The impending Mother’s Day holiday seems like a good enough reason to nudge you to take home and foster a kitten from our shelter at Long Beach Animal Care Services (LBACS) or from one of the cat rescues listed in Adopt, adopt, adopt. Any day would be fine, in fact.

 LBACS has reinstated its kitten foster programs. About two years ago, the shelter launched a program that saw a lot of the little critters leave the shelter and lead the best possible life with temporary parents, who socialized them, fed them, played with them, and sometimes didn’t give them back. I had two in my house for a few weeks, and of our editorial staff members each took one. Mine went back and were subsequently adopted—I’m at my limit of three. Melissa’s and Valerie’s are still in their respective homes, forever, being little brothers to the established cats.

Last year, said shelter manager Staycee Dains, the community was more proactive in rescuing kittens. Many people were sequestered at home and had more time to follow through with suggestions on rescuing and fixing animals that LBACS offered, and the foster program wasn’t put into effect.

“People did a better job last year,” Dains said. “We saw a huge spike in vouchers, people keeping kittens with [stray] moms. There was also a huge increase in having mom and kittens fixed without taking them to the shelter.”

This year, the need has again popped up, Dains said. Kitten season has been in force for over two months, and I’ve written about it so much that I’ve run out of puns describing its details, impussible as it may seem. LBACS now sponsors two kitten-foster programs: foster-to-adopt, and one for fostering kittens in the twilight area between newborn and independent.

Foster-to-adopt is sort of like avoiding someone claim-jumping a kitten that you’ve decided would be solid gold in your life. You apply to foster a kitten of whom you’ve become enamored and take care of its food, room, board and medical, all except for spay/neuter, which the shelter handles. Then, you have first dibs on the kitty. They’re spayed or neutered as part of the adoption fee. Then, bingo! Another cat has a furever (so common a term that it should have already been a contender for Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Year) home.

Dains describes the “twilight-kitten” foster program in an irresistible video in the Help wanted, help given section of The Scratching Post. These kittens are about 4 weeks old and are eating on their own, but they need particular care and careful monitoring.

“Kittens who are 4 weeks old don’t require round-the-clock feeding, but they need a schedule and specific feeding every four or five hours,” Dains said. “The shelter provides litter boxes, litter, newspaper, bedding, nipples, formula, toys, a carrier and, if needed, medical care. The only medical care we don’t provide is if the foster injures the pets, and then we’ll take the animals back. You have to watch your kids and let them know that the animals are delicate and not educational toys. I always like to talk to the actual human children involved, especially if they’re under 10.”

Dains again stresses guideposts for bringing kittens found outdoors to the shelter, particularly for hopeful Good Samaritans with misguided intentions.

“Most of the time, people find kittens and bring them in, which we strongly encourage people not to do,” Dains said. “Mom may be getting groceries, maybe moving the babies, and a human’s intervention is confusing for her and frightening to her. We tell people to go away for six hours. If the kittens are still there, they may need some help.”

If this is the case, scoop them up, call 562-570-7387, and make an appointment.

Mother cats and the kittens should ideally stay together even in a rescue situation. The kittens will get their nourishment from her, and Mom can homeschool them on the particulars of being cats. If the mother cats are superfriendly, they can go home with a foster, and shelter staff will equip them with a setup consisting of a large cat condo and supplies. The mother and kittens can be returned for adoption and subsequent spay/neuter.

There’s a sweet mom and her babies in the Virtual pets section. They’d love to spend Mother’s Day and the following weeks in someone’s home.

Rescues can continue to take kittens and cats from the shelter when there’s room, but “room” is the key word. Independent rescues are nearly always run by volunteers who have to scramble for funds and fosters. Dains said that there continues to be a need for surrogate parents for the kitties at the shelter as well as rescues. If you want to be a mother to kittens or help a Momcat with her own family, contact [email protected]. This Mother’s Day and beyond, help give the greatest gift any parent can give: life.

Virtually Pets

More kittehs. There’s always more kittehs.

https://youtu.be/9oMwW3bL0NU

Happy Mother’s Day, we do so hope, to this Momcat.

https://youtu.be/iO30KLMEzTo

Adult cats also need mothering and love in general. Bruce, in particular, had an accident. His humans were persuaded to take him to the shelter when they opted not to pay to set his leg. Shelter vets took care of him—now, he needs a real—yes—furever home to heal at and resume his life as an excellent housemate. 

https://youtu.be/pLdZXQlRK3A

 

Just fur fun and fur-ther education

 

‘Meatballs in May’ neuter discount: May 1–31, Wednesday–Saturday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m., 1749 Magnolia Ave., Long Beach, see flyer for prices.

May will see prices for neuters (i.e., males only) even lower than Fix Long Beach’s usual prices, and on top of that, the first 100 appointments that month will get a free meatball dinner from Santa Fe Deli (mm-mm-MMM!). You and your cat or dog can go home after spending some uncomfortable hours in a clinic and go all Lady and the Tramp at home with the meatballs (just a nibble for your buddy—he’ll be a little worn out).

 

Fundraising raffle for The Little Lion Foundation: until May 31, see flyer for details

Five’ll get you 100 if you’re the lucky winner of this raffle! Follow the instructions on the flyer to enter the competition for a $100 Amazon gift card. Whether you win or do not, you’ll be helping newborn kittens and adult cats win a chance themselves—at living. All proceeds go to The Little Lion Foundation. Donations to the rescue are accepted on the link on the name.

Help wanted, help given

Fosters needed at Long Beach Animal Care Services

If you’ve always wanted a pet but aren’t sure if you’re ready for a lifetime (the animal’s) commitment, or if you’re past the pet-roommate days for any reason, fostering might be a great way to go, especially with one or more of the kittens popping up during kitten season. Long Beach Animal Care Services now has a foster program aimed at saving some little lives and socializing them. Who knows—maybe one of those lives will change your mind about the not-ready-for-roommate thing.

Feline Good Social Club needs willing subjects for its bewhiskered nobility

Feline Good Social Club has opened and is running and knocking things off shelves. The cat curators would love some volunteers for their furry residents. Want to be part of a kowtowing staff to cats because everyone knows that cats expect it? Email [email protected].

Fix Long Beach low-cost pet-services clinics: Wednesday–Saturday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m., 1749 Magnolia Ave., Long Beach, services available by appointment at www.fixlongbeachpets.com.

Fix Long Beach has reopened and is taking appointments for low-cost spay/neuter, dental, vaccines and other vet needs for cats and dogs. Visit their webpage or Facebook page for details.

DIY Kitten Care Kits available free at Long Beach Animal Care Services

Kitten season has begun, and soon, shelters and rescues will be scrambling to save their lives, get them fixed, get them adopted. It isn’t unusual to find nests of young, seemingly abandoned kittens during kitten season. It is a natural reaction to want to help, to save them. If you are interested in obtaining a Kitten Care Kit made possible by Helen Sanders CatPAWS, please email [email protected].

Spay/neuter vouchers available at shelter

Long Beach Animal Care Services has spay/neuter vouchers available. They’ll take a healthy nip out of the cost of a procedure. Residents of any of the five cities served by the shelter can telephone the general number at 562-570–7387 to request a voucher.

 Spay/neuter appointments available at SNP/LA

The Spay/Neuter Project of Los Angeles (SNP/LA) is back in business for free and low-cost spay/neuter services, and they’re extending the hours of their vaccination clinics. The San Pedro clinic, located at 957 N. Gaffey St., will give shots every third Thursday between 9 a.m. and 8 p.m. Call 310-574–5555 to see if you qualify for services.

If you can see the bottom of the kibble bag …

Helen Sanders CatPAWS celebrates Pet Parent Support Day, in conjunction with OC Animal Care Services: May 8, Saturday, donate at this link

“More often than we’d like to talk about, animals are displaced by families who encounter job loss and hard times. When it comes to paying the rent or having to put food on the table, households have to make devastating decisions that include being able to keep our furry loved ones. Those horrible decisions amid despair make bad situations even worse.” Local cat rescue Helen Sanders CatPAWS made this statement to represent the organization’s generosity in asking the public to help raise $1,000 in gift cards to help support the OC Pet Pantry Food Drive, which offers these events the second Saturday of each month. Every dollar raised will purchase gift cards to give to attendees of the event. Donate at the link in the heading.

Pets of the Homeless’s home page gives a self-description as the only organization focusing only on providing food and care for pets belonging to homeless people. Businesses and other organizations across the country receive in-kind donations of food and other needs that the dogs and cats’ human families can pick up at outreach locations. The following businesses will accept your donations:

Trendi Pawz, 3726 E. Seventh St., Long Beach.

Belmont Heights Animal Hospital, 255 Redondo Ave., Long Beach.

Paw Shoppe Pet Center, Inc., 6416 E. Spring St., Long Beach.

Food and supplies are available at Beacon for Him Ministries, 1535 Gundry Ave. Long Beach, Mondays from 9 a.m. to noon and Saturdays from noon to 3 p.m.; and at Christian Outreach in Action, 515 E. Third St., Long Beach, Thursday from 9 to 11 a.m. Donations will be gratefully accepted at these locations as well.

Adopt, adopt, adopt

White cat with tabby-patch ears and back stares upward, sitting in bowling-pin position in a glassed-in kennel with store products in background
Chompers, whom the rescuers renamed Shompei for ease of pronunciation, is chilling at the Cat Adoption Center at the Long Beach Pet Food Express. Shompei is 11 years old and has no teeth but her fangs because of a horrible case of stomatitis that went untreated for heaven knows how long. Nonetheless, she’s playful as a kitten and loves to cuddle. She needs to be in a home with no other animals and no small children, but she thrives on having her chops rubbed. Can you give her the life she deserves?

Pet Food Express Cat Adoption Center: weekdays and Saturday 10 a.m.–8 p.m., and Sunday 10 a.m.–7 p.m., Pet Food Express, 4220 Long Beach Blvd., Long Beach, adoption fees apply.

This adoption center is a much-needed satellite operation of Long Beach Animal Care Services. Julie and her team pull adoptable cats—”adoptable,” to these guys, means any cat in a shelter kennel! The team socializes the kitties until they’re adopted, which takes less time than you could imagine!

 Helen Sanders CatPAWS adoption center: viewable daily during store hours, PetSmart, 12341 Seal Beach Blvd., Seal Beach, adoption fees apply.

Window-shopping’s a neat pastime and likely has become more common during the pandemic. Helen Sanders CatPAWS has applied window-shopping to cat adoption; you can peer at several of the fine felines through the windows of the PetSmart adoption center in Seal Beach. Sadly, no ear scratching or chin rubs at this time, but volunteers can answer questions and provide you with adoption information! Be sure to wear a mask. You can find adoption applications and all the kitties here.

Links to loveables

The following pet-related businesses regularly feature cat, dog and rabbit adoptions. As of now, adoptions are mainly by appointment. Fosters are needed for kittens as well. Click on the links for each rescue in case of updates or changes. These organizations operate through donations and grants, and anything you can give would be welcome. Please suggest any Long Beach-area rescues to add to the list.