advoCATS
News
Good
"Mews" for Hawaii's Cats
Winter 2009
In this Issue:
What
Our Volunteers Love Most About Cats
We
Thank You One And All
October and
November Spay/Neuter Clinics
In Our Mailbox
- Everyone Loves Happy Endings
In Memory and
Honor Of
Fundraising News;
Craft Fairs, Garage Sales, Christmas Trees and more
Treasurer's
Report
advoCATS Comic
Notes from the
Sanctuary
Special Foster
Kitties of the Month
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Someone
To Watch Over Me |
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There is someone that
I'm longing to see |
I hope that he, turns
out to be |
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Someone To Watch Over
Me |
We asked our volunteers; what is the
one thing they love most about cats,
and here is what they said....
I Love their...
ears, their curly tails, their pink noses, their
little faces, their playfulness, their affection, their cat-attitude,
their company, their self-knowledge
and their independence
I Love the way they... cuddle and
give me inner peace
I Love... holding them
I Love that they are... like babies,
are furry, fuzzy, entertaining, intriguing, are a blesssing
and they are grateful when you help them
6219
Cats Have Been Spayed & Neutered Since 1999! |
We Thank
You One And All
We’ve been together for 10 years
and have experienced good times and tough times, seen happy
endings and sad ones, but throughout it all we’ve
been grateful. Grateful for all the volunteers who have
passed though and contributed to advoCATS by donating their
time, their money, their knowledge and their love. We thank
all the veterinarians and the vet techs who have spayed
and neutered over 6000 cats for us. We are grateful for
all the different board members through the years, especially
Sandy Sharkey who started advoCATS in 1999. We are grateful
for all the trappers who sat patiently waiting in the dark
at night for the sound of a trap snapping shut and those
that drove the trapped cats to and from the vets offices
for neutering. We are grateful for all the feeders who schlepped
bags of cat food and gallons of water over lava rocks in
those dark deserted places at night. We are grateful for
those that tirelessly helped to raise funds to pay the vet
bills; collecting H-5 containers, hauling garage sale items,
holding the sales, decorating Christmas trees and making
ornaments. We are grateful to all those that answered our
telephone hot line and emails; answering endless questions
and trying to resolve difficult problems. We are grateful
for all the foster moms who took in so many cats and kittens,
taming them, loving them, then letting them go to new homes
and cleaning the endless litter boxes. For all those that
spent hours at computers compiling information for our brochures,
flyers, web site and newsletters and those who folded, stamped
and mailed them. We are grateful for those volunteers who
worked on public relations with hotels, businesses, private
citizens and the legislature to make life better for our
island cats. We are grateful for all those that helped at
our many clinics, all the hard workers who helped to create
our sanctuary and for those that collected money from donation
boxes, writing thank you letters and paying the bills. We
are grateful for all those that donated their hard earned
money to continue our TNR program, to help animals they
will never know or see. Just know that your help was and
is appreciated immensely. Without ALL of YOU we could never
have neutered 6219 cats and prevented so many kittens from
being born!
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Spay/Neuter
Clinics |
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We had our first clinic at Dr.
Head's Keauhou Veterinary Hospital on October 18th where
we spayed 17 females and 12 males. None of the females were
pregnant. A big change was how Dr. Head uses these different
types of anesthesia; Ketamine, Butorphenol, and Domitor.
The cats were only sedated just long enough to perform the
surgery and then were given a shot to wake them up. We had
just enough time to clean their ears, give them a dose of
Advantage for fleas and transfer them to their traps before
they woke up.
We’d like to extend a huge
mahalo to our veterinarians; Dr. Jacob Head and Dr. Shannon
Nakaya. We'd also like to thank Jolene Head and the veterinary
technicians; Marlea, Angela, Bridget, Kris and Taryn. It
was so wonderful to have the help of so many professionals.
Mahalo to our faithful volunteers;
Peter and Pica Mertvago, Joy Banks, Nancy Hitzemann, Laurel
Gregory, Cathy Swedelius, Margie Wolfe, Kandice Crusat,
Jennifer Olson, Cheryl Nacis, Bee Henderson, Jan Abbott,
Sharon Karayianis and clinic organizer Roberta Agre. We
could not operate clinics and spay and neuter so many cats
without all of you.
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Photo Above: Dr. Heads Clinic Team
From top left: Jolene Head, Dr. Jacob Head, Marlea, Bridget,
Kris, Angela, and Taryn.
Bottom: Dr. Shannon Nakaya and her Welsh Corgi; Nalu.
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Photo Above: Receptionist Marlea
helped to feed 3 week old foster kitten, Purrkit, who was
rescued from the Honokohau Harbor when it was just days old. |
Photo Above: Vet tech's Bridgette
and Kris prep the cats for surgery. |
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Kapa`au
Clinic |
On November 8th, Dr. Robin Woodley
hosted another clinic at her new Kapa’au Veterinary
Center. Dr. Shannon Nakaya also preformed some of the surgeries.
Twenty additional volunteers came to help. Sixteen males
were neutered and nineteen females were spayed and no females
were pregnant. Dr. Woodley is a holistic veterinarian and
uses many natural products at her clinics such as Bach's-Rescue-Remedy.
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Above from left: Dr. Woodley assisted
by Lauren Caravalho and Kathy Hasselbring. |
Right: Rachel Lancaster and Niko
Burkhardt. |
In Our Mailbox
... Everyone Loves Happy Endings
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The
Creamsickle Kitty - It was Christmas
night 2007 and my husband I had just finished our dinner
for two in our vacation home at Ka Milo in the Mauna Lani
Resort. We heard faint meows on our lanai; the aroma of
a turkey dinner had obviously attracted attention and there
to our wondering eyes was a very small orange and white
kitty. We shared our turkey trimmings with him and were
amazed at how much food a small body could consume. During
our next several weeks on island the kitty appeared intermittently
to feed and sometimes even wandered through our open doors
to watch my husband read or find a spot under a table to
join us. He remained very timid and untouchable. We named
him “Keiko.” We returned to the island in July
2007 and within a day Keiko reappeared. Over the next several
weeks he responded to a gentle touch when he was eating
and eventually I was able to pick him up. Now I was worried!
I could not take him back to California with us, but how
could I leave him without a foster caretaker. I tried without
success to find a home for this sweet creature. That’s
when I called advoCATS. The volunteers suggested TNR. Ferol
Kolon, was especially supportive and arranged the neutering.
Then from other island acquaintances I learned that Keiko
was presenting himself at dinnertime at other homes in the
area, somewhat good news. Then I learned that Keiko was
warming the hearts of the staff (Hilary, Kristina and Steve)
in the nearby sales office at Ka Milo. Keiko, now also known
as Milo, is entertaining daily and greeting new visitors
to the community. He is fortunate to have found loving caretakers,
who allow him freedom for “indoor/outdoor” experiences.
When we recently saw Keiko we could see that he was bringing
smiles to the faces of everyone that saw him. Thank you
Ferol and advoCATS for helping to create a happy ending
to the story of the “Creamsickle Kitty.” - -
Elaine Anderson - - |
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Squeek
- We came to Hawaii for a veterinary conference and stayed
in a Waikoloa condo were resident cats visited us daily.
We served them broiled chicken breasts and named one of
them Squeek; a small female tabby who had a squeaky cry.
Then we met Elli at Harbor Gallery who told us about advoCATS.
We saw so many strays, many of them with tipped ears, and
I began to worry about what would happen to Squeek.
When our vacation ended, I began to worry more. I wondered
what life would be like for her. My husband offered to find
a carrier to take her home, but I told him: “Don’t
worry, I’ll get over it.” I didn’t.
When we got home I worried and cried a lot. My husband said
I could go back and get her. I’m sure that he hoped
I wouldn’t, but I decided I would. He dropped me off
at the airport with carrier, litter box and scooper. I only
had five days to find her and get a health certificate.
The resort staff moved me into condo with a patio. I got
my chicken food out and within 30 minutes I heard the squeaky
voice of Squeek. I put chicken scraps leading into the condo
and I quickly shut the door as she stepped inside. She bounced
off the screen and every window in the place to find a way
out. I coaxed her into the bathroom where she stayed until
I took her home. I came to Hawaii and spent most of my time
in that bathroom. She loved the attention and I loved listening
to her squeak. She used the litter box and enjoyed all the
good food. I felt so blessed that we found each other. The
morning we were to leave I couldn’t open the bathroom
door. During the night she had somehow opened the drawer
next to the door. I panicked, but finally took a knife and
pushed it closed little by little. We were soon on our way
home. So the Aloha Spirit does exist. I met so many wonderful
people; Rona, the housekeeper, Char at the front desk, Jerry
Jameson the General Manager who is now giving advoCATS a
chance to make a difference in the Shores colony, Bee Henderson
an advoCATS representative, Dr. Jordon at Kona Veterinary
Services, Mike Galvin the TSA agent and Benji the Dollar
Car Rental bus driver. Now that we are home, Squeek is fattening
up and loves her new home. We love her and her squeaky voice,
she makes us smile. -- Leslie Prindle-Klein – |
Squeek
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The Kitten Finds Us
She is a small thing on the edge of the
lava rocks watching them for a time, weighing the
lights, the voices, the warm smell of food against the call
of that wilderness - earth and underbrush.
She is barely big enough to make it up their stairs,
but does. And does again. They are friends of our neighbor
Patti, Carrie and Rick, visiting the Island for a short
time. They have been feeding her and don't want to leave
her to fend for herself. They call Patti who tells them
to call my mother, Ann. The humans consult. Cat/human introductions
are made and she is brought indoors. She seems part squirrel
and part kangaroo as she weaves her way at mach speed through
the apartment. She has warmed up to soft blankets and nosing
through grocery bags on the counter. I believe she thinks
she'll keep us. -- Bergen Hutaff – |
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Her Name is Lola |
Mahalo,
Mahalo, Mahalo |
A
Big Mahalo To:
Eric
Roberts, Mario and Lorraine Domini, William Kay, James and
Diane Kleiforth, Victoria Newman, Karin Holloway, New Moon
Foundation, Eugene and LaDonna Clarke, Gunther and Elli Mench,
Charlotte Gilman, R and C Von Hagen, Bee Henderson, Johanna
Nisley-Gil, Carol Kreiser, Don and Jean Evans, Hualalai Estate
Coffee, Thomas and Sharon Shining, Joan Lawhead, Joyce Newhall,
Bridget Miller, Joan and Clifford Winston, Patricia Mickelsen
and Mary Rose Krijgsman of Rainbow Friends Sanctuary.
And a very special Mahalo to Carolyn and
Bruce Witcher at
Witcher Engineering for printing our newsletter! |
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In Memory
Of;
Joan and Clifford Wilson in memory of Klassy's Harley James
and Klassy's Tasha Haze
Edward Fisher and Renate Lewis in memory of Zachary, Sophie
and Nick
Kathryn Bowes in memory of Kee
Catherine Steinback and Paul Garcia in memory of Possum
Tim and Toni Stevens in memory of Missy, Mandy, Snowball,
Kitty and Claudia
Miranda Watson in memory of Jazzy
In Honor Of;
Patricia Mickelsen in honor of Jean Newfield's birthday
Dr. and Mrs. R. Widmann in honor of Summer Widmann
Jerald and Maudean Drobesh in honor of Karen Hanson's birthday
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Left: Christmas
Craft Fair - It was a fun two day event
at the King Kamehameha Resort. Our booth was interesting
and eclectic with all the different items donated to help
the kitties. The event was coordinated by Kandice Crusat
and brought in $831. for our spay/neuter program. We even
had kittens for adoption and foster mom Jennifer Olson found
homes for 2 of her advoCATS. Mahalo to all our wonderful
supporters who came to the fair to support us and purchase
some great items. Mahalo to helpers: Cathy Swedelius, Veronica
Galas, Judi Wohlman, Judy Kocon, Jenny Crusat, Ginger Sizemore
and Rodney Crusat. Mahalo for the donated items from: Judi
Wohlman, Linda Martz, Lorna Vincent Venter, Violet Towne,
Vicky Stenlake, Linda Welker, Rachael Sarasin, Pauline Beynon,
Jenny Crusat, Mimi Wood and Kandice Crusat. A special Mahalo
to Joann Williams who provided us with the booth.
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Right: November
Garage Sale - Our year end holiday
garage sale on Nov. 22 was interrupted by rain, so we decided
to continue it the next weekend on Nov. 28 and finally finishing
up on Sunday the 30th. These garage sales netted advoCATS
$3,700.00 (including Craig's List sales). We are grateful
to the following helpers who made this all possible: Roberta
Agre, Wayne Flemming, Veronica Galas, Laurel Gregory, Sharain
Herrick, Nancy and Jim Hitzemann, Dustin Jones, Judy Kocon,
Ferol Kolons, Mike May, Pica Mertvago, Vikki and Hugh Stenlake,
Cathy Swedelius, Herb Taylor, Cindy Thurston, Denise Towle,
Linda Welker, Margie Wolfe and Solomon. Also, a huge Mahalo
Nui Loa to all of our super donors and to Kathy Vilander
for hosting the garage sales and providing the food.
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Left: Mauna
Lani Festival of Trees - Our kitty
theme tree was extra adorable with many wonderful hand made
ornaments. This tree was put up not only once, but twice;
on December 5th at the Fur Ball and the next day at the
Mauna Lani for their festival of trees. Mahalo to coordinator
Ferol Kolon and helpers Bee, Janet, Roni and Karen. Although
we did not place in the top three at the Mauna Lani this
year, we shared in the total amount of donations given to
all the trees in the event and received $131.00. Congratulations
to Hui Pono Holoholona for their first place win, which
will really help their spay/neuter program with the $3,000.
prize.
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Above
Left and Right: The Fur Ball -
Everyone had a great time at the First Annual Fur Ball.
Our craft fair booth brought in $800. Many animal organizations
had a chance to talk about themselves and educate people
about "no-kill." Mary Rose Krijgsman of Rainbow
Friends Sanctuary donated $2,000. to advoCATS from the
profits of the Ball. Photo Above: Judy Kocon.
Photo Right: Margie Wolfe and Judy Kocon.
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And More Fundrai$ing
New$...
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Foodland’s
Give Aloha - Thanks to our wonderful
supporters we received $2,872.14 from Foodland and Sack
N Save stores during their annual “Give Aloha”
in September. Mahalo to Foodland and the Western Union Foundation
for helping our kitties.
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Kona Stories
Book Sale - Every fall on the anniversary
of Kona Stories in Kainaliu, owners Joy and Brenda sponsor
a used book sale that benefits advoCATS. On November 1,
Roberta Agre and Margie Wolfe made over $300 in donations
from book sales and sales from our garage sale items. Kona
Stories is a wonderful, old-style bookstore with a beautiful
lanai overlooking the ocean where you can sit and have coffee
and read. Stop in when you are in the neighborhood.
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Ford Ironman
World Championship - In addition to
the $250. we received for collecting the HI-5 containers
at the Ironman benefit, we were also given a $500.00 grant.
We are thankful to Ironman and to Rosalind Butterfield,
the Ironman Coordinator, for allowing advoCATS this opportunity.
Mahalo to our fantastic volunteers: Dene, Nancy, Barb, Marsha,
Danny, Sharain, Wayne, Dustin, Jordy, Peter, Pica, Andi,
Desmien, Walter, Debbie, Bill, John, Tim, Tina, Margie,
Vikki, Sharon, Cathy, Glenn and Judy.
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Kona International
Market Place - We entered a kitty theme
Christmas tree at the festival and received $12.00 worth
of votes. Every little bit counts and we are grateful for
every donation we receive. Mahalo to Judy Kocon and Kay
Lund for their time in coordinating the event for us.
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Borders Book
Store - Our volunteers spent an evening
at Borders wrapping books and gifts which brought in $153.61
towards our spay/neuter fund. Mahalo to Sheri for helping
on this event.
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Treasurer's
Report for 2008 |
Proceeds:
Donations 37,816.
Donation boxes 2,500.
Garage & Craft Fair sales 8049.
Grants 3,500.
County of Hawaii 7,500.
Give Aloha 2,872.
Consignment 32.
Recycling 1,116.
Total $63,385. |
Expenditures:
Veterinarians 60,663.
Traps, other supplies 847.
Sanctuaries 2,673.
Advertising 1,041.
Clinics 5,510.
Telephone 350.
Postage, Newsletter, Web site 910.
Food Bank 18.
Taxes 122.
Total $72,134. |
| 2008
Was A Record Year For Our T.N.R Program;
1239 Cats Spayed
& Neutered! |
Our very Own advoCATS
Comic; Cat-astrophies!
by Cheryl Nacis
Notes
From The Sanctuary - It’s winter
at the sanctuary and it can get down into the low 40’s
at night. The cats go through a transformation as their coats
become thick and fluffy, much like on the mainland. This usually
does not happen to cats living in Hawaii at the sea level
colonies. We provide shelters made from 5 gallon buckets filled
with straw inside, which they love, especially on a rainy
day. The sanctuary is a peaceful place where the cats spend
their days and nights looking for interesting things to do
like climb the shaggy Ohia trees or discover exciting caves
in the lava. It’s fun to watch them scampering around,
acting playful and doing things that cats love to do. We have
relocated 63 cats to the sanctuary now; 27 from Kailua, 23
from Waikoloa, 9 from Ocean View and 4 from Kapoho. Most of
the cats gain weight while actually eating very little; they
average only 2 ounces of dry food per day per cat. We believe
this is due to the low level of stress in their habitat. We
feed them Costco’s dry cat food for it’s high
chicken protein content and Vitamin E. The slow introduction
of new cats helps to give them time to get to know each other,
so there is very little fighting going on, which adds to the
peacefulness at the sanctuary. The cats have become one colony
even though they have come from more than 11 different areas.
It has been a demonstration of their ability to adapt to their
surroundings and develop new relationships with each other.
It is sweet to watch males bond with other males and females
with other females, even though they came from different places.
We see them grooming each other as well as curled up sleeping
together. We replace the straw in the shelters occasionally
and in November a group of volunteers, seen at right, came
to help sanctuary caretaker Kandice Crusat do just that. We
also received 5 new cats from Waikoloa that day. |
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Above: Sanctuary helpers from left: Cathy Swedelius,
Roberta Agre, Nancy Hitzemann and Jan Abbott
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advoCATS Welcomes
New Volunteers
The kitties thank you "Jacque" for answering our phone
this month
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I’m Susie and I’m
about 5 months old. I and was trapped at a colony in Waikoloa.
Before long my Auntie Jan realized I had once been a loved
little girl before I was abandoned by my first human. Is
it any wonder that I’m a little shy of people now?
However, I still enjoy being petted and cuddled and will
roll over on my back so you can kiss my tummy. Auntie says
that I have the most beautiful green eyes. I would prefer
to be an inside kitty because I am white and have little
protection against the suns harmful rays here in Hawaii.
One thing; I haven't been spayed yet, so if you're willing
to give me a home, that must be done first.
Call my Auntie Jan in Waikoloa to adopt me:
883-3783
E-mail - jabbott676@aol.com
See more of Auntie Jan's Kittens on her Web
Site: http://bigislandkittens.com |
My Auntie named me Beach
because I am a sandy beach color. I am a little girl and
a bit shy of strangers. I’d love to come home with
you if you have the time and patience to get to know me.
I have an appointment at the vet for spaying, and probably
by the time you read this I will have already gone there.
I was born in September, 2008.
Please call my Auntie Jan in Waikoloa to adopt
me: 883-3783
E-mail - jabbott676@aol.com
See more of Auntie Jan's Kittens on her Web
Site: http://bigislandkittens.com
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Free
Spay/Neuter Clinics are still
being held at the Kailua Kona Human Society and the Ocean
View Veterinary Office once a month. Please call the Kailua
office for information and appointments: 329-1175. They do
test for FeLV and FiV and will euthanize if positive.
This a great opportunity for everyone in West Hawaii to use.
If you want to borrow traps and or need instruction on how
to trap, we can help. Trapping instructions can also be found
on our web site. The HIHS is still offering low cost spay/neuter
coupons to use at a veterinarian’s office.
YOU CAN HELP HAWAII’S CATS
$140. donation will spay 2 female cats
$100. donation will neuter 2 male cats
$70. donation will spay 1 female cat
$50. donation will neuter 1 male cat
advoCATS, Inc. P.O. Box 4415 Kailua Kona Hawaii
96745
advoCATS, Inc. is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization. Donations
are tax deductible.
Phone: (808) 327-3724 E-Mail: advocatshawaii@aol.com Web Site: www.advocatshawaii.org
Donate
to advoCATS, Inc. Give a charitable gift
advoCATS Now Accepts
Donation$ Through Pay Pal
It’s now even easier to make donations
to advoCATS using Pay Pal. You can go to our home page and click
on our Pay Pal donation link, or the click on the link above,
or log on to www.paypal.com and click on “Send Money,”
then enter our email address: advocatshawaii@aol.com. It’s
that easy! You can use your bank account, credit card, or PayPal
balance to make a donation. And what 's really great; you can
use your credit card that enables you to acquire frequent flyer
mileage points. Take a trip and help the kitties! What a way
to go! If you don’t already have a Pay Pal account it
only takes a few minutes to get one. It’s a free and safe
way to make purchases or send donations.
As of January 2009
6219
Cats Have Been Spayed or Neutered Since 1999
Mahalo To All Our Veterinarians and Staff!
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