CARES cat shelter in 91原创 is one of a handful of rescue groups that helped when the Vancouver Orphaned Kitten Rescue Association (VOKRA) had a person surrender 57 cats in May.
The caregiver arrived at VOKRA's Operations Centre with them safely transported in carriers. These cats were sweet, tame, and well-socialized.
Most of the male cats were already neutered, and while not all the females were spayed, there was no interbreeding, as the males and females had been kept separate. The majority of them are older than five years old.
VOKRA is working with CARES, Katie's Place Animal Shelter, and Heart and Soul Dog and Cat Rescue Society. Together they were able to triage and provide safe placement for 39 of the cats. The remaining cats are with VOKRA which is working to spay and neuter any that require.
Tara White, a CARES board member, explained that it is common for animal welfare groups to work together.
Volunteers like CARES intake person, Marian, establish long-term connections and friendships with other rescues and through that a support system is established," White explained. "They can easily reach out to each other for assistance and support if needed to bring in cats. There have been many times that VOKRA and Katie's Place have worked with us here at CARES."
It can be so beneficial for like-minded organizations to work together and support each other and lifelong friendships can be born. Many of our long-time volunteers here have established long time friendships with people from rescues close by.
White said that the rescue groups often work together to find placements for animals and whatever else is needed. But an influx of many animals puts a strain on already tight resources for all animal welfare groups.
"Often when we are aware of baby kittens requiring bottle feeding, if we are not able to care for them we will reach out to VOKRA for their specialty care in this department. It is a wonderful resource to have," she noted.
White will share other rescues' social media posts and events to help spread information to help those organizations.
"It's definitely a community effort with different cities trying to work together to support each other as the homeless and surrendered cat population continues to grow every year," White said.
In 2024, a total of 473 cats came into CARES shelter in Milner.
"I am not completely confident but I would guess that maybe 50 or 60 of these came from other rescues... a small number were stray and homeless, and the rest would have been surrendered pets or born in our care. Most of the cats we get from other rescues are kittens or surrendered pets," she explained.
