Letting Go of Jennie Jane: Releasing a TNR Cat

After nearly two weeks in a temporary foster home, it was time for Jennie Jane to be released.

She has recovered from her surgery very well. She’s spent all of that time resting, eating food she didn’t have to find herself, and observing the foster home. And she also made it clear that she was not comfortable. She did not respond to overtures by an experienced foster caregiver. To remain indoors, she would need a room without other cats and lots of intensive attention to win her trust. Those are luxuries that are rare in the foster care community.

So we drove to pick her up, bringing the small carrier that she had slept in by choice to our backyard. And we let her go. She bounded away into our neighbors yard before we could blink.

I was sad so Laura dragged me right back to the car and took me for pancakes. She’s a good cat lady partner.

Pittsburgh TNR
Jennie Jane before TNR
Jennie Jane moments before her release.

And that was that. She’s more prepared for her outdoor life thanks to science and good people who helped to pay for her supports. She’ll have no more pregnancies and endure no more breeding trauma. She’s vaccinated and has put on a little weight. She’s strong and sturdy.

She has access to food, clean water, and housing/resting spots in our yard. Her companions, Oxsana and Mx Pajamas, are here. Ideally, she’ll turn up in a few days and visit us regularly to eat. Perhaps once she sees there are not traps, just open bowls of food and some of her favorites, she’ll begin to trust us again.

Even more ideal would being able to trap her again for her vaccines to be updates, but that’s a very big leap.

Meanwhile, we will turn our attention to Oxsana and Mx. Pajamas. We know they will go into the traps to eat. We need to trap them and get them to a feral friendly veterinarian for a check-up. Oxsana has all the makings of being adoptable, he’s very friendly and seeks us out when we are outside. Mx Pajamas is super meowy, talking with us all of the time.

A few local vet clinics including the Big Easy, Dravosburg Clinic, and Frankie’s Friends will see feral cats so our next logistical issue is coordinating trapping the boys in conjunction with an open appointment. A walk-in appointment for a non-emergency need is hard to find and not the best use of resources.

We set up a Facebook fundraiser to help with their vet expenses and to purchase some additional TNR materials that we’ll share with any local rescuers in need.

  1. A drop-trap kit (trap, transfer cage, etc) to make available for other Northsiders and neighbors who need it)
  2. A XL trap and a kitten trap
  3. A crate divider to safely transfer a trapped cat in a trap
  4. A large narrow cat tree
  5. First aid kit, outdoor lanterns, and an outdoor video camera that can be mounted (and moved)
  6. Litter tray pans for our very large crates for future visitors.

We hope to have another great update for you soon.

 

Homeless Cat Donations

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  • Wow, it sounds like you did a great job with her! I LOVE cats and she’s adorable.

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