Can anybody find me somebody to love?

I am so sad that the Rainbow District doesn’t have a spay/neuter clinic.

Our Shelter is almost filled up with cats again. More than 15 cats came in today alone. Sudbury needs an affordable, accessible spay/neuter clinic for the sake of our cats — not only for our area, but for Northeastern Ontario.

Let me highlight just a few of these honeys – going from cat-room to cat-room at the Rainbow Shelter.

The Shelter Office

I was greeted by (staff and) a box of five-week-old kittens – all 10 of them too young to be without their mommy, but abandoned without a mommy in sight. Found along with them were three gorgeous five-month-old kittens. There is a place just outside of Espanola – which I am not going to identify – that is a convenient dumping ground. That’s because there is a workplace where employees put out food for them. I commend the people for their compassion; I am not happy about the folks who abandoned these critters who depend on them. But there does come a point where some people just don’t know what else to do. Thankfully Pia (not her real name) was willing to foster these 10 little tykes. Yay!

The Grooming Area

The other three amigos are in the grooming area at the Shelter – waiting alongside other smaller, cuter kittens for a furrever home. There is also a mommy cat with two kitties and a pregnant mommy. The Shelter will gladly take any offers of foster homes.

Small Things CATS is fortunate to have two kitten foster homes we can call upon – Pia (see above) and Betsy (not her real name) who takes shelter kittens that have been hanging around for more than two weeks and are starting to get depressed. Phew! Both of these ladies are amazing.

The grooming area is, in theory, that section of the shelter where kittens, nursing cats, and pregnant mommas go because in theory, they aren’t going to be there for long. In practice, there is no line-up of adopters for kittens, or foster homes for pregnant and nursing cats.

Feeling maternal? Give the Rainbow Shelter at call at 705-983-4246.

Section Two

For those of you who know the Shelter, Section Two is ideally the room that is designated for owner-surrendered cats and older kittens. In a purrfect world, owner-surrendered cats would be fixed and up to date on vaccinations and, because they are only $35, would “fly off the shelves.” Sigh!

If there was a demand for kittens like there is for puppies, these older kittens would be gone in a heartbeat. They are sturdy, they have personalities, and the $130 adoption fee includes the first vaccination, deworming, and spay or neuter. You cannot go wrong. But there is no demand for cats of any age.

Sadly, in addition to the “intended” cats, there is every variety of stray or abandoned cat – because the need for sheltering is so great. The Rainbow Shelter is open admission and doesn’t have the luxury of turning cats away. Lots of little paws are stretching out of the cages, pleading “Pick me! Pick me!” I feel terrible for them. There are not enough homes for them all.

But I did bring home to foster Paddy Foot and Oreo Algoma — two gentle giants who cannot understand why they are not sleeping on their guardians’ beds right now. And I put my name on Fluffy Granite and Nikko Homeless to get them fixed in the near future, and then I can foster them through their recovery.

Eventually these four kitties will make their way to Small Things CATS for adoption.

Section Three

Oh my goodness. The deluge continues. There are four young cats from the Bloor Street area alone. I am keeping my eye out for a missing cat from that area – a black declawed and neutered lad – on behalf of CCL (Church Cat Lady). So far, he has not shown up. She is like the Good Shepherd – she never gives up her search for this lost soul. The Bessie Street/Frood Road block is also a hot spot for stray or abandoned cats.

I am head over heels for “Ferguson” from Capreol – a medium-haired tabby with white who has a lot of character. And Moustache Frood – a short-haired black and white – who is a comical looking fellow.

Is this getting a little repetitive? It is for the Shelter workers and volunteers, too! For the sake of our cats — not only for our area, but for Northeastern Ontario — Sudbury needs an affordable, accessible spay/neuter clinic.

I beg to you attend the Rainbow Shelter’s next adoptathon at 411 St. Agnes St. West in Azilda on Saturday, Sept. 29 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. There are not enough homes for all of them, but there are enough homes for a good many of them.

Every adoption saves a feline life. Visit online at www.gsshelter.ca/meetcats.html.

Jan Carrie Steven is a volunteer with Cat Adoption Trust Sudbury (CATS) and the co-ordinator of Small Things: Cats & Books. For more information, go to www.smallthings.ca.