Did you ever wonder why there are so many cats and kittens in our city shelters, let alone running in the streets and alleys of our city?

From the cats’ point of view, one day they have a loving and secure home with plenty of food, water, and love and the next day, they are put in a carrier for a ride in the car. All of a sudden they are placed in a cold stainless steel cage with food they don’t like and a litter box the size of a coffee saucer. No loving hands to ease the terror. Sounds and smells that would frighten anybody.

Many of you may already know that when a cat is under great stress, it shuts down and can become sick. People coming to the shelter for a pet will not pick the one that has backed into a corner because they are afraid and don’t understand what has happened.

A cat under stress leaves itself wide open to what we rescuers call a “stress upper respiratory.” Once this happens, the cat is placed in isolation (more terrifying sounds and smells) for observation. Many of them stop eating or grooming themselves. The ones that do not recover from this stressful situation are often euthanized unless loving hands intervene. This happens too rarely to save most of them.

Valley Cats, Inc. was established in 1999 to try to save these cats and kittens BEFORE they are sent to the shelter. If we can spare them the stress and fear of such a situation, they stand a much better chance of finding another home.

We have found that many of these cats are being sent to the shelter because they have developed bad habits. With a little education and encouragement, a good number of these pets remain in their homes, and all it took was a little conversation and some helpful ideas!

However, for those people who are determined to give up their animals, we must find foster homes to keep them until we can find another family to love them. Being in a foster home with good food, love, and attention is often all it takes to keep them happy and healthy.

If you can help us by opening your home to a foster cat or two, we need you! There are so many cats waiting to go to the shelters and so few people who will foster them. You would become part of what Valley Cats set out to do — make a difference!

If you are interested in helping us in our quest to help all that we can, please call us. Leave a message and we will contact you. You can’t imagine what a wonderful feeling it is to see a “throw-away” cat rebound and love and trust again.

Valley Cats, Inc. is an all-volunteer organization that rescues cats and kittens (and occasionally dogs and puppies) and places them into loving, permanent homes. Because we have limited space at our adoption center, we rely on foster homes to house our homeless cats and dogs while they wait to find their perfect family. The more foster homes we have, the more lives we can save! If you can open up your home (or even just a room in your home!) to a homeless cat or dog in need, please call us at (818) 883-5252 or email us at valleycatsinc@aol.com

We always need…

• Homes without other cats to house foster cats for two or more weeks to ensure they are healthy before mixing them with our healthy rescued cats.
  Homes able to house nursing mothers and their kittens. These cats must be isolated from other animals in the home.

• Homes able to foster bottlebabies or orphaned kittens. These kittens require frequent feeding and cleaning. Someone who does not work or works from home would be ideal.

• Homes with or without other cats to foster healthy cats and/or kittens while they are awaiting their new homes.

• Homes able to foster cats with special needs (behavioral and/or medical). Depending on the circumstances, these cats may not be able to mix with other animals and their fostering may be long-term.