Up, Down, Up, Down, UP!

I live in a land of lists. Adopted animals, adoptable animals, TNR locations & requests, animals that need to be spayed/neutered, things to do, people to call/email, donations, expenses, pros, cons, ups and downs …

When looking back on any time period, I tend to categorize events so that I can try to make sense of the history. 2013 was a roller coaster and the big events are highlighted here (click the image to enlarge):

This year started out with extreme sadness for our group, when Gilda suddenly passed away. I think her absence is still felt during adoption hours at PetSmart. But, we had to push on – little Nicholas was rescued during a TNR project and we were able to save his life with a $3,000 urinary tract surgery. Then we had our first “triple adoption” of the year: Ginger, Herald and Sally!

One of the big highlights of the year was when Kandy (FeLV/FIV positive) was adopted (March)! Grace was tested for allergies – with rice determined as the biggest culprit. Paws for Celebration was held in April and garnered rave reviews – the 2014 event will be held on Friday, May 16 featuring music by 45 Riots. Another $3,000 surgery was needed in May – this time for Tommy Lee. And in June, we struggled to get the “hoarder cats” healthy and friendly so they could be up for adoption – Oz & Xander (bonded brothers) and Faith are still waiting for their forever homes.

But, back to the “ups”: the Sidewalk Angels Foundation surprised us with a $10,000 grant in July and the North Brunswick Humane Association gave us a $1,000 spay/neuter grant in August. Dean + Farrington had the majority of their teeth removed in August. Quickly following that news was the awesome adoptions of long-time resident, Jill, and our very first Zen Dog, Zen! Later in September, we got slammed with seven very ill kittens that were abandoned in front of our PetSmart in a laundry basket (with three more abandoned several weeks later). Six of the ten have found forever homes. Winnie had an eye removed due to a massive infection when she was a baby-kitten.

In October, super senior Farrington was adopted – he was one of Gilda’s fosters! Casino Night was a big success and the Rabbits Den Tattoo Parlor honored us during their annual Halloween tattoo event! We gave up our Edgebrook adoption space due to too many schedule conflicts – but we hope to add a new adoption space in 2014! And, recently, Jessica Rabbit was diagnosed with Spina Bifida and Robin was diagnosed with mega-colon.

Up, down, up, down, UP:

However, we end 2013 on a very high note: Bubba-C was adopted! Our sweet boy had seen three other homes before this one but we are very confident that THIS is the perfect place for him!

 

 

 

121 cats/kittens and 1 dog were adopted out in 2013!

We have 32 cats/kittens available for adoption:

So many struggles (“downs”) are thrown at us each year, but we always keep our eyes on the victories (“ups”) so we don’t get discouraged and lose sight of the ultimate goal: making as much of a difference as possible in the lives of homeless and abandoned animals.

We are looking forward to many more “ups” in 2014 – please join us! Our work is made possible by all our volunteers, donors and adopters!!

1. Adopt or Foster
2. Volunteer
3. Donate
4. Like, comment, and share our adoption posts on Facebook.
5. Retweet and favorite our Tweets on Twitter.
6. Subscribe to our email updates.
7. Read and share our blog posts.

Happy New Year,

Christie and Everyone at Karma Cat + Zen Dog Rescue Society!