Welcome home kitties … Welcome home …
Have you heard about the plans for the FOREVER HOME FELINE RANCH?
Brenda Barton and friends have formed this 501c3 organization and are working hard raising money to purchase a home and land to provide a ‘forever home’ for cats in need. A primary goal is to eliminate euthanasia as a remedy for over-population, change in life circumstances of pet owners or any other reason for the need to give up ownership.
I had no idea that 60,000 cats were euthanized in Illinois last year – did you? It seems that some think of cats as ‘disposable’ – they are euthanized at twice the rate of dogs. And the adoption rate is one-third that of dogs. Whoa – what’s up with this? Cats are fabulous company, need relatively little care (particularly in comparison with Fido who seems to always need a walk and someone to pick up his poop) and are among the most loyal companions any of us could have. I realize that not everyone is a ‘cat person’ but there are so many of us out there who care about these creatures … I’d like to see us figure out how to help these folks!
The Forever Home Feline Ranch hopes to solve the euthanasia problem in this part of the state by providing a safe, feline-friendly sanctuary for cats that are no longer wanted or can’t be supported by their owners. They will also work on the feral cat program, will encourage cat adoption, spay / neuter programs, fund a pet food bank … all manner of good works for the kitties of the world. You can almost feel the purrrrrring can’t you?
How can you help? Send money. Become a volunteer. Donate ‘stuff’. Talk it up.
Their web address is www.felineranch.org Contact Brenda Barton, president of the organization at 217-622-3914. She’ll let you know what they need – when they’re having a fundraiser – and specifically how you can make a difference in creating a safe place for our feline friends.
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This article appears in Sep 17-23, 2009.
