We started the new year strong with an incredible 40 adoptions! Because of your support, elderly cats like KissKiss and fearful forgotten kittens like Jam and Toast received the time and care they needed to feel healthy, safe, and confident enough to win the hearts of adopters — and find loving homes. Their stories are just a tiny representation of the many incredible transformations Cat Town cats make when given a chance to blossom and heal.
Whether you showed your support through donating, sharing social media posts, attending our events, or advocating for our work through everyday conversation, we are immensely grateful. Because of you, these cats have fulfilling futures in which they will be loved and thrive.
Here are just a few of the cats you helped in January!
When their guardian’s own medical issues meant they could no longer care for Oats and Grits, they surrendered the 16-year-old cats to Oakland Animal Services to be euthanized. Given their ages and medical needs, we suspect their guardian feared no one would take a chance on helping cats like these, but OAS asked us to look after the senior gentlemen instead. At Cat Town, the sweet and shy pair received specialized care from our staff and volunteers — Oats had manageable Stage 2 kidney disease, while Grits received care for pancreatitis, inflammatory bowel disease, and early Stage 4 kidney disease. Given Grits’ more advanced medical needs, we placed him under our In It For Life Program, covering his medical care for life so that anyone who fell in love with this pair would have an easier time deciding to adopt. Although his health problems gave him tummy issues and caused him to lose weight, Grits never lost his zeal for treats and gentle attention. Under attentive foster care, both happy boys maintained healthy appetites and showed great courage in their regular efforts to cautiously explore their environment and sniff potential new friends. We’re overjoyed to see these staff favorites officially adopted — with their adoption fee covered by a generous sponsor! — and we’re excited for updates from their new guardian!
Fifteen-year-old KissKiss arrived at Oakland Animal Services as a limping stray, but she quickly captured volunteers’ hearts with her “sweet old lady” demeanor — her calm and affectionate nature shining through. We brought her into Cat Town’s In It For Life Program because of her status as a senior cat with arthritis, a heart murmur, and elevated kidney and thyroid levels. KissKiss’ foster showered her with pets and attention, providing her with stress-free stability, and our team worked with our veterinary partners to create a medical plan that would manage her health challenges. This gentle calico spent 425 days at Cat Town receiving medical care and becoming a staff favorite. Cat Town’s Adoption Coordinator, Genevieve, even temporarily fostered her and warmly recalls cuddling with this sweetheart while watching the Great British Bake Off. KissKiss was adopted by a previous Cat Town adopter known for embracing senior gals, and tells us, “She’s doing great! She is such a little gem. We spend a lot of time cuddling on my couch and it’s wonderful to have her presence around!”
Niobe and Zee came into our care at 2 months old when the Oakland shelter was too full to host them. The healthy, curious, and playful sisters were quickly adopted, but then surrendered back to Cat Town. Their adopters, seeing how uncomfortable the kittens were with their dog and young children, realized their home was not a good fit for these girls. Back in Cat Town’s care, the sweet and endearing siblings were once again quickly adopted by a couple with a quiet home. The new adopters have reported that in their home, the cats are “eating enthusiastically, playing vigorously, sleeping well, and cuddling with each other and us.” They tell us that Niobe and Zee are “happily affectionate,” and have even inspired them to write a song for the cats to listen to at low levels while the pair sunbathe by large bay windows.
We brought outgoing and social Taro to Cat Town when his time at the Fat Kitty City Humane Society revealed he needed diabetes care. After only a month’s stay at Cat Town, the 9-year-old tabby went home to a trial adoption. Thanks to his adopters providing love, support, and consistent care, his diabetes went into remission! Then his adopters noticed Taro had become lethargic and wasn’t eating, so they took him to a clinic where he was hospitalized and diagnosed with life-threatening complications from feline infectious peritonitis (FIP). Unable to maintain the meticulous level of care he would need during this delicate time, Taro’s adopters asked Cat Town for support and brought him back into our care, with the goal of taking over his medical needs when his health started looking up. A month later, Taro’s health stabilized, making his care more manageable. His adopters saw him through the end of his FIP treatment, and Taro is happy and healthy in his home!
Jam and Toast were brought into the Oakland shelter as scared, reactive, and avoidant stray kittens. After three months of care, both girls were still hissing, scrambling to avoid being pet, and barely eating, so we brought them into our Forgotten Kitten Project. Fosters and volunteers helped socialize the two kittens, and eight months later, the bonded pair charmed their way into an adopter’s heart. Knowing that the girls didn’t have experience living with humans or in a typical home, their adopter is taking it slow with compassion and patience. While both cats are still very shy, they are bravely beginning to roam beyond their hiding spots to explore their new home.
From everyone at Cat Town, thank you for helping these cats, and so many others!
All of our JANUARY Adoptions
Did you adopt from Cat Town? Tell us how your cat is doing! We always love to hear updates from our alumni.
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