This is the second of a series of kitten-related blog posts contributed by Tonya Jensen, SVACA Kitten Foster Mom volunteer, and new SJAA volunteer.  

Are you sure?  I’d be willing to bet that most foster parents initially exclaimed that they could never be a foster parent and gave reasons such as:

• I’d fall so in love with the kittens I could not give them up.
• Maybe someday but right now I am too busy.
• I have no idea how to foster a tiny kitten.

Such reasoning filled my head until a day early in 2010 when I received a letter from Silicon Valley Animal Control Authority (SVACA) that said:

“In 2009, SVACA staff had no options for 133 underage kittens, which made up 20% of the total cats and kittens who did not receive a second chance at life.  Many of these kittens could have been saved if foster parents had been able to provide the necessary in-home care.”

SVACA is just one small shelter in the South San Francisco Bay Area.  Imagine, how many kittens euthanized in our community could have been saved if foster families had been available?  SVACA alone saved 200+ kittens in 2011 because volunteers stepped up to foster kittens.  Rescue groups and shelters are pleading for foster families.  Could you share your home with these precious babies?

My husband and I agreed that, even though all we had almost no knowledge about cats/kittens, we had to give fostering a try.  Every life is precious and deserves a chance.  We filled out the paperwork, attended an orientation and within one day, had our first neo-nate litter of five little kittens.  Some days are overwhelming, some moments are quite comical; at times you might be exhausted, yet many moments are pure joy. Nevertheless, because tiny neo-nate kittens are very fragile, there are a few heartbreaking times that otherwise cloud the very special foster experience.  Since our first foster experience, we are now always ready to open our home to babies that need special care and are so rewarded when the final outcome is beautiful, well socialized kittens that will bring years of love, joy and memories to their forever families.

Nothing is closer to the truth than the fact that foster parents bond deeply with their tiny charges, especially those that must be bottle fed every two hours around the clock, helped to urinate and defecate, and kept warm because their tiny bodies cannot regulate heat.  Foster care can include non-stop care with bottle feeding, followed by teaching the kittens to use the litter box and eat from a bowl---a rather messy period that generates a considerable amount of laundry at our house.  

The last few weeks of foster care are the reward period as the kittens are able to take care of their own physical needs.  During this time the foster family enjoys the delights of socializing and interacting with the kittens’ in play, and snuggling and cuddling with them to warm everyone’s heart.  All too soon it is time to return the kittens for spay/neuter surgery and adoption. (Kittens stay in foster care until they are approximately two months old and weigh at least two pounds, the weight required for spay/neuter surgery. Law in California requires that rescue groups or shelters spay/neuter animals before adoption.)   It is very hard to let the babies go and I never do say good-bye without tears and pain in my heart.  I allow myself to experience the sadness because it is only personal and minor when compared to the joy the kittens will bring their families and the satisfaction of knowing that they would not be alive without a foster home to sustain them during the early weeks of their lives.  Very soon there will be more kittens needing a chance and a foster home to start them on their way. These kittens will soon fill the space in my heart left behind when the previous litter left.

There are different needs and levels of foster care, ranging from tiny kittens weighing only a few ounces that require intense care around the clock for the first one to three/four weeks, to older kittens that are more independent once eating from a bowl and using the litter box.  After about four weeks of age, kitten care is greatly minimized, generally requiring only a bowl of food, water, clean litter, clean bedding, occasional medications, and lots of socialization. Some working foster families are able to take kittens to work.   Others foster older kittens that are more self-sufficient and therefore they can arrange their family schedule around the kittens’ needs. Families can opt to foster only kittens that are beyond bottles; however, the greatest need is for foster homes for the neo-nate kittens. 

Experience isn’t a pre-requisite for becoming a foster family.  Your shelter or rescue group is available to help you learn.  Some supplies may come with the kittens to help you get started but it is likely that you will find yourself adding to those to fit your needs.  You will need space where you can segregate the kittens from resident cats (cats carry diseases that may not be present in the adult cat but can be transmitted to the kittens and devastate to the young).  If you are fostering very young kittens you will need to be able to keep them in a very warm location initially, as very young kittens cannot regulate their body temperature.  In some foster homes the kittens spend their early days in the bathroom and more specifically, in the bathtub.  You will need a hard-side crate for transporting the kittens.  Each agency will handle medical emergencies according to their own policies but there might be times when it will be necessary for you to take a kitten to a veterinarian.

SJAA is partnering with Humane Society Silicon Valley to recruit more kitten foster parents.  Read about this local program.
If you live in other areas of the Bay Area, contact your local shelter to find foster opportunities.  If they don’t have a foster program themselves, they will be able to direct you to rescue groups in the area that depend on foster families.  Rescue groups may have adult cats that need a temporary home too.  Adult cats may fill the bill for those that have work hours that make caring for very young kittens difficult. 

UPDATE 8/12/2012:  A great foster home was found today for Champ!!!  He will be able to rest and recover from his surgery.
San Jose Animal Advocates  is facilitating finding a permanent home for Champ.  If you are interested in adopting Champ, please complete this application.  Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

Like every Last Chance Pet featured on this website, time is of essence in getting them into a foster or permanent home. This is even more so in the case of Champ, a blind Pit Bull mix.

On July 11, 2012, Champ was discovered half-starved and tied to the front gate at a Campbell elementary school. Champ was covered with deep puncture wounds on his body and face, and had swollen ears and eyes and bleeding abscesses on his chin. It is suspected he a ‘bait dog’—a dog used to warm-up a fighting dog before the start of a dog fight—and was subsequently left to die.

While still clinging to the last vestiges of life, Champ was immediately brought to a nearby animal hospital. The clinic cleaned up his wounds, examined his ears and abscesses and started him on vaccinations, antibiotics and pain medication.  But after a full investigation of both eyes, veterinarians concluded that they were so heavily traumatized that surgery was required to remove them.  Its not clear if Champ was born blind or if his blindness was caused by his injuries, but because there was so much swelling in his eyes, the vet suspected trauma was responsible.  Throughout the process, Champ maintained the attitude of a ‘champ,’ (thereby earning his name), continually wagging his tail and giving the people around him lots of kisses and reasons to snuggle.

Champ has since been recovering at the veterinary hospital, but after all this, he is showing signs of kennel stress due to the barking of other animals.  His handlers are concerned he might develop aggression against other dogs and leave him little time to be adopted into a permanent or foster home.

San Jose Animal Advocates is committed to spreading the word about Champ's situation and helping generate funds to cover the costs of Champ’s medical expenses and find Champ a quiet, loving home where he can recover in peace and further blossom into happy dog that he already is.  Stay connected with Champ's story through his Facebook page.

Can you (or someone you know) provide a foster or permanent home to this animal who has been through so much, yet still maintains his loving attitude?  While Champ heals, it is recommended that he be an only dog.  Or would you be willing to donate funds to cover Champ’s recovery expenses?  Donations can be made through Chipin.

Homeless feral cats are a sad fact of our community.  Numerous kittens that are not old enough or suitable for adoption are euthanized each year as a result of unmanaged feral colonies.  In recent years Trap/Neuter/Return (TNR) programs established in various locations throughout the San Francisco Bay Area are becoming an important part of the solution.

According to the ASPCA, “a feral cat is primarily wild-raised or has adapted to feral life, while we [the ASPCA] define a stray cat as someone's pet who has become lost or has been abandoned. Stray cats are usually tame and comfortable around people. They will frequently rub against legs and exhibit behaviors such as purring and meowing.  In contrast, feral cats are notably quiet and keep their distance. Stray cats will also often try to make a home near humans—in car garages, front porches or backyards. Most are completely reliant on humans as a food source and are not yet able to cope with life on the streets.”

Trap/Neuter/Return (TNR) is a humane way of trapping of domestic cats that live in the community without formal homes and survive by gathering food and shelter where they can.  The trapped cats are spayed/neutered, vaccinated, sometimes treated for other medical issues, and micro chipped.  Their ears are notched so that they may be identified as spayed/neutered.  They are returned to a colony in the community.

The ASPCA writes, “TNR helps the community by stabilizing the population of the feral colony and, over time, reducing it. At the same time, nuisance behaviors such as spraying, excessive noisemaking and fighting are largely eliminated, and no more kittens are born. Yet, the benefit of natural rodent control is continued.  Jesse Oldham, ASPCA Senior Administrative Director of Community Outreach and the founder of Slope Street Cats, an organization dedicated to feral cat welfare, notes, “TNR also helps the community's animal welfare resources by reducing the number of kittens that would end up in their shelters—TNR creates more space for the cats and kittens who come to them from other avenues.”

According to The Cat Resource Center, a Santa-Clara based cat rescue organization, additional benefits of TNR include: “Sterilizing cats saves tax dollars, vaccination prevents disease, and TNR is the most effective and humane option for feral cats.”

TNR begins with various rescue groups, individuals, and in some cases, compassionate businesses. Often these dedicated people trap and provide veterinary care and food for the colonies (often paying for the procedures themselves).  At times they partner with local shelters or veterinary hospitals that volunteer veterinary procedures.  Available funds (from limited budgets, grants and donations) determine how many procedures a shelter can contribute to TNR.

Policies vary among organizations and shelters regarding the fate of surrendered kittens.  Kittens must weigh two pounds before they can be spayed/neutered, yet this procedure is required by law before kittens can be adopted from a rescue group or shelter.  The availability of foster families will play a key role in the number of neo-nate kittens a shelter or organization can accept for adoption.  Without foster families it is impossible for organizations and shelters to provide the care these tiny babies require, thus some precious lives may not have a chance.  Before surrendering neo-nate kittens, check with organizations and shelters regarding their policies.

The following are organizations gleamed from various sources that serve the feral cat colonies in different ways.  SJAA provides these links to aid you in finding a resource that may be of help to you.  SJAA is not affiliated with these organizations, nor is recommendation implied by their listings here.

The Cat Resource Center (http://www.catcenter.org)
Town Cats (Feral Freedom) (http://www.towncats.org/article?id=268)  
Alley Cat Allies (http://www.alleycat.org/)
Silicon Valley Friends of Ferals (http://www.svff.org/services.html )
Stanford Cat Network  (http://www.stanford.edu/group/CATNET/ )
Second Chance Cat Sanctuary (http://www.secondchancecats.org/feral-cats.php )
ASPCA Feral Cat FAQs (http://www.aspca.org/adoption/feral-cats-faq.aspx#strayferal )
Fix Our Ferals (http://fixourferals.org/home/?page_id=87)