By Keith Whitcomb Jr
THE RUTLAND HERALD
A nonprofit program that rescues cats and kittens needs more people willing to foster the animals it takes in.
Feline Connection was formed a few years ago by Maria Caron.
“We have our core people that do the bulk of the work, and then we have people who do smaller jobs, which we always need, as well,” she said. “We need people who are willing to transport cats from one location to another, help get cats to spay and neuter clinics, or form one foster to another.”
Mainly the group needs people willing to foster cats and kittens until they can be on their own and adopted out, she said.
“Fosters are the limiting factor in how many animals we can save,” she said. “If we don’t have a place for these cats to go, then we can’t take them because we don’t have a facility.”
Feline Connection volunteer Elizabeth Eddy said this week that the group’s main focus is on feral cats: trapping them, getting them spayed or neutered, and adopting them out.
“A lot of the times the kittens don’t have a parent or there’s not enough food for everyone, so the rescuers will trap the kittens and hopefully the mother and try to place them in foster homes so they can grow and stabilize and be nourished until they’re ready for adoption,” she said.
Caron said anyone who wants to help Feline Connection should reach out through its Facebook page, facebook.com/thefelineconnection.vt. The page has the group’s various methods of being contacted listed on it. People can foster cats and kittens, help transport them, work on fundraising and do other odd jobs.
Abandoned and feral cats are being found daily, said Eddy. People don’t realize young kittens need to be fostered for several months before they’re ready to be adopted, she said. If not rescued, and they survive, they often end up malnourished, unsocialized and able to produce even more cats.
Feline Connection does work to complement the Rutland County Humane Society’s effort, she said, by reducing the number of feral cats in the area.
Caron said that about 15 people are fostering cats for the nonprofit right now. People use bathrooms to foster kittens, and in the warmer months a garage will do. In total, the group has 50 volunteers and would like more.
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