from fighting between household cats, why most conflict is silent, and the…
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Cat Spraying vs Urinating: How to Tell and How to Stop It
Spraying and house-soiling look similar and mean different things. How to tell them apart, what causes…