Vision
Overpopulation is a well known problem in society. Feral cat populations generally fend for themselves and only through assistance of volunteers do these animals receive any medical care. Participation in this type of work will not only improve practical skills but will very rewarding for our students. The funds will go to improvement of infrastructure i.e. a designated surgery space / treatment area in Boulden building which will allow us to increase the volume of surgeries performed during our surgery/ treatment days of our feral trap spay/neuter release. It will also help us offset the cost of hospital supplies required to perform feral cat surgery. The current budget of our animal providers limits the number of surgeries we are able to perform on the feral cats. The hopes is that this fund will dramatically increase the number of cat’s we can spay/neuter and provide necessary routine preventative health care for cats that otherwise would not benefit from basic medical care. We aim to improve the health of our feral cat population and impact the pet overpopulation problem.
Story
300 Felines is a student run, volunteer based project working to help the feral cat population in the Cumberland Colchester region. Lindsay Russell and Taylor Jacobs are Co-Leads of the 300 feline project and two of the countless volunteers dedicating their time to help these furry felines.
“Each of us involved in 300 Felines has cared for, adopted and/or worked with feral cats. We see the toll that the difficult conditions under which they live take on their health and well-being. We are grateful for the opportunity to contribute to a cause for which we are deeply passionate, in collaboration with regional non-profit animal welfare organizations,” the girls added. “We recognize the need in our community for a proactive approach to humanely address the feral cat overpopulation crisis and we are in a position to help make a difference.”
Strategy
The team has established partnerships with several non-profit animal welfare organizations in the region, Colchester Municipality and local businesses. The animal rescue organizations have been carefully chosen, and will be the ones bringing the feral cats in to the students and volunteers.
The rescue partners will be determining which cats qualify for this program. There are many different factors that are taken into consideration when looking for cats that qualify. One of the biggest components they look at is urgency. “A colony of 100 cats probably needs to be addressed first versus an area with a couple of cats due to the overall impact on the population i.e. trying to prevent or control a population explosion,” Dr. Lori Parsons explains.
Impact
“The 300 Felines team is grateful to all who contributed to the success of our crowd-funding campaign; you have given the gift of feline healthcare because you too, recognize that every cat matters. Each cat who is spayed/neutered and provided with veterinary care is one more life improved.” In total, 300 Felines whose goal of $10,000 exceeded it with the final tally at $14,022.
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