Whiskers Hope Rescue

We had 2 friendly and 3 community cat project surgeries today. Left at 6:50 a.m. and drove to two different clinics with different drop-off times, thank goodness. Then I worked for 6 hours before heading back to pick up the cats. Met the caretakers at pickup, then grabbed some traps and went to an ongoing project in Winlock to catch two more. Of course I trapped a couple cats that we had already eartipped but released after I had two u altered cats. Made it home before 8:00 p.m. for dinner. Long day. Doing it all again tomorrow, but just with one drop-off and pickup.
If you would have asked me if it was worth it today, I would have said no. I cried a couple times while I was out trying to work and manage messages, emails and just communicating with family and it's hard. But kitten season is kicking our butts!!
At least the 5 we spayed today and the two cats trapped tonight will not contribute to the overpopulation situation here in Winlock. Sigh....

Our "Last Litter" program is a community resource that provides a free surgery for a mother cat in exchange for surrendering her weaned litter of kittens to our rescue for adoption.
Here's Momma Misty with her little human. She's a source of love and comfort. When she gave birth to 6 kittens, her owner asked for help.
Today, Misty, was dropped off at her spay surgery along with one of her kittens (being adopted) and 3 community cats from Winlock.
We would love to find sponsors for our Mom's of our Last Litter program (LLP). We hope to assist more mom cats and their kittens in our area. These kittens will not become "free kittens" so many rescues cringe seeing on social media posts.
There is no judgement here. It's just the reality that most spay surgeries locally cost more than people expect, so these surgeries get postponed. We hear this everyday! And then when a female kitten reaches 4 months of age, she can become pregnant...even from her siblings.😞
We know how many cats need to be spayed, but will this really "solve" the problem? Probably not. Still, it’ll help these cats. The moms won't keep having litters that overwhelm their owners, and the kittens will find homes and live longer, healthier lives without the stress of going into heat or getting pyometra. Neutering males stops the spraying, removes the risk of testicular cancer, and keeps them from being so aggressive.
This is a win-win for the cats.
Would you like to help us??
https://checkout.shelterluv.com/donate/whro
https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=QUUUSFHFTP2G2
Please indicate "Last Litter Program" or LLP in the notes of your donation.
"No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted." Aesop

Purr-fection! Wouldn't you say?!
New crew is here!
🖤🐾🖤🐾🖤🐾🖤

The reality of "free kittens " is they are NEVER free IF you spay/neuter them.
That's what makes us cringe when we see "free kitten" posts.
Some rescues offer "Last Litter" program where they accept all the kittens and spay Mom cat (and sometimes Dad) for a reduced fee.
Sadly, the immense numbers of kittens nowadays makes it challenging to encourage this program.
We still attempt to spay Mom in "free kitten" posts but there are so many.💔
Remember that commercial by Smokey the Bear where he says "only you can prevent forest fires"? We need a version of that today.
Bilboards showing a cat nursing a litter of kittens which says "only you can prevent "free kittens. Spay and Neuter your cat."
It's a dream...

They deserve to be together. ❤️

Winter is coming....
Cats need shelter...
Not alot of effort...
Worth the time!

🐱🐱

I am available!
Hi there! 🐾 I'm Shrimp a 3-month-old brown and white tabby girl with the biggest personality. I was brought in as a stray from the Pe Ell area. Sadly, no one claimed me, so I am now available for adoption. I am very adventurous, affectionate, and full of energy — ready to explore every corner of your home! I have been an indoor kitty most of my life and I am already litterbox trained! I'm friendly and playful and get along great with other cats. I have yet to be introduced to dogs or young children but given my loving personality and young age I'm likely to adapt quickly. I am already microchipped and vaccinated. On September 30 I will have my appointment to be spayed. I can't wait to find my forever family where I can grow up surrounded by love. 😸 Come meet me today!

As volunteers in rescue, we are expected to do so much for others who won't do anything. That math never adds up!

Shelley explains this so well.❤️

We are FULL

I’m not sure if this message is understood. Most every rescue, shelter, etc. is full. Adoptions are slow because times are bad and there are so many cats available and kittens being born.

If we don’t have homes or volunteers to take care of these cats, how can we keep taking them?

If you aren’t willing to help the problem, why should we do more?

I received a message late last night. A couple of kittens were caught and one is sick. Can you take them? My first question, are they tame? Can you send pictures so I can see age and how sick? What is the situation? Where are you located?

I get a picture of one kitten and one is friendly and one hissy. Where are you located and can you catch mom so we can get her fixed?

More descriptions about how many have been found since living there.

Again, location? Cowlitz County? City limits?

Answer of location.

Can I help with appointments for fixing all these you are finding? There has to be a mom if you’re finding kittens.

I can’t afford it. Then a paragraph of why.

It’s free. I can get appointments, loan traps, and transport.

Nope. Just want them gone.

Okay. My interest stops here. I’m really busy. Get requests constantly. Don’t have enough time in my day. Shouldn’t be taking care of business at 8:46 pm.

I go to feed my bottle babies and come back to several more messages. It’s now after 9:30 pm and I’m not going to text.

I just woke up to a message after 10:30 pm.

I’m losing interest in putting my life on hold to help people who really aren’t helping cats.

WE ARE VOLUNTEERS

This is my home. My money. My life.

If there are kittens in your yard there is a mom and dad that need fixed. Taking the kittens does NOT fix anything. There will be more kittens after these are gone. They will probably be sicker than the last ones because the health of mom only gets worse after breeding more and more.

We can not stop this problem without more hands. We need support! We need participation!

Sorry about the rant if you read all of this. I’m tired of wasting the little bit of free time I have on people that don’t want to be part of the solution. It’s exhausting.