In partnership with Rittenhouse Square Pet Supply and Pickering Valley Feed and Farm in Exton, Pa., Paws Crossed Rescue offers kitties for adoption on a regular basis.
Paws Crossed is a nonprofit cat rescue operation that helps homeless cats in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The group’s mission is to save as many cats that live on the streets by spaying and neutering and then putting the cats up for adoption.
“There are so many abandoned/stray cats/kittens in Camden, especially by the waterfront,” explained Kathy Boeggeman of Paws Crossed Rescue who has been involved with the system for many years.
“We do not have a place where we keep the kittens. We rely on the kindness of people, fosters, bringing the kittens into their home. We currently only have four foster people. We feed them out of our own pockets and if they need to be taken to the vet it comes out of our pocket if we don’t have the money available through the rescue.”
The organization also has a Trap Neuter Release (TNR) program to keep the cat population down. The older cats are caught, fixed and then released back into the areas they are accustomed to. Because of the high expenses, only a certain amount can be done each month.
Paws Crossed has also begun saving cats that are located in Georgia, as it is a high kill state. If they are are not able to coordinate transport, the kittens are euthanized.
“People have such a misconception of cats,” Boeggeman said. “They think they are loners but in fact, they live in colonies and like the company of people or other cats. They can be such loving, fun animals. It all depends on how you treat them. If you ever had a kitten nuzzle up to your face, then you know why I do the things I do.”
One kitten, named Napoleon by Paws Crossed, found his forever home just on Sunday at the group’s first event at Just Dogs and Cats on Sansom Street. His owner renamed the cat Tiger.
Tiger joins a big dog brother who also lives in the home. This cat is just one example of the many cats saved by Paws Crossed.
Boeggeman added that a cat’s lifetime can be significantly longer if it’s not living in he streets.
“The average life of a stray cat is 7 years,” she said. “If they are inside cats, it could be 20 or more. If I can help just one cat that never knew the warmth of a blanket or the feel of a full belly find their fur-ever home, then everything we do and sacrifice is worth it. If I could, I’d want to save them all.”
Crossed Paws Rescue is always looking for people to foster, as well as volunteers for pick-ups and deliveries and donations. For more information about how you can help, please visit their website.
Kudos to all who were involved with this operation.
Photo by DARIUSZ SANKOWSKISNAPSHOT.IO