About a month ago when one of the board members asked me what my goal for Amplify Austin should be, I opened my mouth and out popped, “$57,000.” Rather than voicing, “Anne, you’re nuts,” board, staff, and volunteers assembled a team and went for it. Our preliminary total for Amplify Austin is $62,842! We told you what we needed, and you were there!
Thank you very, very, very much!
|
|
|
|
|
|
In February, an affectionate, pregnant Spoon getting to know Thundering Paws staff.
|
|
Spoon/Ellby and Her Babies
We took in a pregnant cat and named her Spoon. She went into foster with Marci, who renamed her Ellby. We don’t care what you call your foster cat, as long as you know her “official” name in the medical records.
 The vet saw only two kittens x-ray, but Spoon kept growing and growing! On Friday, March 4th, she delivered four kittens.
Why the discrepancy on the x-ray? One of our veterinary technicians explained that to count kittens (or, one supposes, puppies) in utero, there must be a spine aligned with a skull. Sometimes the fetuses are aligned so that they are blocking one another. Sometimes the mother’s spine gets in the way.
Four is the typical number of kittens in a litter. Mother and kittens are doing well. That’s really all that counts. 
|
|
|
|
Blue Boy was rescued along with six other feral cats after a fire near their cat colony.
|
|
We now have all seven of George’s cats. The two feral cats both have ear notches, indicating that they have been spayed/neutered/vaccinated. They will be returned to the property they came from. A kind lady lives across the road and feeds community cats. The pockmarked road dead-ends just beyond their properties so it’s not dangerous.
The two feral cats came without names. We’ve named the one Blue Boy, and the other Hutch, as she sheltered in a rabbit hutch on George’s property. Neither should be anywhere except their known territory.
Here are the other five cats:
 Heather Bud, a sweet, dilute tortoiseshell with white feet. She was the first one brought to us. She seeks out human contact, purrs, and kneads her bedding. She’s delightful! She will need dental work at the very least, as she had dreadful problems with her back teeth. I wish we could teach kitties to floss!
 Bob, a sweet, light-colored red tabby, sort of apricot-colored. He has some Manx in his ancestry and has a short tail, hence his name. One of our veterinary technicians said he has the worst tooth problems she has ever seen in her 15-year career. He is scheduled to have his teeth cleaned, and probably many of them removed, the week you are reading this.
 Spooky, a tortoiseshell whom we trapped only late last week and who has yet to see the vet. She was friendly with George and after she warms up, will probably be a sweet kitty.
|
|
 Tiger, a beautiful classic, or mackerel, tabby, which means his markings are swirled on his sides. He, too, is friendly. As the last cat trapped on Thursday, he hasn’t had a vet appointment either.
 Linus, a gray tabby was lucky enough to have come to Thundering Paws before the fire. He is a senior kitty and needs dental work and a bilateral ear oblation. We will be doing the dental work first, allow him to recover from that, then get a second opinion on the ear oblation. One vet said this will require surgery. However, we know that sometimes it can be done with laser. The less invasive we can be with a senior cat, the better chance he will have of a speedy recovery.
We’re grateful to have raised the money during Amplify Austin to help these kitties. Their ultimate future has yet to be decided. We would be glad to offer most as barn cats, shed cats, warehouse cats. Send us an email if you are interested.
|
|
Thank you again—and AGAIN—for the wonderful landslide of financial support during Amplify Austin. We absolutely could not do this work without you.
|
|
|
Find us online
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
