NYC Feral Cat Council - SaveKitty Foundation Strives for a More Cat-Friendly Queens Community - March/April 2006 - Out of the Cage!, the E-Newsletter of the Mayor's Alliance for NYC's Animals

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NYC Feral Cat Council

SaveKitty Foundation Strives for a More
Cat-Friendly Queens Community

When SaveKitty Foundation volunteers found Zeke under a car in Sunnyside, Queens, he was too weak to walk. His rescuers thought he had a broken back. But when they took the ten-year-old cat to the Humane Society of New York for treatment, they discovered that his back was fine — but he was malnourished. After a few months of love, care and plenty of nourishing food, Zeke was back in great shape — and managed to steal an adopter's heart at last year's Mayor's Alliance/Maddie's Adoption Festival in Central Park.

Today Zeke is fit as a fiddle in a loving home, thanks to SaveKitty Foundation. (Photo by Rosary Immordino)

Today Zeke is fit as a fiddle in a loving home, thanks to SaveKitty Foundation.

(Photo by Rosary Immordino)

For years, the caring and dedicated team of volunteers has rescued cats and kittens, cared for feral cat colonies, and orchestrated trap-neuter-return (TNR) projects in their Queens community. In 2005, the group incorporated as SaveKitty Foundation, and joined the Mayor's Alliance and its New York City Feral Cat Council (NYCFCC).

Debi Romano, SaveKitty's president, explained that membership is important because it "gives us respect and recognition as a legitimate rescue organization. Plus, we can turn to them for help and support with community problems…and they also provide periodic food donations for our strays."

Other SaveKitty team members include Rosary Immordino, Brenda Chiarello, Sandra Conway, Yvonne Wester, and Elaine Lee.

When Puccini was rescued with his mom and littermates, he was malnourished and suffered from distemper, rhinotracheitis (a herpes virus infection), giardia, and coccidian (parasites). Thanks to SaveKitty, he's now healthy and happy in his new home on Manhatten's upper West Side. (Photo by Rosary Immordino)

(Photo by Rosary Immordino)

SaveKitty has become a leader in managing the stray and feral cat problem in its community. How? "By sharing our expertise and resources with the community," says Debi. "We provide TNR coaching to people in the community who want to care for colonies. And we help them access low cost spay/neuter services." At the moment, SaveKitty itself cares for more than 80 cats in managed colonies. And its ten foster families care for roughly 55 cats, including bottle babies.

Finding good homes for their adoptable cats is an important part of the group's mission. To that end, SaveKitty promotes cats and kittens for adoption on BigApplePets.com, Petfinder.com, and its own web site, www.savekitty.org. They also show cats and kittens on weekends at K-9 Caterers Pet Store in Glendale.

If you'd like to read more about SaveKitty Foundation, meet their adoptable cats and kittens, or support their efforts, please visit their web site at www.savekitty.org.