ALLEY CAT ACTION Alley Cat Allies Newsletter www.alleycat.org FALL 2015 Alley Cat Allies launched National Feral Cat Day as a call to action to spread awareness about community cats. For Alley Cat Allies' Over 500,000 Supporters and Activists NATIONAL FERAL CAT DAY ENGAGES ALL 50 STATES THE EVOLUTION OF THE CAT REVOLUTION by Becky Robinson This year s theme is the Evolution of the Cat Revolution, and there are more than 600 events and activities planned. Wherever you live in the U.S. or one of nine participating countries, you can find someone celebrating National Feral Cat Day. Derek found a log just his size! We applaud the compassionate people who are the backbone of this movement. We spoke to caregivers, Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) activists, and veterinarians to learn about the evolution of their activism and the cats who inspired them. Frankie Wolfe Community Cat Caregiver During a harsh Colorado winter in 2009 Frankie Wolfe first met Mama. She was nearly moved to tears when she spotted the pregnant tuxedo cat sleeping in the snow. She knew she had to do something. She just couldn t allow a cat to struggle outdoors, pregnant and cold. Mama and Dot. Alley Cat Allies website taught her that with food, shelter, and TNR, feral cats can live content and healthy lives. Mama later returned with her kittens, and they became Frankie s first TNR experience. Now she and her veterinarian are experts, and Frankie and her husband have carried out TNR for over two dozen community cats. (continued on page 3) Just Released! Get Your Copy Today at www.alleycat.org Jimmy is at home in the fall foliage.
PRESIDENT S MESSAGE As Alley Cat Allies gears up for fall, I am unendingly grateful for your unceasing support and cat advocacy. You have helped make Alley Cat Allies America s premier organization saving cats. Each of you has a story of compassion and commitment, and of making an impact for cats. I can t thank you enough. I am especially excited this month to be releasing my new book, which chronicles the history of the movement to protect cats. To learn more about The Evolution of the Cat Revolution: Celebrating 25 Years of Saving Cats or to reserve your copy please go to www.alleycat.org. You are the unsung heroes of the cat revolution. You are my heroes. Thank you for your compassion and loyal support. For the cats, Becky Robinson, President and Founder Chloe enjoying the fallen leaves. Connect With Me Online facebook.com/acapresident instagram.com/feralbecky twitter.com/feralbecky 7920 Norfolk Ave. Suite 600 Bethesda, MD 20814-2525 Tel: 240-482-1980 Fax: 240-482-1990 www.alleycat.org/gethelp 2015, ALLEY CAT ALLIES ALLEY CAT ACTION, Volume 26, Issue #1, FALL 2015 PRESIDENT: Becky Robinson VICE PRESIDENT: Donna Wilcox BOARD MEMBERS: Karyen Chu, PhD; Irina Dline; Rachel Gorlin; Patricia E. Kauffman; Dina Paxenos; Becky Robinson; Donna Wilcox All rights reserved. We may make this material available for use by other groups, but none of it may be reproduced in any format without specific written permission from Alley Cat Allies. Alley Cat Allies is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and tax-exempt organization. Alley Cat Allies federal employer ID number is 52-1742079. All contributions, donations, and gifts are tax deductible, as allowed by law. It is Alley Cat Allies practice to exchange the names of our donors with other charities that share our values. We do this in order to both expand our donor base and spread our mission, and to support those charities that we feel are working toward the good of animals and our community. Please notify us if you would prefer that we not share your name. We would be happy to remove your information from our exchange list. OUR MISSION: To transform and develop communities to protect and improve the lives of cats. OUR GOALS: 1) Reform public policies and institutions to serve the best interests of cats; 2) Expand and promote cat care; 3) Increase understanding of cats to change attitudes and eliminate misconceptions. Alley Cat Allies is proud to have earned the highest rating of four stars from Charity Navigator, the nation s largest and most respected charity evaluator. Join us and our more than 500,000 supporters at www.alleycat.org. 2 ALLEY CAT ACTION
NATIONAL FERAL CAT DAY ENGAGES ALL 50 STATES (continued from page 1) The cats now live comfortably near her home, and she is grateful to Alley Cat Allies for helping her. Now, she is always looking out for cats without eartips. Melanie Eaton TNR Activist When community cat activist Melanie Eaton moved to West Virginia, she was shocked at the lack of laws protecting cats. With Alley Cat Allies materials she began educating her community about cats. She started Berkeley TNR n Rescue to provide TNR services. Her organization has helped 15 cat colonies so far. Melanie credits her determination to a promise she made to one little kitten. On her way home from feeding a colony she received a call about kittens behind a grocery store. Among them was Sky, a tiny tabby who was in bad shape. Tasha's beautiful colorful markings remind us of autumn. After finally catching Sky, Melanie took her to a clinic where the veterinarian told her that Sky couldn t be saved. Melanie was devastated. At that moment, she promised Sky she would fight for a TNR ordinance in her county. Melanie continues that fight today. Tess Peavy, D.V.M. Veterinarian Dr. Tess Peavy lives in California, but her spay and neuter clinic travels all around the nation. She goes wherever affordable spay and neuter services are most needed. Dr. Peavy once thought the only way to save cats was through adoption. But when she became a veterinarian she realized she could have the biggest impact by providing TNR services across the country. Now she performs up to 100 surgeries a day, and she s an outspoken advocate about passing TNR legislation. Dr. Peavy fondly remembers a calico cat in Indiana who came to the Neuter Scooter for help. The cat had kittens and nobody could trap her. One day they returned to find her inside the clinic after she came in through an open door. Tess jokes that she was checking herself in. The calico and her kittens were spayed or neutered and returned to their colony. They remind Dr. Peavy why she s dedicated her life to saving cats. National Feral Cat Day celebrates everyone involved in revolutionizing the care of cats. Join us October 16 and learn how you can evolve. Visit www.nationalferalcatday.org. Daniel s eartip could save his life. 3
IN YOUR BACKYARD Alley Cat Allies is working with and supporting cat advocates and communities across the nation, helping them protect cats. Spay & Neuter Clinic Thrives With Help of TNR Grant COLORADO Colorado s Fort Collins Cat Rescue and Spay and Neuter Clinic has been recognized for its near 35,000 spay/neuters on community cats and dogs. Its founder was honored by local paper We support groups who do great TNR work, and we re happy to report that the Fort Collins Cat Rescue is serving as a model for cat care. The Coloradoan as one of its 2015 Colorado Super Women, and Alley Cat Allies is proud to say that we also support the clinic s work and provided funding in November 2014. We gave the Fort Collins Cat Rescue $1,000 toward a mission to vaccinate and spay/neuter nearly 100 community cats. we look forward to continuing our work in Missouri to help other communities protect cats! Supporting TNR in Texas Communities We helped advocates in Arlington, Texas, pass a TNR resolution in 2013, and now TEXAS we re helping streamline and improve the community s TNR policy. Since the resolution, the advocacy group Friends of Arlington Animal Services (FAAS) has used a shelterneuter-return program to save community cats that would have otherwise been killed in the shelter. The group has trapped, neutered, and returned a total of 3,000 community cats so far. Alley Cat Allies awarded a grant of $7,500 to FAAS for TNR, humane education, and more local programs to protect cats. Even More TNR in Missouri Missouri communities have been increasingly embracing TNR, and now we MISSOURI can add Bland to the list of cities making the change! In June, Alley Cat Allies bolstered an emerging TNR program in Richland, Missouri, with a grant, and its success created a domino effect. In July, the Bland City Council passed a TNR ordinance inspired by Richland s. Neighboring cities are now in the process of considering new ordinances of their own. Alley Cat Allies awarded a grant of $9,000 to help the low-cost spay and neuter clinic, Protect Every Pet, provide TNR services in Bland and beyond. With your support, Brandi lounges outdoors. ALLEY CAT ACTION 4
NEW RESOURCES CAT ADVOCACY 201 WEBINAR The best way to advocate for cats is to talk directly with local decision makers. That s why Alley Cat Allies created the Cat Advocacy 201: Working with Elected Officials webinar to guide new advocates through the process. The webinar teaches how to prepare for city council presentations and effectively speak with elected officials about cat welfare and TNR. Presented by our associate director of Law and Policy, this webinar was developed as the next step to our popular Cat Advocacy 101 webinar. In the webinar, advocates learn how to maximize their time with legislators to help make positive change for cats. Some big tips: come prepared with facts, look professional, and appeal to the legislators financial concerns. This webinar shows communities that they shouldn t fear talking to their legislators on behalf of community cats and encourages them to make their voices heard. Attend a webinar any time of day or night at www.alleycat.org/webinar. ADVOCATE S GUIDE TO TRANSPARENCY Would you like to know what goes on behind closed doors at your local animal shelter? Do you want to know if the animals are receiving the best care possible? We can help you find out! We have created a new, easy-to-use guide to help advocates obtain important information from their local shelters. Obtaining Records from Your Local Animal Shelter: Do-It-Yourself Transparency is an advocate s guide to utilizing shelter transparency laws to protect cats. The guide will empower advocates to find out important information, like intake and disposition data, from shelters, and includes sample record request forms with the laws from all 50 states. Visit www.alleycat.org/research. SPREADING THE TNR REVOLUTION We help municipal governments all over America pass ordinances that protect community cats. We are also the only group in the country researching the number of ordinances and policies that support TNR there are 524 in the nation today! Here are the communities we helped pass ordinances in the past year. 1. Bowie, Maryland 2. Rockville, Maryland 3. Detroit, Oregon 4. Cheyenne, Wyoming 5. Dunbar, West Virginia 6. Richland, Missouri 7. Gainesville, Texas 8. Lake County, Florida 9. Crocker, Missouri 10. Bland, Missouri You can support TNR ordinances in your community by visiting www.alleycat.org/ordinances. 5 ALLEY CAT ACTION Red is Salem s color. JOIN FERALPOWER! Sign up to receive our FeralPower! e-action alerts to stay up to date on urgent issues facing cats, such as ordinances We love T-Rex s sweet expression. and legislation as well as upcoming conferences, speaking engagements, and events. Visit www.alleycat.org/feralpower.
THE GIFT OF A LIFETIME FOR CATS AND KITTENS We know you are dedicated to protecting cats, and now you can create your own lifesaving legacy by joining our Forget-Me-Not Society. When you name Alley Cat Allies as a beneficiary of your will, trust, retirement plan, or life insurance policy, you make a powerful statement about your love for cats. Anyone can make a bequest, and no amount is too small. Holly s soft bed is perfect for cool fall weather. Call 1-866-309-6207 or visit www.alleycat.org/plannedgiving for more information. INTERNET CAT VIDEO FESTIVAL COMES TO WASHINGTON, DC! The Internet Cat Video Festival is an offline celebration of online cat videos. The festival is a live event, gathering fellow feline fanatics to watch a curated collection of cat clips from six-second Vine videos to short films and everything in between in a social environment. The Internet Cat Video Festival is produced and curated by the Walker Art Center. To buy tickets, visit www.alleycat.org/catvidfest. HISSES AND PURRS The stories of those who deserve to be celebrated and scorned. PURRS to the Niagara SPCA in Niagara Falls, New York, for starting a communitywide TNR program that spread to neighboring communities. HISSES to Australia, where a plan to shoot, poison, and lethally trap 2 million community cats by 2020 is under way. The Australian government even created an app to track cat sightings so they can be killed. We want to thank the many Australian TNR groups for their dedication to TNR, the only effective approach to community cats. PURRS Purrs to Porter County, Indiana,for passing a TNR ordinance and working with Alley Cat Allies to make its community feline-friendly. SAVE A CAT WITH A MOUSE With just a few clicks, you can make a difference in the lives of cats and their communities. Here are some online resources to help you on your way: $ CONNECT Join us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. www.alleycat.org/socialnetworking DONATE Support cats nationwide. www.alleycat.org/donate LEARN Advocate for cats in your community. www.alleycat.org/communitychange TAKE ACTION Receive our FeralPower! action alerts and other emails. www.alleycat.org/signup 6