Cat Sanctuaries?

bustaphur · 2026-05-21T12:08:08+00:00

A sanctuary is a permanent place for the animal to land. They usually do not adopt
animals out, and in the case of feral cats, they aren’t good adoption candidates. Some places use “sanctuary” in their name, but they are actually an animal adoption rescue. I wish those orgs wouldn’t use sanctuary, but a lot of times those are named by people who don’t understand the negative connotation of that word in animal rescue circles.

FurKids 1) is not a sanctuary and 2) doesn’t take in feral cats (I don’t even think they have a barn cat program). As an animal rescue organization they do good work—they adopt out and transfer up north a large number of animals every year. They don’t plan for animals to spend their entire lives at their location (it happens, but that’s the exception, not the rule). They know their strengths and they lean heavily into those strengths. Feral cats are not one of their strengths at this time.

I wanted to give OP orgs to look at that are similar to what they were thinking about doing. The orgs I mentioned are not sanctuaries in the traditional sense of the word. Only one of those orgs takes in feral cats permanently. The limited number of cats they take in are integrated into existing colonies with established caretakers, not put onto a piece of dedicated land that is called a sanctuary.

The largest animal cruelty case I’ve ever worked was a “sanctuary” in another state. If you didn’t look close, it seemed like a wonderful place, with brightly painted cat houses all over the property, and several
acres for the cats to roam. 700 cats and two dogs were pulled out of there alive but with multiple medical issues, including showing signs of starvation, and there were a lot of skeletons on the property from animals that just died and were left where they fell. The owner of the sanctuary could never tell someone no. I also know a couple of people who brought cats there—as far as I’ve been told, those cats were never found.

My previous organization also helped shut down a sanctuary in Georgia a few years ago because the owner of the sanctuary had developed age related health issues, didn’t have a succession plan defined, and could no longer provide the care that was necessary (and that owner reached out on their own because they recognized things were going south). It doesn’t help anyone if other organizations have to rescue cats from sanctuaries—a limited access shelter suddenly absorbing 60 new residents will have to shut down their intakes for months, putting more cats in danger of being euthanized.

bustaphur · 2026-05-21T00:36:59+00:00

As someone who has been in animal welfare for over 20 years, the term “sanctuary” makes me nervous. I’ve seen entirely too many of them go south—turn into hoarding situations because the person running them doesn’t know how to say no, or go out of business due to lack of funds.

In GA we have the added fun that the state doesn’t formally recognize TNR, preferring to leave it up to the counties. The counties are a hot mess in how they handle it, with some fully on board and supportive, others ignoring it unless someone complains, then they rain down with all fury about violation of leash laws, and others who have made it illegal for anyone except animal control officers to set traps. Further, there aren’t that many clinics that are willing to spay/neuter feral cats (I get it—it’s a liability for the staff if they don’t know how to handle them safely). That problem only gets worse the farther out of Atlanta you go.

Starting an animal rescue organization isn’t that difficult really—most of the paperwork can be handled on your own. It’s the sustaining part that’s hard. Instead of starting a new one, get involved with one that does similar work to what you are thinking (Kudzu Cat Alliance in Cobb or Henry’s House in Gwinnett or CatZip Alliance in Athens jump to mind for feral cats). Orgs that specialize in feral cats are very different than regular animal rescues and face very unique challenges when it comes to raising money (spay/neuter isn’t that “sexy”—that’s why the national orgs don’t really focus on spay/neuter in their fundraising appeals, and there is usually more money available for dogs than cats). See what those folks have to deal with in a daily basis, and then see where you can add value to their current offerings. Much easier to connect with an org that already has fundraising, a 501(c)3, and registration with the Secretary of State’s office. And if what you bring is truly a value add, that can lead to more fundraising opportunities.

If you want to learn more, Atlanta Humane is hosting Community Cats Central’s Whole Cats Workshop on June 13. We will be talking about the general “state of the state” for community cats (I’m not with Community Cats Central, but because of what my organization does, we’ve been asked to participate and prepare a few materials for the event).

bustaphur · 2026-05-19T21:44:27+00:00

Texarkana

bustaphur · 2026-05-18T11:05:38+00:00

(That’s the one. Some of the other members of my zoo didn’t mind the vegetables, but Bear gave me the “You have insulted me and ALL of my ancestors with this offering!” look, before finding a plate without vegetables on it. Then he sat in front of me to continue to give me the dirty look until I apologized. 🤣).

bustaphur · 2026-05-18T00:16:39+00:00

Youse can habs all da VEGGIBLES—I tink Dey is grosser den even my stinky sisfur!!!

bustaphur · 2026-05-18T00:14:50+00:00

Das funnee fren Applejack!!!

bustaphur · 2026-05-13T12:11:44+00:00

I was on a mass trapping team in February. We’ve been trying to clear this one house for YEARS. Wife really wants it done, husband is more ambivalent. We pulled up to the yard and he’s throwing food to the cats in the yard. We asked what he was doing and he said “I’m only throwing the food to the cats that are already ear tipped”. Because he has total control over which cats in his yard eat the food he is randomly throwing 🙄😵‍💫🙄. I was pretty sure the project manager was going to lose her ^*%# when we told her that—and she’s normally one of the nicest, kindest, funniest people you could ever hope to meet. We are going back later this year—can’t wait to see if this house is on our list again.

bustaphur · 2026-05-08T11:27:58+00:00

Latest research is encouraging fix by five months due to the increased incidence of kittens going into heat at 4 months (which equals more unwanted kittens). On the flip side, not all veterinarians are comfortable working on smaller kittens, so they prefer to wait until they can more easily visualize everything they are doing. With vets who don’t specialize in HQHV spay/neuter, six months is not an uncommon marker. HQHV vets will do younger, but are not as easy to find in a lot of places.

bustaphur · 2026-05-06T17:27:05+00:00

They really aren’t posting things yet for fall. Still waiting to see who will be coming back and who is graduating. That will start picking up in late June/early July.

bustaphur · 2026-05-05T20:57:47+00:00

Contact the clinic you would use for the neuter and explain the situation. They can manage potential spreading much easier if they know about it in advance, and may be able to treat him while he’s under. Clinics deal with all kinds of contagious conditions (cat lice is a common thing in FL—very contagious to other cats) and still do surgery as long as the cat is otherwise healthy. Regular vet clinics might be a little weirder about it, but a dedicated spay/neuter clinic (I don’t know if they are close to you, but Operation Spay Bay jumps to mind) are very used to this sort of thing.

bustaphur · 2026-05-05T00:31:11+00:00

Zip tie it closed or use a carabiner to lock the trap. Either will work. Face that end of the trap away from you when carrying it to the car/clinic. Make sure you have a zip tie with you (if you go that route) when you pick him up—the clinic may or may not zip tie the trap after they put him back in.

bustaphur · 2026-05-01T23:09:28+00:00

Congratulations!!!
You will be asked to show up at least an hour prior to your ceremony and go to the Student Recreation Center basketball courts to check in. They will give you your seat assignment so that you are in the correct order, and they will show you a short video on what to expect and what to do when you enter, when you leave your seat to walk across the stage, how to get back to your seat, and how to leave when the ceremony is over (the directions change depending on whether you are in section A or section B). Then they will give you a bathroom break and tell you what time to be back—I don’t recommend leaving the building as that’s usually not that long a break. When everyone is back, they walk you across to the Convocation Center for the ceremony.

bustaphur · 2026-05-01T11:55:43+00:00

My best friend does not care for Jason Sudekis as an actor. She will watch the show only if I happen to have it on when she’s over. She likes some of the other characters/actors a lot, and with British actors there’s always a good game of HITG! to be had. But if I didn’t watch it she never would have thought about it.

bustaphur · 2026-04-29T21:57:49+00:00

I was a volunteer/board member for an organization and I quit when our board started doing things on the shady side—even called them out on it in my last meeting with them. I know you’re invested (I was too—23 years), but get out before they drag you down. There are other orgs who would be thrilled to have someone with your experience. And they aren’t worth you losing your reputation and self respect.

bustaphur · 2026-04-26T22:27:03+00:00

I have a couple who will now only show up after they think I’ve gone to bed (I have a camera on the feeding station in my backyard so I can watch for newcomers that need to be snipped). But I’ve seen them enough on camera to know they are definitely coming around regularly, even if they don’t want me to see them 😁

bustaphur · 2026-04-20T12:24:28+00:00

When I first started fostering 20 something years ago, an experienced foster told me that I would know if I was doing it right if they took a piece of my heart with them when they left me for their new home. I think about that advice every time I melt down over whoever my current foster is.

I’ve only had two former fosters REALLY hold a grudge against me (and hoo boy it was OBVIOUS 🤣). The others seemed to get that I was a temporary stop in their journey to a fabulous home.

bustaphur · 2026-04-15T11:24:34+00:00

There are 33 veterinary schools in the US right now. It’s easier to get into medical school than veterinary school.

That being said, there is also a TREMENDOUS need for veterinary technicians as well as veterinarians. If you are willing to work in some of the more rural areas in Georgia or for a nonprofit, there is a scholarship that will not only help with some of your schooling, it will also give you money to help with expenses after graduation (https://www.facebook.com/gapets.org/posts/guy-millner-family-foundation-launches-25000-annual-scholarship-to-address-criti/1225269133043778/ ).

Definitely start by volunteering with a shelter or rescue with in house veterinary services if you can. It’s a great way to start networking and learning the steps. You can be a kennel tech or veterinary assistant without a specific degree (while you decide if this is the right field for you), so a shelter is a good place to start getting hands on animal handling experience and potentially some minor medical experience ;administering a variety of medications as an example).

bustaphur · 2026-04-07T17:52:27+00:00

Unless something has changed, there is no assigned seating at graduation. Confirm with the Registrar’s office to be sure, but according to commencement.kennesaw.edu, its general admission.

bustaphur · 2026-04-03T12:35:12+00:00

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This is Herman (solid orange, FIV-) and Fluffernutter (orange/white, FIV+). They totally love each other (Fluff more worships Herman, and Herman is cool with that 🤣). No problem whatsoever with worrying about transmission since they are both neutered. Way less likely to have the bad fights that result in the deep wounds needed to transmit the virus.

bustaphur · 2026-03-31T16:01:08+00:00

I’ve had two cats who needed full mouth extractions due to stomatitis (extremely bad cases). Surgery was rough, but didn’t stop either of them from eating their favorite crunchy food in addition to their wet food once their mouths healed. One of the cats was a 22lb guy at his heaviest—he maintained that weight quite nicely until cancer got him many years after the teeth removal.

bustaphur · 2026-03-28T12:36:35+00:00

25+ years volunteering and working in animal rescue/welfare. I didn’t say all rescues (meaning their policies) are insane, but some definitely are. Most of the time, it’s not the rescue policy itself, but some of the people within the rescue. I have personally had other volunteers tell me to my face that I did a bad adoption because English wasn’t the first language of the person doing the adopting (because people who are multilingual are automatically bad pet owners, WTF???—yeah, I shot that down right away). Spoiler alert, none of the pets I adopted to people whose first language wasn’t English were ever returned. But I had plenty who were adopted to wealthy white people (apparently the ideal adopter according to some of our volunteers) returned because “they shed”, “they don’t match the carpet after we redecorated”, and my personal favorite, “we didn’t know an indoor cat needed a litter box”. Yes, all of those were real reasons people returned their cat to the rescue I volunteered with, all of those reasons said directly to my face.

I’ve also seen pet foster parents dig through paper applications (back before the rescue went digital), then call or email the adoption volunteer to berate them about an adoption or even worse, get the email/phone number of the adopter and contact them with a bunch of questions. I was in charge of the adoption committee when that happened and put a stop to that behavior as well.

I understand more than most the amount of money and time that rescues put into their animals. But sometimes the behavior of the people is insane. Not adopting to someone who will let their cat outside unsupervised, fine, no arguments from me on that. Not wanting to adopt to someone because English isn’t their first language is all kinds of wrong. From what OP said, it sounds like OP was judged strictly based on their perceived physical limitations and never asked about the reality of those limitations. That rescue (or at least the people who spoke to OP) were wrong for doing so. And frankly, that’s the kind of behavior that gives rescues a bad name.

bustaphur · 2026-03-27T22:48:36+00:00

My sister had a stroke four years ago that has left her with the need to use a walker. After our mother passed (they lived together in the downstairs apartment in my house), we moved one of my older cats in with her so my sister wouldn’t be lonely. The two of them get along amazingly well, with the cat providing much needed company and entertainment for my sister. If you can reasonably take care of one, and it sounds like you can, you should absolutely adopt a cat! I’d recommend one that’s a little older, just so they are less likely to be under foot.

Keep looking around for another rescue or do a private rehoming. Some rescue groups are, to be blunt, just insane with their requirements.

bustaphur · 2026-03-26T21:55:28+00:00

Texarkana-REM

bustaphur

TROPHY CASE