Cat rescue experiencing greater need for adoptions
By Justin Seward - Lethbridge Herald on December 19, 2023.
Herald photo by Justin Seward
Michele and Mia McLean explore the tables of goodies during the Last Chance Cat Ranch Christmas craft and bake sale on Saturday at the Lethbridge Fish and Game Hut.The Last Chance Cat Ranch is still seeing a greater need in finding homes for unwanted animals.
“This year is especially bad with stray cats right now,” said Kennedy McCooy, an organization volunteer.
“So that need is really high. We get dozens of messages every day from people saying, ‘hey we found this cat, can you help?’ We have usually a wait list for our intake process. It’s probably 50 or 60 cats deep right now. So we’re just kind of on waiting list to bring the cats in when we have the space.”
Financial stress is a factor for people to turn their cats in.
“It’s definitely not cheap between vet care and then food and all that,” she said.
“Especially with the inflation right now, things are more expensive than they have been.”
Another factor is a change in people’s lives.
“We’ve had lots of people saying that they had kids and the kids are allergic,” she said.
The organization also gets owner surrenders.
“Which isn’t the biggest priority for us because those ones at least we know are safe for now,” said McCooy.
“It’s really those homeless cats that we try to help first and foremost.”
Last Chance Cat Ranch always seem to be over-capacity, McCooy said.
“I think between the main facility and in the fosters, we have over 100 cats right now,” said McCooy noting spaying and neutering helps with a lot of issues.
The organization is looking for more fosters because its system has reached maximum capacity.
The organization held it’s Christmas craft and bake sale on Saturday at the Lethbridge Fish and Game Hut with all funds going to pay vet bills, and purchases supplies and food.
McCooy says the Christmas fundraiser usually brings in a couple of thousand dollars for the organization which usually holds a sale on the third Saturday of every month.
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this is a great organisation – please help spread love and positivity and donate to the lccr via email. thelccr@gmail.com
they are a registered charity and can provide a tax receipt. keep in mind WE, the people of this area, are the problem when it comes to stray and suffering animals. WE can and need be the solution 🙂 here is the link to their site. recall that this great organisation has served our community for a very many years, with so much thanks to Elizabeth Guinn for making this haven happen. please note: she did not draw a salary, and nor does/did anyone else. entirely volunteer driven. they also had to overcome a nasty neighbour who bullied them out of their home. https://www.thelastchancecatranch.com/
I wish this article was printed BEFORE the fundraiser, rather than afterward. Is there any way the paper might endeavour to get the word out on behalf of charity fundraisers BEFORE they happen, rather than after, when the info is pretty much moot.
If “the founder” never received a salary or any funds from the charity, can you clarify why she mentioned being audited by the CRA for her cat rescue, and what led to writ of enforcements against the house before selling the “intake house”? Additionally, there’s mention of being forced out of their home but no mention that it was because they were breaking the law; they were fortunate not to face harassment charges for how they handled the situation.