FAQ
What is overnight fostering?
Most animal shelters are not staffed overnight, so when young orphan kittens aren’t able to be placed with a rescue group or foster home before closing, they must find a temporary overnight foster to care for them. Leaving neonatal kittens overnight without feeding and assistance going potty can lead to serious illness, and would be inhumane. If you’d like to learn more about the overnight program I support, or starting one at your own shelter, send us a message!
What Is dan’s condition, and why is he considered “special needs”?
Dan was born with a spinal and hip deformity that makes it so Dan is unable to walk with his back legs. He is not in any pain, and there is no physical therapy that could help him to walk or gain strength in his back legs. He is also unable to urinate or defecate on his own. He does have feeling in his back legs and tail, and is able to tell me when he needs to go potty.
He does have special needs that are a little different from my able-bodied cat. I manually “express” his bladder and bowels three times a day, by gently squeezing and massaging his lower abdomen. I did also have to adapt some areas of my home to make it a little easier for him to get around.
Is caring for dan hard?
Dan is super easy to care for! Potty time takes maybe five minutes or so, three times a day. Sometimes he does “self-stimulate” on the carpet and leak a little or piddle a little when he’s very relaxed, but otherwise he’s super clean. Otherwise, the only thing I have to be careful of is that sometimes his legs will get hooked onto things that are on the floor (like his water fountain) and he can get stuck.
All in all, his care is easier than my dog’s (I mean wouldn’t it be nice to be able to squeeze my dog out over a pee pad instead of walking in the rain?).
is dan’s care more expensive than your other pets?
Dan specifically isn’t so bad. He does get daily medication and supplements that help keep his bladder and bowels healthy, which prevents costly vet visits. He is higher risk for UTIs because he drags his tushie on the floor. Able bodied cats urinate more frequently which helps flush bacteria out of the urinary tract, but Dan isn’t able to do that. The good thing is, because I’m seeing his urine and fecal output several times a day, I can tell when something is wrong early on and get antibiotics right away. In an able-bodied cat, these symptoms often go unnoticed until expensive care is required.
Short term he may have more daily costs, but long term his care may actually be less expensive!
How does Dan get along with your other pets?
Dan is totally bonded with his sisters Addie the dog, and Presley the cat. He wrestles, runs, climbs, chases, and jumps off of furniture like any other cat. I’ve let him set his own boundaries, so there’s very few times I feel like I need to supervise him.
what’s with all the political stuff?
Kitten rescue and animal welfare is inherently political. We can not be successful as rescuers if we don’t have the support of local law enforcement, city legislators, state legislators, and even the federal government. The humans that govern us nationally and locally determine how the laws that protect animals aren’t just written, but enforced. Who you vote for will impact whether rescuers have the ability to intervene when animals are in trouble, and most importantly what local resources exist for community members in need. Without community funding, animals suffer, and who we put into office directly effects that.
Some examples of issues that come up frequently are
How much money is allocated to animal control, care and services in each city - and how facilities are staffed
What organizations receive city contracts to provide care to animals in your community
Whether companies can test products on animals
Regulations on breeding practices
Regulations on animals being sold on social media
Bans on inhumane elective procedures like declawing, ear and tail docking, and debarking
Land protections that prevent companies from destroying animal habitats
Our goal by sharing political content is to keep our followers informed about how certain legislators are voting, so that we can all make knowledgable, factually driven decisions about who we want representing us.
you said you work with your shelter, don’t they kill animals?
I wholeheartedly support our local animal shelter, and others, even the ones that euthanize more animals than they’re able to save. I firmly believe that humans who choose a career in animal welfare do not go to work every day excited to euthanize healthy animals. This happens in most communities because it is the humane thing to do, when the alternative is to let animals live in cages without receiving care to meet their basic needs.
If this is the circumstances they are currently in, it’s likely because they are a low resource shelter in a community that is unable to prioritize animal care over other civil services. By supporting your local animal shelter by either making donations, or volunteering, you can make a lasting impact in your community. When shelters have community support, they get political support too - and that’s where the money comes from. Shelters get help when people stand up for them.
I also believe that it is absolutely critical that members of the community feel safe using shelter services without judgement. This includes pet surrender, euthanasia, and pet pantries.
How can we help?
If you’d like to contribute to our rescue efforts, we have an amazon wishlist and a PayPal account specifically for kitten costs. Absolutely every little bit helps, and we really appreciate your support. We are in the process of forming our own Non-Profit Kitten Rescue - Biscuits and Breadsticks, Inc, but our 501c3 has not yet been approved, so donations to us are not yet tax deductible.