The Colony Chronicles
Volume 2, Issue 2
Facts and Myths about Lost Cats
When Feral Cats Need More Than TNR
Forgotten Felines of Forsyth welcomes volunteers who wish to make a difference in our community. If you have some free time and a desire to help, we can find a job for you! Below are a few of the jobs with which FFF needs assistance.
Feral Cat Trapper/Transporter
Trapping skills and knowledge of feral cat behavior is helpful, but we can train. A van or SUV is helpful for transportation. A basement or garage may be helpful as a holding area. Trappers must be willing to be out late at night on trapping night. Email is our primary means of communicating trapping plans on a weekly basis so it is helpful if you have email. A cell phone is needed for staying in touch on trap night if you are trapping solo.
Colony Caretaker
Colony caretaking is a little different from simply feeding feral/stray cats. Colony caretakers provide food, water and shelter for colony DAILY, monitor the colonies to assure all cats are spayed or neutered and make arrangements for trapping at colony as need arises, also monitor colony individuals for health and/or injuries, maintain records on colony members, and advocate for the colony as necessary. Primary colony caretakers must be willing to commit to their colony long term. Substitute caretakers are also needed if you can't commit to being a primary caretaker.
Spay/Neuter Clinic Worker
Forgotten Felines of Forsyth holds a monthly spay/neuter clinic. The veterinarians do all the surgery and administer the vaccines. We need volunteers for all other positions including: cleaning of the facility prior to and after a clinic, weighing the cats, determining gender, administration of anesthesia, prepping the cats for surgery, drawing up vaccinations, ear cleaning and notching, monitoring of anesthetized cats, transporting cats prepped for surgery to the operating room, post operative recovery of cats, completing paperwork on veterinary procedures performed on each cat, laundering towels and surgical drapes, cleaning and packaging surgical instrument for sterilization. Clinics are held on Sunday morning, once a month, typically lasting from about 7:30 am to 2:00 pm.
Recovery Volunteer
After spay/neuter surgery, cats are held inside to monitor their recovery from anesthesia and to assure that they are ready to be released. Volunteers are needed to prepare the recovery area by sanitizing and lining the shelves with absorbent pads prior to arrival of the cats. There are some tame cats that reside in the recovery area and they may need to be put in cages prior to the arrival of the feral cats and let out of the cages after all ferals are in. When the cats arrive from the clinic, you will help carry the traps into the recovery area, arrange the traps in the recovery area by caretaker, and match paperwork to the appropriate trap. Recovery volunteers feed cats as they awaken from surgery and change any soiled bedding material in traps. Before leaving the cats for the night, all cats are checked to assure that they are awake and no problems are noticed. This will usually be on a Sunday afternoon. Recovery volunteers are also needed on the Monday morning following the clinic to check the cats again, clean their bedding and feed them. Finally, volunteers are needed to clean and sanitize the recovery area after all the ferals have been picked up for return to their colony. This is usually Monday evening after a Sunday spay clinic. It could also be done on Tuesday after a spay clinic.
Rental Truck Driver
Drive a rental truck such as Ryder or U-Haul to pick up donated pet food and deliver it to the home of one of our volunteers in Winston-Salem, NC. Our volunteer(s) will accompany you. Must be able to back the truck to a loading dock. Must be able to commit to drive on a short notice as we typically get a call one day and must commit to pickup the next morning. Frequency is one to three times per month and is always a weekday morning. Ideal opportunity for a retiree or someone with a flexible work schedule. This job requires a valid NC drivers license.
Other
Whether you might be experienced with fundraising, PR, or are a people person, we can make use of your skill. If you have carpentry skills, we welcome folks who can build feral cat shelters or drop-traps. If you have an idea of how you can help, please do not hesitate to contact us!
Please visit our website for more information, or visit our Volunteer Match link.