Driving slowly through a quiet Rochester neighborhood to return two cats to their outdoor homes with local organization RocKats, we got a small glimpse into the community. A little boy, backpack slung over his shoulder, played in his driveway with an orange, eartipped cat before heading off to school. Another cat’s caregiver requested we return their community cat to the porch, so he’d “know he was back home.”
Sylvester and Green Eyes, our kitty cargo for the day, immediately darted into a hole in their caregiver’s fence when we lifted the door on their humane traps. We’d been given instructions on where to return them, and they certainly knew they were home, too.
U.S. census data has listed Rochester as one of the highest in overall poverty among the 75 largest metropolitan areas in the country. The neighborhood we were in was low income, yet the dedication so many residents have for their community cats was abundantly clear. But when a caregiver is struggling to even buy cat food, paying for full-cost spay or neuter surgery is out of the question.
To help meet the great need, Alley Cat Allies teamed up with Lollypop Farm, the Humane Society of Greater Rochester to start our Feline Frenzy® in the area. Feline Frenzy’s goal is to provide services and community change to support Rochester residents and the cats who are their friends, neighbors, and family.
Our first Feline Frenzy event in April reached almost 100 cats and kittens with Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR), vaccination, and any other needed care—all before noon! Sylvester and Green Eyes were among those cats receiving critical care at no cost, all to make a transformative impact for this community.
Each of the 96 cats and kittens helped through our Feline Frenzy is because of YOU, our amazing and compassionate supporters. Feline Frenzy is powered by your generosity, and we need your support more than ever to strengthen this lifesaving campaign and reach more cats across the nation.