Meet Our New Foster Kittens: The #FayetteFive

Five little kittens in a collage

Let me set the stage. Four years ago on May 8, 2019, we ‘plucked’ an orange fluff ball from our backdeck. The next day, we were accepted as a kitten foster home by Pittsburgh CAT and over the next five days, trapped the entire litter – all five of them. You may remember then as […]

The Pittsburgh Free Pet Stuff Store Now Accepting Donations of Gently Used Pet Items

Your semi-regular reminder that the #FreePetStuffStore accepts gently used pet stuff items to redistribute to colony caretakers, rescuers, trappers, and pet owners. We have a storage unit that is currently storing our soon-to-be-built shed. The title Free Pet Stuff Store 15233 is a working title to describe a Free Store focusing on gently used and excess pet […]

Pittsburgh Animal Care & Control Urban Terror Campaign

Pittsburgh Feral Cat Trapping TNR

Pittsburgh has already begun to experience the effects of climate change with harsher winters, hotter summers, record setting precipitation, and increased numbers of invasive species. City of Pittsburgh Climate Action Plan 3.0 If you were worried that the Pittsburgh Animal Care & Control division is subject to an overabundance of oversight or accountability, I am […]

Here’s How We Recently Helped Three Cats

Helping Cats

I was having a good day yesterday. Lots of little positive things. Then I got word that a cat named Tang had successfully been transferred from his humans to a rescue. That news was the capstone of the day. Two weeks ago, Tangs owners contacted me. A married gay couple, they both had serious, unexpected […]

That Time My Foster Kitten Got Sick and I Had to Miss the Governor’s LGBTQ History Month Reception

Governor Wolf LGBTQ History Month Reception

I’m tempted to write “It has been a week” but as it is only Monday night, that’s not adequate to explain where my head is right now. Here’s the quick and dirty version – I broke my toe Saturday night. Ouch. This morning, one of our foster kittens had a temperature of 105.4 (very high) […]

Foster Kittens Need Unique Names or How I Ended Up Surrounded by so Many DiMeras and Cassadines

Spoilers – this is a long post because it involves photos and lots of explanation. Also, I mention the fate of several soap opera characters. I also reference some sad outcomes for the community cats. Whimsical topic about a harsh reality. One lesson learned early on from fostering kittens is that there are naming protocols. […]

Twenty Tips About Donating Your Gently Used Stuff to Community Cats

Donate to Help Cats

Cat folx are generous to a fault. They share their excess, they pass the ‘stuff’ of their beloved pets onto others, and they gather stuff from their friends, too. I am constantly asked if #PghCatFolx can distribute this or that. Often enough that I think it is time to create a formal list with information. […]

Who is no one applying to adopt these gorgeous Siamese mix siblings?

Horton and Logan Siamese foster kittens

Their names are Logan and Horton. I trapped then in the Fineview neighborhood of Pittsburgh’s Northside in August 2021. Daddy was a Siamese and Mama was a Tortoiseshell. Mama was TNVRd and is part of a colony now. They are 10 months old. Logan is a Flame Point Siamese (mix) male – creamy soft white […]

Julia Child Liked Cats

Friday evening, we tried to watch Julia and give the foster kittens some downstairs time. Currently, we are fostering four kittens. Horton, Logan, and Quartermaine have been with us since August 2021 (about nine months old now), while Molly Lansing-Davis joined us in October 2021 (about 7 months). Her two sisters were adopted last month. […]

My Best Friend’s Funeral: I’m Still Crying 15 Years Later

Dr. John Ruffing Veterinarian

Today, my friend John would be 56 years old. Even in whatever heaven for terrific people might look like, he is cringing about that. But in some sort of heaven is a certainty for John. No doubt. I don’t even really believe in heaven or maybe I do, a little. But I know that a […]