I've taken in thousands upon thousands but nothing really has changed. Still people let their cats breed and leave them behind too.
What's the point, when my dreams are haunted by what I've seen.
I took five up to be fixed today, my first day officially "back".
One little Lebanon boy, orange tabby, still here, his people supposed to be here any minute to get him.
Name is Moose.
There's another boy trapped in Sodaville too, same place many others have shown up. People now have their own trap, to catch the newcomers. I think people dump out there. His name is Apollo.
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| Two from Tangent, big property, too many animals too if you ask me. A girl, above, Stubby, and a boy, in photo below, Colin. |
That's it. Just the five. Easy day back, I suppose. Good thing as yesterday I got caught in the aftermath of a wreck outside Detroit. Yes, I had gone up again, intent on recreation. The curse of Detroit got me. Not food poisoning this time, a wreck that completely closed the road west and home, for hours. Fortunately, there were two motorcycles ahead of me waiting and two or three were coming back by and made the circling sign to the two ahead of me. I knew what that meant. Turn around.
I did. Right then. I was lucky too that I did right then. I had to drive clear east then, back through Detroit and on east and south to highway 22's junction with highway 20. Then I headed back west, 44 miles just to Sweet Home, but at least I was home long before traffic even began to move after that wreck. The Curse of Detroit.
Thank you for making those lives better.
ReplyDeleteIt must get so very hard for you, and my thoughts and applause are with you.
I am glad that the dleay didn't hold you up toooo long as well.
It was good I turned and went the really long way home immediately, still got home way before I would have had I waited out the wreck clean up.
DeleteDare I say you will soon back into the swing of it. Detroit seems a long way from you. I must check a map. Or is it like Vancouver and there are two.
ReplyDeleteI've only been to Detroit twice, both times this summer, maybe long ago I went before. It's an hour and 15 minutes by the back roads to highway 22 from here, via highway 226. If you're checking out a map, I go the back roads to Mill City before turning right onto highway 22, for the last few miles to Detroit. I don't plan on going back again.
DeleteI didn't know that you weren't back at it already. You never really stop. You sound burned out and why wouldn't you be. You put your heart and soul and being into this job all the time. Is there something else that you feel strongly about that you could do for a while for a change. I don't see you as someone who would be happy being idle, but maybe a change would be good. Cleaning up along shorelines? Building cat cages for others doing the trapping? Making catbeds? Fixing up your house like you'd like?
ReplyDeleteI've got it set up with the clinic so people can take their own cats to be fixed there and they bill my nonprofit. Unless I recruit more donations, that money won't last too long, so maybe that is what I can focus on, writing grants and encouraging folks to do it themselves, because that is the long term solution, to get folks to get it done themselves. And maintain a way they can do that.
DeleteI only set that up, so the clinic bills my nonprofit, the end of June. That clinic otherwise charges Linn County residents $43 to fix one feral or cat in a live trap. So making it free to Linn residents, because the clinic bills me instead, I hope will prompt folks to get their cats in. The clinic loans out live traps too, so they can get them there. So end of June through end of July 15 cats were fixed that way, brought to the clinic and fixed by Linn county folks other than me. That's quite a number for basically one month given the clinic is often booked to the max out several months. I'll be getting another bill here soon from cats fixed in August. I don't know how long I can keep enough donations coming in to pay the bill but I hope a long time. I started this program when I got a nice donation from a cat loving grass seed farmer and, after Vicki died suddenly, wanted something in place immediately. If her death taught me anything it was "do it now".
DeleteWeak a thing as it is to admit, I could not face this sort of pain on a regular basis. After a year volunteering to walk dogs, I had to give it up because so many of the same sweet faces there week after week broke my heart. Boomstick, in particular, was a sweet giant of a canine I would have brought home if I could. ~sigh~ Take care, my dear.
ReplyDelete