About FosterCat, Inc

A Miracle for Mirabel

Sometimes it takes a miracle to save the life of a cat or kitten who has been rescued from outside. Mirabel’s story starts in July of 2022. Just another typical feral mom and five kitten rescue that we are all so familiar with throughout the year. The five kittens were around four weeks old and were able to be with the mother until they were weaned. Our wonderful foster mom Kerri stepped up and agreed to foster all of them until they were old enough to be vetted and placed into permanent homes. The feral mother would be vetted and released, and food and shelter would be provided.

Kittens that young need to be handled a lot, and spending time with them to get human interaction and contact is absolutely essential in gaining their trust for eventual placement into responsible homes.

Kerri noticed that as time went on the tiniest of the litter, Mirabel, would come and sit on Kerri’s lap and purr and purr. Kerri also noticed that all of the kittens had gained weight but Mirabel had not gained an ounce. Finally, Mirabel was taken to a vet and extensive tests were done. After ruling out a myriad of diseases, it was determined that Mirabel had Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP). FIP is normally a fatal diagnosis, but in recent years, an extremely costly treatment has become available. Kerri contacted the source and FosterCat decided we would try to save this little girl any way we could.

FosterCat established a “Go Fund Me” fundraising account when we found out that ongoing treatments would be extremely costly. Each vial of medicine for once a day injections cost $86.00 for 84 days, not including the cost of needles and syringes and routine blood work. Vials of the medicine had to be increased as Mirabel gained weight.

Thanks to our wonderful supporters and our Annual Bingo/ Go Fund Me fundraiser, we were able to raise the necessary funds for the much-needed medicine and supplies for this important treatment.

I am happy to report that as of January 29, 2023, Mirabel has been pronounced cured! We still have to watch her closely and routine blood work must be done, but Kerri is happy to report that Mirabel is running around and just being a normal kitten.

FosterCat is extremely grateful for all the donations from our supporters in making this dream come true. I would like to personally thank everyone who donated and helped this little kitten have a chance at life!

FosterCat is hoping that every cat diagnosed with FIP will be able to access this life saving treatment. Like any “new” drug out there, it will take time to develop, but it will subsequently lower the price of the drug enough so that it will be affordable for any individual who wants a positive solution to FIP.

Thank you all and God Bless!

“Why is foster-to-adoption so successful?”

FosterCat’s recently published adoption results have been on the uptick. Our President, Barb Slade, believes that it’s because “foster-to-adoptions” has developed into the number one adoption method for FosterCat.

What is “foster-to-adoption”?

When cats are accepted into the FosterCat network of foster homes, they are very fortunate cats because they are always given a home, whether foster or permanent. There are many circumstances that warrant their acceptance into the program. These can range from discovery of homeless mothers with kittens; strays that are found that are friendly, socialized cats and may need immediate medical attention; abuse situations where the cats are in harmful or even life-threatening situations; and other cases. When cats are taken into Fostercat, they are assigned a pre-approved foster home that has been contacted ahead of time and has agreed to foster the cat(s). These are homes that accept fosters on an ongoing basis. Before they are delivered to the foster home, each cat visits a vet for examination and depending on the age and need, may be given vaccinations, flea and deworming medication and other necessary medical treatment. The cat then remains with the foster home until successful adoption occurs.

The foster-to-adopt method is an alternative that is offered to the potential adopter. Most potential adopters really like the offer because they can try caring for the cat for a few weeks to see if it will work out in their unique home situations. The potential adopter completes and signs a foster-to-adopt application. Once the application has been screened, our foster manager, Kim typically delivers the cat to their residence to care for during the “foster” period. This method has resulted in a high rate of permanent adoptions because the home and the cat have the time to become accustomed to one another thus allowing for a smoother adoption transition. If for any reason the potential adopter feels that it is not working out, FosterCat accepts the cat back into its foster program. During the foster-to-adopt process, FosterCat offers a bag of food and if requested, brings a litterbox, scooper and litter. This is a starter kit for the foster home. Upon permanent adoption, the essential supplies are required to be provided by the adopter going forward.

Are you a candidate for “foster-to-adopt”? It may be the ideal solution for both you and the foster cat. Click here to complete the application.

A Christmas Gift for Gabby & Willow!

Gabby and Willow were two kittens who we had rescued many years ago. Both were adopted to a couple in the Pittsburgh area around 2010. In fact, this couple had adopted other kittens from FosterCat over the years. As it turns out, the wife passed away in her 50’s and the husband reached out to us in July to place the cats into another home. I indicated that since the cats were 12 years old, it would be near impossible to get them another home. People always want kittens and young adults. It is very rare that someone is willing to adopt a senior cat, let alone two senior cats.

Unfortunately, FosterCat has a limited number of foster homes available at any given time. Kitten season is an exceptionally busy time for all rescues due to the number of kittens being born every year. I called around to boarding facilities and the only one that had openings was Wexford Vet. Both cats were boarded there for many months. The Wexford Vet employees called me at least once a week to let me know how the cats were doing. Willow was very depressed and stayed in her cage. She wanted nothing to do with coming out of the cage to play or interact with the employees. We knew we had to find a temporary home as soon as possible.

A break came with some very wonderful people who contacted Kim, our foster coordinator. This woman (Beth) was kind enough to post their pictures on her website and sent us inquiries. I went through each and every application trying to find the perfect home for these two sweeties. I knew it would not be an easy task. Gabby was the friendlier of the two while Willow was shy. Willow also had a weight problem due to lack of stimulation, thus causing her to overeat. Willow was not able to go up and down stairs nor jump on the couch.

In September, a woman named Brianne filled out a foster application and indicated that she and her fiancée Brandon were willing to foster the cats until they were adopted. Brianne was wonderful and got both cats moving around and guided them with the proper nutrition.

Finally on October 11th we received an official adoption application for both cats! Anthony and his long-term girlfriend went to visit Gabby and Willow at Brianne’s apartment and decided to sign a foster contract to adopt both cats. I asked them why they decided to adopt two older cats. They instantly replied that they wanted to adopt a cat(s) who might be hard to place. How utterly selfless of this generous couple. Both were even willing to adopt an FIV cat if one was available. I can sincerely tell you that does not happen very often. We at FosterCat were all ecstatic! Finally, a home for both of these older kitties and just in time for Christmas.

Anthony states that “they are having a great time with both cats and both are hilarious.” Anthony sends me updates and pictures periodically. Willow has lost some weight and is now able to climb stairs and jump on the couch. This is truly a Christmas miracle!

As the Christmas season unwinds, we would like to encourage everyone to help an animal in need. These animals depend on the kindness of people like you and me to aid them throughout the year. I know not everyone can take in an animal, but there are many ways you can reach out to help these less for tunate animals. FosterCat encourages you to make donations of money or food to lighten the weight of caring for the many cats and kittens who come into our care.

Have a wonderful Christmas and New Years from all of us at FosterCat! May the coming year bring you peace, joy and love!

FosterCat’s Fourth Annual Bingo Fundraiser

FosterCat held its Fourth Annual Catnip Bingo on Sunday, October 16, 2022 at Salvatore’s, 5001 Curry Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15236. Thanks to our many generous donors and volunteers, we raised over $7000.00 for veterinary care of cats and kittens in our foster program. Thank you to Salvatore’s for their delicious food and service. Our Chinese Auction, 50/50 raffle and our “rip-offs” were a complete success. Thank you to Chris Mikrut from DeLuca’s for your continued support of FosterCat. A big thanks to Nikki Yaglowski and Chris Kachmar from Helping Paws for donating 100% of the proceeds from the sale of her cat products and to Dave Roman for always volunteering his time and talent to call the bingo. Thanks to all our other donors who donated items for the auction, etc.

A special thank you goes to Norma Clouse who chaired this event! Her talent and expertise is so much appreciated! Thank you to the many volunteers who donated items, sold tickets, and all that made this event a huge success! Thank you to Natalie Boggs, Beth Borrasso, Gina Brandi, Chantal Brown, Norma Clouse, Michelle Dunn, Audrey Franzetta, Pam Gerdart, Diane Grundl, Carolyn Kozlowski, Amy Morgano, Jessica Rapp, Kerri Sher and Mike Weis. If I forgot anyone, please know that we all appreciated your help. Thank you!

Cat-loving Kindergartner to the Rescue

Six-year-old Sophia Bradway loves cats, so a fundraiser to help homeless cats was a natural choice. Also a lover of girly things, like nail art, she pitched her idea to local Color Street nail strips consultant Angie Johnston, who helped set up the Facebook fundraiser.

They raised $1240.00 for FosterCat Inc., a local allvolunteer cat rescue that finds homes for more than 200 cats and kittens each year.

“We thought we might be able to raise a couple hundred dollars,” said Sophia’s mother, Ashley Haverlack. “We were totally overwhelmed by this amazing response.”

Sophia is the youngest client of Ms. Johnston, who is a lifelong friend of Sophia’s mother. Sophia loves the colorful nail strips from Color Street, which she can apply with a little help from an adult.

For the past three years Sophia’s love of cats has been broadcast to all by the cat-ears hairband she wears every day. Last year, one of her North Hills neighbors asked her to housesit her cats. The job went well, and Sophia begged her mother and father to let her get a cat of her own. She said she would pay for the cat with her own money, saved up from doing chores.

The neighbor’s cats - both black - had been adopted from Foster Cat, so that’s where Sophia applied to adopt. The family was introduced to two female kittens from the same litter. One was black and the other was what Ms. Havelack describes as a “dilute tortie/calico,” a very popular color. But homeless black cats often languish longer in shelters and rescues.

The sister kittens were very bonded, and Sophia suggested adopting both so they would not be separated. The kittens were almost two months old when they came home with Sophia. She named the black one Pumpkin and the other Pom Pom. They provide entertainment and love to everyone in the family. Sophia’s instincts were right - the cat sisters are inseparable.

Sophie is looking forward to her May kindergarten graduation from The Glen Montessori School in Ross. In the fall she will attend classes in the North Allegheny School District. (Reprinted with permission from Linda Wilson Fuoco and the PITTSBURGH POST GAZETTE.)

ATTENTION ALL ADOPTERS!

We would like to keep you informed by sending you updates and information about important events, like our upcoming Bingo Fundraiser. If we do not have your email address, please take a few moments to provide it for us and go to the following link: http://fostercat.org/contactus.html. Thank you!