vegansaurus!

Adopt a Shelter Cat Month: Clyde!  »

Clyde is currently being fostered in Queens, N.Y., but I think that still counts because he’s being fostered from the shelter. Plus, look how cute! From his foster-mom Karen:

I’ve been fostering him since December when his owner decided to get a dog who was always biting Clyde. The owner then decided to take Clyde to Animal Care and Control, an almost sure death sentence for this two year old sweetie.

Clyde can be shy at first (he spent most of his time hiding when he first came to me) but he’s an affectionate cat who enjoys being petted. Since he’s been here so long I’ve seen him come out of his shell. He loves treats and loves playing with fish pole toys. He gets along with my three other cats and has gotten along with the seven other cats I’ve fostered or cat sat during his stay here.

I’d love to keep him but since I already have three of my own and foster once in a while and TNR* here and there AND feed myself (being vegan can be a bit expensive), I can’t :(

I’d love for Clyde to find his forever home!

What do you say? Got room in your life for Clyde?! He’s so cute! Look at this ridiculousness:
Plus, how much do I want that bedspread?

Another pic for good measure and because you can never have too many cute cat pics:
If you want to adopt Clyde or if you know of a nice shelter kitty looking for a home, send me an email!

*trap, neuter, release—I had to ask Laura. She didn’t laugh at me.

Adopt a Shelter Cat Month: Marcel!  »

Take a look at Marcel! He is from Brooklyn and he’s a real looker! From his foster-mom Rebecca:

I’d like you to meet Marcel, a kitty in serious need of a foster or permanent home. He is a very cute little cat, with a tuxedo coat and charming white mustache. Marcel and I met a couple weeks ago in front of the automotive high school in Williamsburg. He was hiding next to the steps, watching the cars go by, and as soon as I started talking to him, he jumped up and began to meow, roll around, and play in the grass. He was very excited to have the attention. I was hopeful that he was a lost cat I’d seen posted about in the neighborhood, but sadly that is not the case. Right now he is at the recovery space/shelter I help out at, which is mainly used for trap-neuter-return projects. It is a busy place, with lots of other cats, and Marcel is overwhelmed. He is very, very frightened by all the activity and spends almost all of his time in the corner of his cage. Still, even though he is nervous, he immediately responds to affection by purring and kneading. He’s a really sweet cat.

Because the shelter space is causing him so much stress, Marcel needs a foster or permanent home as soon as possible. He is approximately 1 year old, neutered, and healthy. If you or anyone you know would be interested in fostering or adopting him, or just meeting him to start, please let me know! I meet lots and lots of cats, and I have to say Marcel is an exceptionally good one.

I love his white mustache! And I love the name Marcel! Jeez, everybody is giving their rescue cats such great names these days! But, I should tell you, if you don’t like your adopted cat’s name, you can totally change it. I wasn’t sure about that when I was adopting, like I was like, that’s kind of rude to change the cat’s name! But my dog trainer at the time was like, “they don’t know it’s their NAME, they think it’s an attention command” and I was like, OMG totally! So you’re really just changing the attention command. But I’m actually not as gallant as I’m pretending—Mitsy’s original name was Maisy, which I thought was frumpy, but I chose the name Mitsy because it wasn’t that much of an adjustment. I like the name though because you can call her Mitzerella! Ooooo you know what?! You could call Marcell “Mars!” Awesome!

Um, where was I? This handsome devil needs a home. Somebody take him in! You could just foster him for a bit, and then I’ll do ANOTHER post for you saying he’s now being fostered! I promise. And like I said before, if any of you know of a nice shelter kitty looking for a home, send me a pic during June and I’ll post it! Also email me if you are interested in adopting or fostering Marcel!

Big June: Dairy Month AND Adopt a Shelter Cat Month! Guess which one we’re not celebrating  »

Yes, it’s Dairy Month. Eff that noise, dairy-eating jerks! It’s also Adopt a Shelter Cat Month. Yay! I have a shelter cat who is the most perfect little cat you’ve ever met. Oh, little Mits! You’re the cutest! Please stop scratching up the furniture!

Above is Lilac, who is at a shelter here in Brooklyn. You should adopt her! Look at those eyes! Hey, if any of you know of a nice shelter kitty looking for a home, send me a pic during June and I’ll post it! Let’s get some cats adopted!

Here’s some kitty stats for you from the National Council on Pet Population Study and Policy:

Data from shelters participating in the survey done by the NCPPSP for four years, 24.9 percent of the dogs and 23.4 percent of the cats were adopted into new homes. The percentage of dogs euthanized averaged 56.5 percent. The cats did not fair so well as an average of 71.1 percent were destroyed. It is not possible to use these statistics to estimate the numbers of animals adopted or euthanized on an annual basis. The reporting shelters may not represent a random sampling of U.S. shelters.

Dang, 71 percent? That sucks. It’s probably higher now; that study was done in the ’90s, pre-mortgage-meltdown. I hear a lot more pets are being surrendered these days because people are forced to move. The site was also saying that the majority of people get cats from other people they know and not from a shelter—you know what that means? Everybody knows some jerks who can’t spay or neuter their cats or think it’s cute to have a litter. It’s not fucking cute. Get your cat fixed!

I remember when I got Mitsy spayed, she didn’t even care. But she’s a total thug. The day I brought her home after surgery, they told me she might hide for a bit but she didn’t hide or act any different or anything; she was just like, “nbd, just got my kitten-machine clipped.” They shaved a little bit of her hair and put a pain-killer patch on her—kind of cool! I didn’t know they had patches for that. I was supposed to leave the patch on her for four days, but like 10 minutes after she got home, she ripped that thing off! I tried to stick the corners back down but then she was just like, “blammo!” and ripped it off, pulling out fur and whatnot. She didn’t even care! She’s like, “I don’t feel no stinking pain! Pain is for suckers!”  See what I’m saying? THUG.

Care2.com has a nice list of things to consider before adopting a cat, check it out! One such thing: adopt two! Then they can keep each other company, so you won’t feel guilty when you’re working late, leaving poor Lilac* home alone all night. Read the list and then go out and get your cat!

One last thing: I’d love to hear some adoption stories in the comments! Happy adoption stories are the best!

*Or the cat of your choice!

It’s Adopt the Internet Day!  »

I think this is my new favorite holiday! On this the holiest of days, Petfinder wants you to spread the word online: Adopt! You can get a cool badge like me if you want and add it to your own blog or website.

I’m glad we’re talking about adopting because people buying dogs has really gotten to me lately. Listen to this: my friend’s family had a really skittish dog; they said he was skittish because he was SHIPPED FROM AUSTRALIA when he was too old. This dog was shipped at 10 weeks instead of eight weeks or whatever. I guess the idea is that if you ship the puppy when it’s young enough, they aren’t conscious enough to remember the ordeal. The dog was a special Australian “doodle” of some sort and I guess they just had to have one of these dogs even though that’s completely insane. But what would you have them do?! Get an AMERICAN doodle?! Rubbish!

Oh and get this: the breeder doesn’t even live in a major city so the puppies have a five-hour truck ride before they even get to the airport. Nice. This dog was super-duper permanently skittish and jumpy because of this ridiculous trip. Sadly, the dog was hit by a car a few months ago and died. He was a good dog and it was very sad. But then IMMEDIATELY my friend’s parents go to contact the Australian breeder so they can get one of their deceased dog’s family members! I couldn’t believe! You see firsthand how this insane journey emotionally scars your dog and you want to do that to another puppy? People are crazy!

Meanwhile, millions of dogs are put to sleep every year here in the U.S. because there are still nut-ass people buying dogs instead of adopting. Go figure.

Bay Area pit bull lovers: NOW is the time to adopt!  »

I don’t know if any of you saw this San Francisco Chronicle story about the terrified and emaciated and covered-in-blood-and-bruises pit bulls who were found in the back of an East Oakland home? It’s really fucking sad and upsetting and we should all be heartbroken and pissed. If you’ve ever known and loved a pit bull (and to know a pit bull is to love a pit bull because these mofos are the BEST), this is especially devastating. Bullies thrive on love and really crave human attention and affection and so to be so abused and neglected, UGH FUCK YOU WORLD. However, one of the greatest things about pit bulls is how resilient they are. Not many other breeds (or say, humans) can be abused to the brink of destruction and then bounce back and choose to love again. They are so trusting and loving, these cute-ass little tail-waggers OMG I LOVE PIT BULLS SO MUCH. When I first started volunteering at shelters, I was kinda scared of them without any real basis, except for OMG PIT BULLS. The more I walked and fostered the breed, the more I saw how fucking awesome they are. They are so fucking awesome. I’ve fostered hundreds (literally hundreds) of pit bulls since 2000, and I’ve never had anything but fantastic experiences with all of them. So the next time someone is talking any shit on the breed, send their asses to me and we will tussle. Or I will rationally explain to them why they’re racist. DONE and DONE.

ADOPT A PIT BULL! They make the absolute best dog friends ever and you do your own small form of activism every time you walk down the street with your pal. People can meet and talk to a real life pit bull and see that they aren’t the scary monsters from the 10 o’clock news. Plus, they are excellent at cleaning the floor, and make terrific supplemental heaters in the winter. OH, and they snore SO CUTE. When a human snores, I want to throw them out a window, but when Hazel snores, MY HEART I CAN’T TAKE IT.

So adopt a pit bull today, already! Or a pit mix! You will not regret this decision, trust me. And if adopting seems too scary, contact a rescue group about fostering. All the love without all the commitment! I get it; commitment is scary and dying alone is a more pleasurable option. Anyway, DO IT.

[photos via Oakland Animal Services; Fifi by Sarah Atkins Photography]