Pawfest 2011 - 1st annual fundraiser
Time
Saturday, April 2 · 2:00pm - 5:00pm
Location
Anderson Valley Brewing Company
17700 Boonville Road
Boonville, CA
Created By
Anderson Valley Animal Rescue
More Info
Anderson Valley Animal Rescue is planning our first ever :) 1st annual fundraising event to raise funds for spay & neuter - yay!!!!
Save the date: 4.2.11
Keep up on the happenings: www.avanimalrescue.petfinder.org
This is the biggest feral cat!!!
He weighed in at a whopping 12 pounds of super bad ass MEAN!!!!
He got 'em whacked off today and the vet said a few funny things but they also said 'he's been around, broken canine but healthy...."
His size explains the size of the kittens we pulled out of this colony this year - they are teens and look like adults!
This was a rather eventful trapping
I set two traps, you know, two is better than one right?
Anyway, I check them around 2 hours later and we have a female that we have already trapped - she was pretty humble and split when I let her out.
I reset her trap and went about my business. A few hours later I head to pull the traps - it's 1:30am....
I am so excited that I'm having a party by myself when I pull up and see him in the trap - he was the goal.
So excited in fact that I start to move his trap and remember to look to my right and check the other trap....
OMG!!!!!
I have a SKUNK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My fist skunk and I am not ready to deal with this...or prepared.
I decide to move Mydaus (he didn't have a name at this time) and think on how to get this skunk out of the trap.
I end up using a piece of plywood (1/4 sheet or so) as a make shift shield and I ask the cute little skunk to please don't spray me, please don't spray me, please don't spay me....and she just watches me, showing a tiny bit of fear but no aggression.
I am able to place the wood between the cage opening and me and unlatch the cage and gently lift the escape door and back away slowly....
She moves out slowly and then disappears into the bushes - stink and all.
I am so relieved and I must admit I was scared - truly
But the joy of catching Mydaus....
That'll do
Mydaus
That'll do
pew
I can still smell that skunky
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mydaus
For a cat that is as vocal and as aggressive as Big Kitty, one must wonder why she can not climb down from trees.
This is the 2nd time she has done this
The 1st was a couple of years ago, during a rainy period, she ends up in a tree, won't move forward or backward. Not so high that we couldn't reach her with a hose - the fall was not pretty, but she was unscathed
Right now, Big Kitty, all 7 years of her bad self, is seriously stuck up a 50+ ft tree, in the very top, hanging over a huge crevasse - putting her a good 100ft above ground
It also happens to have been extremely hot the past few days -
She has been stuck in the tree for 5 days (as of today) and 5 nights, no water, no food, over 100F....
Nothing (I have tried) will bring her down
I have calls in to a tree guy....don't think he can reach her where she is
I am left with nothing to do but wait...and it's horrible
This picture is the epitome of Big Kitty:
She was walking out onto an unstable branch, hanging over the rivers edge, after a huge flood.
I said "Big Kitty..." and before I could even get out the rest "be careful" she turns around and bitches me out.
I have no doubt she is uninjured
I know this cat, I know she will not come down (alive) on her own
I will eat my words (happily) if she does
I'm doing what I can
But figure a bit of virtual encouragement couldn't hurt her....
Big Key-Key
come down
I have tuna
& you have many more years ahead of you.....
UPDATE:
Day 5
Tree climber to be here after 7pm tonight
Sub-Q fluids on hand
Big Kitty limply hanging in crook of tree.......
I try calmness
ps
for all you who think that all cats come down....they don't
my vet (their own cat) had one up a tree for 15, that is right, 15 days before he became to weak, dehydrated to hang on....he has lived to tell the story though.
So, maybe, just maybe.....
Later that night....
-SIGH-
You just won't believe this story....
A tree climber, never met him before tonight, recommended by my vet, came to our house tonight around 8pm.
Now some of you may be saying "but it's dark at 8pm where you are" and you would be right. He assured me he knew what he was doing....
He carefully, after nearly falling into the crevasse, climbed the tree. All the way up to the swaying in the heavy wind that showed up today, top. I had made a 'tuna rag' for him to carry up, he instead rubbed it all over his gloves. She was meowing her head off at him all the way up.
He calmly sat in the area of her for a few minutes letting her sniff his gloves and talking to her.
Oh yeah, I was holding a flashlight from the ground, an awesome flashlight that The Man bought me for Christmas (I love this light) - that's all the light he had.
He was so far up we had to raise our voices to talk to each other - the whole time I'm hoping all goes well....
It did.
He gets a hold of her and she doesn't fight back at all.
He scoots down the tree and hands her off to me.
I take her and put her in a carrier, hug the guy I have never met, pay him a pittance and head back to the house to check on Big Kitty.
She is amazingly fine, dehydrated, but not to the point of illness.
I give her some Sub-Q fluids, she sat in my lap and purred (not normal) and then I had to head to work. She is safe at home, in her own room with a huge bowl of water.
I will re-evaluate her condition in the morning.
I am utterly amazed at her condition after 5 days of hanging in a tree top in 100F+ temps - amazing
As I knew, she is not injured
& she made no attempt, ever, to come down on her own - only to cry out for help.
I will tell you one thing
If this happens to you, find a 'tree guy' they have this love of climbing, truly
These are the guys who will help you
Special thanks to my caring vets office, Yokayo Vet Center, for going above and beyond and putting me in contact with 'their tree guy' - many of you may remember my little 'cheating on my vet' incident when I went to another vet and found out rather quickly that I was wrong....
I did not get a new photo of her tonight, but I will in later today
To show you how she looks just fine!
BUT
This is her cattidude about it all - seriously
I wrote a note
I wrapped it in plastic
I then twist tied it onto Jester's old collar
and put it on him
I did this because for well over a year Jester had been gaining weight - even though he never ate our house. One might find this odd. Even odder, he started being gone during the day - always returning at night to sleep in bed.
Then....
He would be gone overnight
Then...
For a day, & a night
Then....
A few days at a time
always coming home, never hurt, just fatter
Now, it's only fair to tell you that Jester never cared a big hoot about The Thank You's - they rather annoyed him and his peaceful fatness- always wanting to play or be close to him.
By April his utter dislike and total disregard for my foster work became apparent.
He would be gone for days-weeks at a time, only coming by to say hi and then off again, always coming when called, and always from the same way.
The note, was simple and just let the 'other one' know that when he was gone, he was safe at home and not to worry like I did. Needless to say, after a week or two with the note on, it had still not been read. I took the collar off and wished Jester well.
By May Jester quit coming home
I quit calling him
I miss him
In June, he came home early one morning when I arrived home from work, only to say hi, then leave again
Both Chris and I have seen him in the neighborhood but he has nothing to do with either of us or our dastardly new kitten bringing home ways.
I have no sense that he is anything but fine, happy & fine
The 3 newest members of the 'foster' program at our place
They are all so darn cute!!!
Woody, the brown tabby, has weaseled his way into my heart....
J-Lo is a loving, playful little gal who boldly goes where ever she wants to :)
Bryan, he likes to be his own man - both he and Woody have HUGE paws - I wonder how big they will grow to be?
More on the breed
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_Fold
