By ALYSHA MILLER
Dora and some of her friends are busy exploring their new homes after being adopted during one of Toronto Cat Rescue’s quarterly Adopt-A-Thons.
Dora, a six-month-old longhaired kitten that let kids carry her around the store while she calmly scanned her surroundings, was one of the first to go. There were others too, including Martini, whose curious smile caught the attention of a little boy in a frog-shaped snowsuit, and Rodriguez, a nervous all-black cat that couldn’t decide whether he wanted everyone’s attention or to simply escape to a corner to wait out his stay away from his foster home.
The event at the PetSmart on Fairway Road South in Kitchener was one of many in the area that offered cats rescued and placed in caring, but temporary foster homes up for adoption by Toronto Cat Rescue (TCR). Animals were being sold for a reduced price of $100 each during the weekend of Feb. 10 – 12 along with free supplies including a bag of food, some litter and toys for each animal.
Though the majority of people at the event were parents with young children looking for a cuddly, low-maintenance addition to their families, organizer Jen Cavep pointed out that college students especially should look into TCR. “We’re foster home- based, and college kids are a great provider of foster homes. A lot of them want pets, but the turmoil as far as where they’ll be living keeps them from being able to give pets ‘forever homes.’”
Since the organization is volunteer based, all the profits from selling cats to permanent homes goes toward the preparation the cats have to undergo to make them fit for sale. “All proceeds go towards the vaccinations and whatever other medical needs the cats need, sometimes broken limbs and illnesses.”
Volunteers are always needed to do everything from taking in cats as foster parents to driving them to vets, events and homes, planning fundraising events, and keeping the cats company at partnered stores. The organization also accepts donations of everything from money to food and supplies to items that can be auctioned off and even Canadian Tire money.
They try to be as flexible as possible so they can help the growing population of suffering strays in any way they can.
“Since 1994, TCR has been helping cats escape situations of abuse, neglect or euthanasia at a shelter,” is one of the lines in their mission statement. This means everything from trying to find homes for abandoned cats to neutering and spaying feral cats.
For further information go to torontocatrescue.ca or check out Facebook under the page name Toronto Cat Rescue.
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