Rescue Work of Theresa Foley's Venice Cat Coalition

Meet Willow, my newly adopted rescue kitten. When the time came to adopt a new kitten, I met with Theresa Foley, the director of the Venice Cat Coalition, to discuss my concern about how another cat in the family would be received by Diana, my 4-year old orange tabby.

Diana had been rescued by the Venice Cat Coalition as a little kitten with a broken tail, left to fend for herself outdoors. She is still a little timid and fearful, so I wanted to be sure whichever new little kitten joined our family, it would not intimidate her further.

Theresa suggested I do a long-term foster to give us all time to see if the kitten I selected was a good fit in our home. I picked Willow, a female tabby with beautiful spotted markings.

Within a week it was clear to me that things were going well between the two cats. Willow has a brave heart and playful spirit. She enrolls Diana in games from time to time, yet respects her space and finds her own. After a few months I am certain she is a perfect addition to our family. I believe Diana agrees. - Raphaella Vaisseau

Venice Cat Coalition Continues Good Work

Three poses by one of the five little kittens who were at death's door a few weeks back. They were rescued by the Venice Cat Coalition and are being nurtured back to feeling pretty darn good under Theresa's care. Soon they will be all well and can go to foster homes where they will grow and play until they are ready for adoption. Click here to make a donation to support this important work.
-Raphaella Vaisseau

Cat Faerie Beds (and a lot of other purr-fect things) by catfaeries.com

Diana tells me she sure would like one of the soft and yummy cat faerie beds (in sage please) from catfaeries.com. You'll have to click on this link to see the pictures.

While you're browsing their site, be sure to see their cat toys, sign up for their mailing list, and read everything. Then check out (& like) their facebook page.

It's nice to know so many people are out there speaking for the cats. I appreciate every one of you (them). Oh, and by the way, here's a link to the VCC's Sarasota Kitten Club facebook page.

Diana - of Venice Cat Coalition T-Shirt fame

Here's a current photo of Diana, Raphaella's beautiful orange tabby cat, who was the model for the Venice Cat Coalition logo and T-shirts. She was first a VCC rescue, and two years later, she's growing up fine and healthy here in Venice.

Three KWCS Kittens currently being fostered by Raphaella in Venice, FL

My three little foster kittens: Abbey Road, Zeke, and Tony. There were actually eight in this litter, and they are all on their way to finding their families through various foster families. I'm blessed to have these three here with me. Mama cat went with three of them up to Cat Depot where I know Marilyn and her crew will take good care of them. Cat Depot is hosting Pawpurr's Ball, their annual fundraiser on Saturday, November 13th at G. WIIZ - The Science Museum, 1001 Blvd of the Arts, Sarasota from 6:30 - 11pm. To see all the kittens the Key West Cat Society / Venice Cat Coalition currently has up for adoption, go to petfinder.com.

Bottle Babies for Me

July has brought me four little bottle babies - 5 weeks old. Theresa has been "Mom" for weeks already and now it's my turn to take over the duties.

She taught me how to feed the little darlings with a miniature bottle. They are so cute. I am getting used to having them climb all over me as I try to work. You can see how "easy" it was to read a book today.

Mind you, I'm not complaining. I am blessed with cuteness, soft furry babies and the opportunity to take 100 pictures a day.

Enjoy!

-Raphaella Vaisseau

Kitty Pile - Raphaella's Picture of the Day

Is there anything cuter than a soft, furry kitten? ... Three of them all cuddled up together taking a nap. 

What a blessing they are.

And then, there's Angel.

Enjoy!

- Raphaella Vaisseau 6-13-10

Poster Child

Here's little Annie Oakley, one of my new little foster kittens. She's so cute and patient, she let me take a hundred pictures of her and make one into a poster.

For once I can tell all the kittens in my house apart from one another without memorizing the little details of a face or a foot. Annie Oakley is smaller and has more subtle markings than her brother Kimosabe (saddleback tabby). Tonto (orange tabby) is their sidekick, a little shy but coming around. And the tiny but very brave kitten is Angel (white and grey). She watches over the whole family.

They're all listed on Petfinder. Click on "Our Adoptable Pet List" and scroll down to see all cats and kittens available for adoption. Meanwhile, enjoy these pictures of my new little fosters. I look forward to watching them grow and helping them find their forever homes and families.

- Raphaella Vaisseau, Foster Kitten Mom

Cats of Key West Cat Society - May 2010

Click here to see new pictures of KWCS kitties taken yesterday, May 28, 2010 by Raphaella. Enjoy!!!

Hooray for Ferals, especially Pinky who lives in my yard

I looked up from my computer tonight to see the feral cat Pinky sitting on the window sill and staring in the window at me and the cats inside. Pinky has lived in our yard for years and has lately been sitting by the front door looking in the screen door and watching the foster kittens play with Diana, my orange tabby (who was a Key West Cat Society rescue last March). When I first moved here we trapped Pinky to check on her medical condition (she has a harelip) and gave it a go at taming her up. She would have none of it, so we returned her to the yard soon after that. She loves her yard, has trained me to feed her at sunup and sundown, and sleeps in the tree at the side of the property. Of late, she has been increasingly interested in the KWCS foster kitten program and the revolving kittens who come and go from my home. -Raphaella Vaisseau

CatsPlay.com - the ultimate shopping experience for Cat Lovers

Even before I saw the documentary about Bob Walker and Frances Mooney's "Cats' House" and bought the book, I've wanted to create similar fairy land environments for my fur family. Last night I did a google search for cat furniture and found it all at CatsPlay.com. In addition to cat trees and scratching posts, they have wall climbing systems and outdoor pet houses. My imagination went wild. If you're in the market for cat furniture for your kitties, browse this site to your heart's delight. Enjoy!

Love Letter to My Foster Kittens

Dear Little Ones,

I love your little eyes as they look into mine. I love when you look up at me from the floor or the couch, expecting food or attention or a game. I love when you watch what I'm doing and your eyes follow me across the room, even when you're scared and are preparing to scurry away. I love how you learn to trust. I love noticing when you decide I am FOR you.

I love creating spaces for you to play, hide and sleep in. I love making little toys for you to play with and for me to play with you too. I love when you come to me when I'm laying down and you curl up next to me and purr. I love when you touch your paw to my face. I love feeling your soft fur in my fingers. I love taking care of you when you have first been rescued - sometimes you're sick or especially scared then. I love helping you learn that humans can help and make you well.

I love loving you. I love holding you in my arms like a baby and wrapping my T-shirt around you so you feel safe and warm and loved. I love naming you sometimes when it's my turn to do that. I love getting to know your distinct personalities and watch you play with the other kittens in my house. I love photographing you and sharing your cuteness and beauty with the world. I love knowing that I'm helping you find a good forever home even when it's hard to let you go. Most of all, I simply LOVE you ... each soft, furry, sweet, beautiful, magical kitty. You bring so much joy to my life as I freely and completely love you for one day, for a week, for a month or forever. You are a precious gift to me and to the world.

With Sincere Gratitude,
Your Kitty Foster Mom.

Shamrock Preschool Wins $500 grant for Venice Cat Coalition/Key West Cat Society

Deborah Whitham had a great idea to have her schoolchildren at the Shamrock Preschool in Venice learn about what we do to take care of rescued and homeless cats in Sarasota County. They adopted Frankie, our little kitten who came to us last spring with his leg broken in two places. Theresa and Raphaella brought Frankie to the preschool in September so the kids could meet him. They had made a fund-raising jar to collect donations and had a table set up where they would bring things to buy and sell. The children met Frankie and learned about his pending surgery to remove the injured leg. They all wanted to help Frankie get adopted to a family that would care for this special boy kitty. After Theresa taught them about the Key West Cat Society and how we find and help the cats, the kids went to their craft area and drew pictures of Frankie.

Wonderful things came of the dedicated work of Deborah and the children of Shamrock Preschool. First of all a miracle: when Frankie when to the vet for his pre-surgery check-up, the vet said Frankie didn't need an amputation after all. Apparently he had "done his own physical therapy" while trying to keep up with all the other foster kittens at Raphaella's. Second, he found his family!!! Frankie was adopted by a Russian lady from North Port who wanted this very special kitty for a companion. Frankie is now learning Russian!

The third wonderful thing that happened is Deborah submitted her story about Frankie and the Shamrock Preschool to the Community Foundation of Sarasota and this week won a $500 grant for community service for the cats! We are thrilled and so proud of Deborah for coming up with the idea to help, taking action, holding the vision, following through and ... winning! Her devotion to making a difference has already helped Frankie, and now will help a lot more cats in Sarasota County through our work as the Key West Cat Society/Venice Cat Coalition. One person can make a difference.

Click here to make a donation to KWCS/VCC.
Click here to see more pictures on Flickr.

Frankie Needs a Special Home

Here's Frankie ... a special needs kitty rescued from a backyard in Sarasota. A family found the mama kitty and three kittens and could see Frankie was stuck in the bottom of the pile. This may be the reason his leg did not form properly or perhaps the hip didn't form properly. We don't know if it's a birth defect or an early injury or break. He gets along really well despite the handicap. He's a very loving, friendly kitten who will make a wonderful addition to a family looking for a special needs indoor kitty. Long term fostering is an option. Call Raphaella 941-993-7001 or Theresa 941-445-4322 for more information.

Twins Adopt Twin Kittens

A week ago when Gus (fka Zeus) and Elsa (fka Grace) were adopted by a family, the father said one of the reasons they selected Gus and Elsa was because Eros and Anteros looked like twins. He felt they should be adopted by a family with twins. I started calling the little boy kittens twins, and in my mind I started envisioning a family with twins finding them. Three days later a woman called Theresa looking for kittens. No mention was made of twins, but the woman and her two 6 yr old children came right over to the Venice Cat Coalition booth at the Farmer's Market in downtown Venice to meet the kittens. All three of them immediately fell in love with Eros and Anteros. When I said they were twins, the mom exclaimed, "My children are twins!" Voila. It felt like destiny to me. So perfect.

I invited the family to visit the kittens at my home so they could meet them and play together outside of the confines of the adoption cage at the market. Julia loved little Eros and named him Spot. Gianluca fell in love with Anteros and named him George. All agreed, the kittens had found their family and the family had found their kittens. The adoption was made June 1, 2009.

Personal Responsibility

This little kitten was anonymously left after hours at the door of A Pet's Life a few days ago by a complete coward of a human being. Regardless of the personal circumstances he, she or they may be faced with, he, she or they (at the very least) could have brought the kitten in during business hours to protect it from the traffic on US 41 nearby, and who knows what else. Were there more kittens left at the door? No one knows.

This incomprehensible lack of personal responsiblity is topped only by the person or persons who left two beautiful cats in downtown Venice a few weeks ago when they presumably left their winter paradise for parts up North. Grrrrr.

Foster Kittens and Mama Cat

Mama Cat arrived at my home on Sunday evening, April 5th. Her four kittens were born during the night and early in the morning on April 6th. This little family was one of 50 cats Theresa, the Key West Cat Society and friends trapped in a colony in Punta Gorda that weekend. ALL of the female cats captured were pregnant.

The size of this colony underlines the need for swift and continual SNR (spay-neuter-return) programs world wide to control the overpopulation of cats everywhere. It starts with personal responsibility for pet owners everywhere to spay and neuter their pets, even when the intention is that they live indoors. Stop the breeding. Save the cats.

All the 50 cats and their kittens trapped in this Punta Gorda colony will be spayed and neutered and have all their shots and tests before adopted or returned to the place they were found. Please support our work with a generous donation to KWCS/VCC.

Click HERE to see more photos. Once at the Flickr photosite, click on "view as slideshow" if desired.

Kitty Drama

Princess Diana stalked this squirrel for about 1/2 hr. as it made it's way around the yard. When it decided to crawl up the screen of my lanai, she decided to act and lunged at it, crashing into the screen head on - scared us all. The little hunter probably found edible things in the dirt around plants when she was living in the wild outdoors because I notice she's been digging in my fern a couple of times. Hummm. The adventure continues. Today I rearranged all the furniture in the main bedroom so Apache and Diana could have a fresh new look at who gets what for territory. Apache ventured out of her closet apartment in the night last night to climb up on the bed. She stayed for about 15 minutes - on full alert for Diana, ready to hiss at anything that moved. I'm hopeful that we can all get used to the new arrangement within a few weeks and Apache will accept Diana into the family.

Eyes Open - Day 8 for Foster Kittens

I'm so excited to witness the lives of the mother cat and her four little kittens born in my house on Monday April 6th. Today, on day eight, they are opening their eyes. Here's a picture of the wonderful event.

Plus ... it's my birthday today. This is a thrilling birthday present from the cats :)

Three Tabby Kittens Up For Adoption

Three month old brothers with all their shots (& neutered) are looking for their family. They are playful, adorable and would be great for any family, even with children. Raphaella has been fostering them for five weeks and wants them to be adopted soon so their new family can get to know them as kittens. Click here to see a slideshow of their journey with her. Call me at 941.445.4322 for more information. Prescreening required. Adoption fee $50-$75 if approved.