Community Cat Coalition- Ascot Vale

WHAT ARE WE DOING?

There are several large cat colonies living rough in the commission flats in Ascot Vale, and they need our help.

These cats are loved and looked after by residents, but because they are not desexed, the numbers get out of control very quickly. (Did you know kittens can reach maturity and start making kittens of their own at just 16 weeks old? Sad but true.)

Our goal is to help the local community gain access to affordable desexing and other necessary vet care, so that the cat population does not continue to grow out of control.

A small team of individuals has been working tirelessly alongside Sugar and Spice Cat Rescue to contain as many cats as possible, and to spread the word to residents about our intentions.

A few volunteers have been out for 12 hours at a time, multiple nights in a row, monitoring and deploying traps. It has truly been a TREMENDOUS effort so far. (Thank you to all of our volunteers!)

Most of these cats will stay with residents at the flats, but some are unclaimed and will be going into rescue, where they will remain until they are healthy and social and ready for adoption.

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WHY ARE WE FUNDRAISING?

It will cost us about $225 per cat for a desexing package (which includes a source number, vet consultation, spay/neuter, vaccination, and microchip)

With our current numbers, the desexing alone will cost us over $10,000.

We are also administering flea treatment ($10-12/vial) and dewormer ($5-10/tablet) to all of the cats as they come in. Most cats will need multiple rounds of dewormer upon intake, and will require ongoing parasite treatment if they remain in care.

And then of course there is the food, litter, bowls, toys, crates, cleaning supplies, scratching trees, and everything else that goes into basic cat care. A modest estimate of cost is $5-10 per day for each cat, depending on their needs.

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WHAT HAVE WE ACHIEVED SO FAR?

Two full days of desexing have already been booked (20-25 cats per day), with more to come!

About half of these cats belong to local residents, while the other half will likely be looking for forever homes through Sugar and Spice Cat Rescue when all is said and done.

Our biggest achievement thus far has been trapping a heavily pregnant stray cat who eluded us for weeks; she was successfully contained in the wee hours of Sunday morning!

We are very happy (and relieved!) to say that she can now safely give birth indoors, and that she and her kittens won't have to live under houses and scrounge for food any more.

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HOW CAN YOU HELP?

By donating, of course! :)

But if you'd rather know *exactly* where your money is going, you can also donate directly toward the vet work.

Sugar and Spice Cat Rescue has an account set up with The Vet Project (a mobile cat desexing team), and you can make a bank transfer straight to this account. All funds will go to medical costs/treatments.

We are also graciously accepting donations of food, litter, parasite treatment, towels/blankets, cat toys, cleaning supplies, etc. (we will create a wishlist soon).

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**MORE THAN ANYTHING, WE NEED FOSTER CARERS!!**

If you are willing to open your heart and home to cats in need of a temporary place to stay, PLEASE HELP!!

There are only so many cats we can take in before we reach our regulated limits, and the rest are left to fend for themselves (starving, fighting, breeding, etc.) until we can find space for them.

If just one or two breeding pairs are left behind, the colony population will erupt again in a matter of months, so we need to get as many as possible, and we need places to put them!

Please reach out if you can foster! We can provide the supplies, we just need your space.