SHELTER NEWS ~ Director Theresa Silsby |
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Leave a Lifesaving Legacy
Running a non-profit, no-kill cat shelter is no easy task and it certainly isn’t a money maker. We lose money on every cat and kitten we take into the shelter whether they are stray, abandoned, or owner surrendered. Adoption fees only cover the minimal costs of caring for a cat or kitten and do not cover the costs of the medical care, food, and litter needed to take care of the 160+ cats and kittens at the shelter. However, we believe in our mission in caring for these animals and providing for all their needs, until they find their forever home, which may be in a few weeks, months, or years. We receive no funding from the towns or state we serve and there are no large donors funding our operations. We rely on our supporters for donations of food, litter, and monetary donations. No amount is too small, and we can’t thank all of you enough for all you do, whether it is sending a monthly check, donating a bag of litter, or a few cans of cat food. We have been able to keep the doors open for over 43 years and expand mainly due to bequests and memorial donations. Our shelter was started in 1980 by Margaret Fuller and Georgia Weisendanger, with Margaret donating the funds and Georgia donating the land. We were able to expand our shelter and start our low-cost feline veterinary service in 2017 due to bequests from the late Dr. Bob Martin and Kendra Shaw. We were also able to make it through some very lean times due to a bequest from the late Randy Dick and a memorial donation from Pat Burdzel, in memory of her daughter, Rebecca Burdzel. These donations and many more have helped PALS continue its mission to provide food, shelter, and care for cats and kittens in need. When you make a future gift to PALS you help to ensure a bright and strong future for us and the cats that we provide for.
Here are a few options to consider in your long-term planning:
Remember PALS in your will or living trust: You can leave us either a specific amount or a percentage of your estate.
A gift of retirement plan asset: Retirement plans make up a large portion of our wealth. Consider naming PALS as a beneficiary of all or part of your assets.
A gift of a life insurance policy: Select PALS as the beneficiary of a policy you no longer need.
With a little planning these solutions help ensure that PALS continues to exist and provide the care for unwanted cats. Plus, making a future gift is an affordable way to provide support for PALS regardless of your income or estate size.
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VET SERVICE NEWS ~ Dr. Jennifer Miller |
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FAQ’s
This month I want to talk about some of the policies we have for vet services and answer some of the most common questions we receive.
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Why do you only do drop-off appointments?
This is by far the most common question we answer every day. The primary reason for our drop-off model is because it allows us to be as efficient as possible. We are able to deal with paperwork and registration all at once and then work through the patients more efficiently. This allows us to see more patients in a day and keeps the costs as low as possible. The drop-off model ensures that no-show and same-day cancellations don’t leave a hole in our day. It allows us to keep the traffic down during the day, which reduces the stress for the cats in the clinic and in the shelter. This also allows us plenty of time to run any necessary diagnostics without you having to sit around waiting, and it allows us time to provide you with complete medical records when you pick up your kitty. We understand that this model isn’t for everyone and that’s ok! There are many traditional veterinary clinics throughout the area that allow for scheduled block appointments. We promise your kitty is safe and as calm as possible while it is with us.
Why do cats need to be in a secure cat carrier?
This is a non-negotiable rule here. The reason—we want to keep you, your kitty and our staff safe! We have had way too many sad cases of cats dropped in our parking lot. Some of them we have been able to catch, some of them we have sadly not been able to find. This breaks everyone’s hearts. We have had cats be totally fine in the car with their owners, and then when they enter the clinic they lash out and claw their owners because they are scared. We have also had staff members injured when owners try to hand off cats that aren’t in carriers, and they get scared and hurt our staff members. It is also so dangerous for a cat to be wandering around in your car or sitting in your lap while you are driving down the road. This rule really does keep EVERYONE safe. We are here to help though! PALS does have cardboard cat carriers for a $10 donation, and we do have a used cat carrier program where we can give you a nice hard-sided cat carrier for a $25 donation. If you get to the clinic and you don’t have a carrier, just leave your kitty in the car, come to the door and we will get you one.
Why do 2 cats that live in the same house have to be in separate cat carriers?
We do require that multiple cats from the same home arrive in separate cat carriers. This is for the safety and comfort of your cats. We do understand that they might be best friends at home, but here at the clinic things are more stressful. We enacted this policy because more often than not, when cats are in the same cat carrier one of them attacks the other one—even if they are usually friendly. We want your kitties to be safe and happy while they are with us and while they are traveling to and from the clinic.
Why do you require an up-to-date rabies vaccine?
Maine state law actually requires ALL cats, 12 weeks of age and older, to be vaccinated against rabies. This law does apply to all cats regardless of whether they are indoor-only or not. We make no exceptions for rabies vaccine requirements here at PALS for the safety of our staff and to follow the letter of the law.
Why do you need my medical records prior to my appointment and why can’t you
just get them for me?
If your kitty has been seen at any other vet clinic prior to coming to PALS it is essential for us to have the records—even if it was a while ago. The vaccine history will allow us to give longer-lasting rabies certificates, and a good medical history will help us to get the best picture of your kitty’s overall health before it gets on our exam table. Providing these records prior to the visit allows us to be the most prepared to give your kitty the care he/she needs in the most efficient time. We do not have time to chase down records after your kitty is already sitting in our clinic waiting for care. We do not make the call for medical records for you because many clinics will not
release medical records without owner consent, therefore it’s much easier for everyone if you make that call ahead of time.
Why does your cat have to be seen every year?
The primary reason your cat needs to be seen every year is because an annual exam allows for earlier discovery of illness. This will help us to catch any possible medical issues early and be able to provide life-saving intervention when necessary. The second reason for this is that according to the Maine Veterinary Practice act, a veterinarian is required to maintain a patient-client-doctor relationship in order to prescribe any prescription medications or food. As long as our annual exam is up-to-date, you can continue to pick up all of your kitty’s necessary prescriptions including flea/tick prevention. If your kitty is suffering from a new problem that we haven’t evaluated before, we will need to see it to be sure the correct diagnosis is made and the right medications are
prescribed.
Why won’t you declaw my cat?
Here at PALS we do not support the declawing of cats, and our doctor will not perform this procedure. Declawing is a painful and unnecessary mutilation that requires the complete amputation of the last bone in every single toe. It can cause significant medical issues such as infection, nerve damage, bone spurs and osteoarthritis. It can also cause significant behavior and personality changes such as aggression, depression and anxiety. The pain and anxiety can often lead to litter box issues (one of the most common reasons for surrender of a cat). We do offer some alternatives to declawing. Our shelter managers are very knowledgeable in topics of kitty enrichment. They would be happy to chat with you about some options to help encourage your kitty to scratch on an acceptable surface rather than on your furniture. Our veterinary staff provides nail trims for $5.00 (this does require an up-to-date rabies vaccine on file). We also sell Soft Paw nail caps, and our veterinary team can even apply them for you. Our own clinic cat, Ollie, wears Soft
Paws because he likes to scratch on our computer chairs. The bottom line is we want to keep your kitty as happy and healthy as possible for as long as possible and keeping all its bones and nails intact is (in our opinion) essential for that.
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS NEWS~Virginia Baghdoyan
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What does it mean to be a member of the PALS Board of Directors? It means that you care about cats; you want to see cats humanely treated and adopted to loving homes, and you are willing to work to help make that happen.
Daily operations at the shelter are overseen by our Executive Director and at the veterinary service by our Medical Director. The Board of Directors are essentially the "owners" of the business and oversee the entire operation. We look at the big picture, and make major policy decisions about how the shelter and vet service will function together to best fulfill our purpose:
1. To operate, staff and administer an animal shelter for the temporary humane care of sick, injured, abandoned, homeless, unwanted, abused, neglected, relinquished or stray cats; to return stray and relinquished cats to their homes, where possible and deemed safe and desirable by the Executive Director and staff; to place all other cats in suitable, caring adoptive homes, at the discretion of the Executive Director and designated staff.
2. To operate, staff and administer a Low-Cost Feline Veterinary Service to provide veterinary care for the cats in the possession of PALS and, as resources permit, the general public.
3. To educate our members and the general public in the humane care and treatment of cats.
4. To help alleviate overpopulation of cats by neutering all that are in the possession of PALS and by promoting neutering to the public.
5. To operate a full service low-cost veterinary clinic for cats.
The Board of Directors is responsible for making fiscal decisions that are in the best interest of both our shelter residents and our public clients. One of the major functions of the Board is to raise money for the shelter through fundraisers, since we receive no government funding. Board members are expected to participate in our fundraisers whenever possible, but we are often in need of extra help with these events. If you don't feel that you can commit to joining the Board of Directors, but you would like to assist with PALS fundraisers in some way, please contact palsboardchair@gmail.com.
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DECEMBER 1-13
Check it out on our Facebook Page! Stay tuned for some aMEOWzing items to bid on and help support the cats at PALS! Pick Up of items won will begin on December 15th in plenty of time for holiday gift giving!
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Follow us on FACEBOOK to see how you can help support the shelter needs with our GIVING Garland this holiday season! |
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First Annual KITTEN KRAFT FAIR & Kitten Krop Scrapbook Extravaganza were a SUCCESS!! |
Thanks to all of our supporters and vendors the Kitten Kraft Fair raised $3779.82 for the shelter and we are already planning for the bigger and better SECOND Annual Kitten Kraft Fair next fall!
A huge THANK YOU to the Cohen Center for allowing us to use their building at no cost to make this first event possible.
Stay tuned!
We also just finished up the First Annual Kitten Krop, had lots of fun and raised $3950.50 for the Shelter!
We thank all of our supporters and we could not have done it without you!
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ANNUAL HOLIDAY APPEAL
When shopping for your holiday gifts this year, why not spread the joy by putting a smile on the faces of the team at PALS who work so hard throughout the year to give the highest quality care and love to surrendered and abandoned cats in need?
Don't let them lose hope that they might not be able to able to provide a home for cats who are too sick to be adopted and the medical care often needed for others to find their forever homes.
We are asking generous cat lovers like yourself to help make sure the shelter can keep its lights on well past 2024.
Consider sponsoring a resident cat in need that is unlikely to be adopted. Think of us on #Giving Tuesday and stretch your donation even further with matches.
Bid early and often at our online auction on FACEBOOK December 1-13 and send gifts of food and litter directly to the shelter.
PALS also accepts tax deductible monetary gifts directly through PAYPAL using the code listed below. Check with your employer to see if they offer a giving match as well. No donation is too small and together we can continue to make a difference for cats in our community.
Surrendered and abandoned cats in our community deserve to be loved and to find a forever home for all of their days. Please help ensure that PALS is able to continue to provide this much needed community service well beyond 2024!
We are thankful for all of you and wish you and your families a very happy and healthy Holiday Season!
Sincerely,
The Board of Directors
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Donate to our Paypal account
palsnokillshelter@yahoo.com or send donations of dry and wet cat and kitten food or non-clumping cat litter to:
PALS
188 Case Rd
Winthrop, Maine 04364
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Who Should Join the PALS Sponsorship Program?
Any cat lover who is willing to commit to making regular donations to support the cats at PALS.
Why Join the PALS Sponsorship Program?
PALS No-Kill Cat Shelter houses and cares for an average of 133 cats per month. As many as
1/3 of these cats would be considered unadoptable by most shelters and would probably be
euthanized, if not for PALS. These unadoptables may be elderly, FIV+, or have behavior issues
that have developed through no fault of their own. Some are just too shy to get noticed among
the crowd, so they don't get chosen for adoption even though they would make sweet, loving
pets. Many of these cats will remain at PALS for 5 to 10 years, or longer. The cost of running PALS No-Kill Cat Shelter averages $8.86 per cat per day, which amounts to $3,233.90 per cat per year, and the costs increase dramatically if a cat needs medical treatment. Our sponsors contribute more than $20,000 a year to help allay these costs. Won't you please consider joining the Sponsorship Program?
How Can You Help?
Contact PALS No-Kill Cat Shelter today and say, "I want to join the Sponsorship
Program." Once you become a sponsor, you will receive pictures and quarterly updates about
your sponsored cat(s).
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This cat needs a sponsor! |
Blanche is a spayed female, approximately 2 years old, who came to PALS 1 year ago from a NY shelter. She lost an eye due to a bad infection. Blanche is a feral cat looking for a working home. She is considered difficult to adopt but is available to the right barn, basement or shop. Until the right situation comes along, Blanche needs a sponsor. |
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THANK YOU for your support!
Contact the shelter: 207-395-4274
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