Bella

Baby, it's cold outside -- better come in! Bella decided she would rather not be an alley cat, thank you very much, and followed her dedicated feeder Marienne right inside.



She is now ensconced in a bathroom, ravenously consuming all the food placed in front of her. We are seeking a foster or forever home for this beautiful calico.

Borders -- caught!

Fosterparent Becca sent in this slide show that shows Borders Cat outside, then inside. Yay!

How did we catch this cat? Persistence. Aimee (who is a full-time pet sitter, email if you want to contact her) kept going by and looking for her in between animal visits. The third time, there she was just sitting on the curb of the sidewalk. Aimee says "I pulled up next to her and baited the trap with tuna, and put it next to the car. Then I got back in the car and moved the side mirror, so I could see her and the trap. She tried to get at the food from the closed side for about 20 minutes, periodically leaving the sidewalk for pedestrians. And then she just went in while I held my breath that she was heavy enough to trip it."

Unfortunately we now find ourselves in a bind. Last night SIX cats in Hyde Park came in from the cold -- "Emily Dickenson" here (Borders was deemed a not pretty enough name), Bella from the MJK alley, three kittens and their adult uncle or daddy in Oakland/North Kenwood at 41st Street. We just don't have spaces for them all. It's hard to comtemplate putting friendly cats back outside in this weather (after spay/neuter surgery) but we're contemplating it. Blog readers, please think about whether you know somebody locally who might be asked to foster, perhaps only over the Winter Break.

Ori update

Ori is back from a two-night stay at Hyde Park Animal Clinic. His wounds have been cleaned and stitched up. They had to cut away a lot of dead skin and hair that was already granulating into scar tissue, but were able to close up the big wound and have left a hole for drainage (the shunt will come out soon). Luckily, although there was muscle tear it was relatively small and the majority of the damage was only skin-deep. Ori is going to a foster home and we have every reason to believe his wounds will heal without permanent damage. He is a very affectionate kitty who is seeking L U V. It was difficult to take his picture as he insists on coming to get pets and scratches. Please consider donating to cover Ori's surgery.

In other news, "Borders" (see below) continues to elude us. Last night trappers were out in the cold and snow and we'll be at it again -- maybe even tonight! Please consider donating some hot coffee or hot chocolate for our intrepid volunteers, who brave all the elements! We also are working on a whole family at 41st Street -- kittehs kittehs kittehs!

Borders Cat

We received an email last night from a contact at PAWS that this cat was outside of the Borders on 53rd and Lake Park, very hungry. Despite freezing tushies for about an hour we were unsuccessful at trapping this kitty. Is this beauty yours? To me, she seemed like a feral -- very confident, yet not interested in my friendship. She stole some food right from underneath me.

Update: At this very moment she is near the Hyde Park Bank building. If you see this cat, please do not feed her. We will try to trap her, but trapping her requires her hunger. Please send any sightings or other information to hydeparkcats@gmail.com.

Ori

Ori ("my light") is a three-month-old kitten found this past weekend injured and alone. He has a wide wound on his leg and is rather greasy -- we think he had some sort of incident with a car. We are a little worried! Because this is an emergent situation he must go to the vet today. Make a Hanukkah gift to the cats and donate to help Ori!

Fostering urgently needed

Pictured here are Ronny, Terry, and Moggy, three kittens removed from a colony south of the Midway and due to be handed over to PAWS Chicago's adoption program later this week. Some cats and kittens from Hyde Park Cats are already available at PAWS, including Molly and Norman, Tandy, Curio, and Pipsqueak. The 36-hour adoptathon is going until tonight at 10 p.m., so get on in there to meet your match.

We've recently taken in several kittehs who need foster homes. Lady Midnight is a juvenile black female, Ori ("my light." in honor of Hanukkah) is a three-month-old kitten, and Kislev (the name of the Jewish month we are currently in) is a young male black cat (his foster home seems stable). All three of these beautiful black cats need our help! Ori was just taken in yesterday from an alley and has a large gash on his leg. He is alert and functioning fine but needs to see a vet A.S.A.P. We are trying to arrange a ride to a vet either today or tomorrow. Email us with your offer of a ride.

We are particularly in need of people to foster over the University's Winter Break, roughly Dec. 14-Jan. 4. If you have a safe space for a rescued cat, can you consider fostering over this time period? Please email us at hydeparkcatsadoptions@gmail.com if you think you can help.

Lincoln

Lincoln is a lovely fifteen-year-old male cat. His previous owner, a senior citizen, died last year and a friend found him a new home. Sadly the new owner left the country and could not bring Lincoln with; so he is in a foster situation but needs a forever home very soon. He is very good with other cats, people and children. He is in good health, and is current on all his shots until January 2012. He is, of course, neutered, and he is also front-declawed. If you are in search for a soulful-eyed, calm, friendly, furry companion, here he is!

Thanks to Rebecca for the cat food!