23 Ways we worked for cats in 2023

1. 23 Ways we worked for cats in 2023

2. The New Year is almost here, and Alley Cat Allies is working throughout the holiday season to protect cats and start 2024 on the strongest foot to save more lives. But even as we prepare for all the work ahead to build a world where all cats are valued and protected, we’re also reflecting on the incredible change we accomplished together this year. • Here are just 23 of the ways (there are many, many more!) we worked on behalf of cats in 2023: • We are fighting to protect Puerto Rico community cats

3. In November 2023, the U.S. National Park Service announced a plan to remove community cats living along the famous Paseo del Morro in Old San Juan within a period of 6 months. It is a cruel and pointless scheme Alley Cat Allies is doing everything in our power to halt. • We are reaching out to the government of Puerto Rico and working with local advocates as part of our ongoing efforts to stop the removal and help more cats and kittens across Old San Juan. We’re looking forward to more lifesaving progress in 2024. • We’re confronting calls to kill cats in Granite Shoals, Texas • Alley Cat Allies condemns the horrific discussion between the Granite Shoals City Manager and Wildlife Advisory Committee about a plan to mass kill community cats. We call for a strong, city-supported TNR program and would pledge our own support for that program. • We’re standing with the Granite Shoals Police Department, the Hill Country Humane Society, and the people of Granite Shoals against cruel, lethal policies. The next city council meeting about Granite Shoals’ cats is January 9, and Alley Cat Allies will be there.

4. We provided TNR and other care to thousands of cats in Atlantic County • Alley Cat Allies had a goal to spay or neuter 1,000 cats between May and November of 2023 as part of our ongoing work with the Humane Society of Atlantic County, New Jersey. Amazing news: We did it—and much more! • The 1,000 cats and kittens helped this summer and fall are on top of 1,000+ cats we’ve already helped through our latest initiative in Atlantic County–and that’s just our most recent work in the area.

5. We’re working to save cats from lethal policies in the Cayman Islands • As the government of the Cayman Islands pursues a devastating policy to round up and kill cats, Alley Cat Allies is making all efforts to prevent the cruel, lethal scheme and working with local advocates on humane, effective programs for cats and kittens. In 2023, we provided spay and neuter surgeries, vaccination, and microchipping as well as no-cost cat food to indoor and community cat caregivers. We’re going to expand our lifesaving work even further in 2024.

6. We helped 1,800+ cats and kittens in Iowa • Alley Cat Allies’ Cats Are Family Too™ collaboration with the Animal Rescue League of Iowa this fall provided incredible, no-cost resources to cats throughout the Des Moines area! • In just three cat food distribution events in October and November, we handed out cans of cat food to more than 540 households to help more than 1,800 cats and kittens. And through a no-cost vaccine and wellness clinic, we provided dozens of cats and kittens with care that may have otherwise been inaccessible to their families.

7. We saved cats with specialized surgery • The only struggle a kitten should face is choosing between playing with a fun new toy or curling up in a sunbeam. But cats Emporio and Tank were wracked with seizures that impaired their sight and adventurous spirits at a very young age.

8. They have a condition known as a portosystemic shunt, which is an anomaly in their blood vessels that causes blood to be diverted around the liver rather than through it for detoxification. They needed specialized surgery to have the best chance at survival—and Alley Cat Allies ensured they received it through a grant to Lollypop Farm, the Humane Society of Greater Rochester. They’ve both since been adopted and are thriving post-surgery! • We supported no-cost animal food banks • From kicking off a community cat-focused food bank in Atlantic County, New Jersey, to supporting no-cost food resources in Iowa, the Cayman Islands, Virginia, and multiple other communities, we are Keeping Families TogetherTM. With the post-COVID era has come a great deal of financial insecurity, and food support is more critical than ever. We plan to expand our food bank support in 2024!

9. We protected cats impacted by the historic maui wildfires • When historic wildfires swept through Maui, Hawaii, in August, Alley Cat Allies was on the ground immediately to provide critical emergency support for cats. We brought food to cats outdoors in the devastated Lahaina area, as well as medications, vaccinations, kitten milk replacer, and other needed supplies for affected indoor and community cats. We also covered the costs of much-needed procedures from flea treatment to emergency dental care.

10. We supported a lifesaving veterinary bill in Florida • With access to veterinary care more limited than ever, any step that clears the way for experienced veterinarians to provide volunteer services makes a massive difference. That’s why Alley Cat Allies supported a Florida bill to allow veterinarians from out of state to legally provide spay and neuter and other care. It passed in summer of 2023, and we couldn’t be more thrilled for all the cats and kittens it will help! • We advocated for a Texas law in defense of TNR • A 2023 law passed in Texas recognizes Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) as a defense against cat abandonment claims, giving reassurance to caregivers and shelters who perform TNR that they are doing the right thing to help cats. Alley Cat Allies advocated in support of this law, and we’re pursuing stronger TNR protections in the Lone Star State. • We received the highest recognitions for transparency • Alley Cat Allies earned the 2023 Platinum Seal with Candid as well as the coveted Charity Navigator 4-star rating for the 10th consecutive year—the organizations’ highest levels of recognition!

11. These achievements are a result of Alley Cat Allies’ commitment to transparency in everything we do with our supporters’ donations. Our supporters can be confident that every gift has a direct, lifesaving impact on cats and kittens, which strengthens our shared mission! • We called for justice for Nala the cat • Alley Cat Allies was present at the trial of Ronald Schlotterbeck, who shot and killed Nala as she rested on a tree branch in his yard, causing her to suffer an agonizing death. We sent a letter of support to the prosecutor in the case asking for the strongest possible penalty under the law for this act of deliberate, needless cruelty. • In the end, the punishment served was light, but Alley Cat Allies continues to fight for justice for cat victims of cruelty and for stronger penalties against cruelty perpetrators. • We provided legal counsel to protect community cat caregivers • When a Maryland community cat caregiver contacted Alley Cat Allies’ Cat Help Desk and told us a Code Enforcement Officer ordered her to stop feeding the cats and issued her a citation for a $1000 fine, we stepped in to provide legal counsel.

12. The reality quickly became clear: Though the caregiver was told that feeding community cats violated an ordinance, the opposite was true. Her activities were in fact lawful. • Thankfully, the city ultimately chose to drop the case. • We inspired the next generation of cat advocates • Alley Cat Allies connected with students at William Paterson University of New Jersey (WPU) and issued a grant to provide them with resources for community cats in collaboration with Only Kindness Rescue. The grant covered cat food and other needed supplies and care, all to help the students continue their incredible work for local community cats. • We called for the prosecution of an alleged kitten killer • On behalf of cats across the country and our more than 60,000 supporters in Texas, Alley Cat Allies spoke and wrote in support of the prosecution of Gabriel Caswell for the unlawful killing of cats and kittens while he was employed at an animal shelter. We continue to monitor the case and other cruelty cases across the country as we work to set a strong standard for investigation and prosecution of animal cruelty.

13. We provided critical care to help declawed cats • Cats who are declawed can suffer from lifelong pain and even life-threatening complications. We can’t restore a declawed paw—the damage cannot be undone. But surgery and the right pain management can alleviate cats’ suffering and help them truly live again. An Alley Cat Allies grant provided that specialized care for multiple cats throughout 2023. • Cats like Burrito and Sammy, who were abandoned and suffering crippling pain due to their declaw, are now happy and thriving in their adopted home.

14. Our disaster response was a lifeline for cats and kittens in three states • In the first half of 2023, devastating tornadoes struck Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Mississippi. Alley Cat Allies immediately stepped up to provide lifesaving rescue and veterinary care support—and saved so many cats’ and neonatal kittens’ lives through swift action. • Beyond general veterinary care, food, and other supplies, we funded complex, critical surgery when needed. A senior cat named Thor, for example, had his lower jaw severely broken during the disaster. We covered the costs of repair surgery, and now he’s a happy, healthy cat in his new forever home!

15. We provided lifesaving veterinary grants to communities across the country • From Maryland to Oklahoma to Arkansas to California and beyond, we strengthened access to care for cats and kittens. From spay and neuter and vaccination to injury treatment and any other needed surgery, we provided it all. • Soufflé, Poppy and Lily, the Orange Crew, Clover and Charm, Miso and her kittens, and so many more heartwarming stories are the result of this critical work—and YOUR generosity.

16. We helped hundreds of cats and kittens with Feline Frenzy® • In 2023, Alley Cat Allies worked in New York, Maryland, and Virginia to host Feline Frenzy events that provided TNRand other veterinary services. • When we choose a city or county for our Feline Frenzy, we determine the most in-need communities and bring together local animal protection groups, advocates, veterinarians, caregivers, and policymakers to create long-lasting improvements for cats.

17. We stopped a deadly ordinance for cats in Ohio • A dangerous proposed law impacting cats in Cedarville, Ohio, was tabled thanks to Alley Cat Allies and our supporters, advocates, and local residents. If the ordinance had passed, cats would have been subjected to cruel, ineffective feeding bans—among other absurd measures. • We defended cat declawing bans

18. In 2023, the Washington D.C. ban on declawing officially went into effect! Alley Cat Allies wrote in support of the ban and rallied supporters to speak out as well—and the result will save countless cats’ lives. • And, thanks to our advocacy and supporters, a bill that would threaten efforts to ban declawing in Missouri did not move forward. The measure would have overturned existing declaw bans in St. Louis and St. Louis County and prevented other cities and counties from passing their own bans. • We won a critical legal battle to protect West Virginia cats • A Berkeley County, West Virginia, Circuit Court Judge sided with Alley Cat Allies in a lawsuit against Berkeley County Sheriff’s Department after it failed to comply with Alley Cat Allies’ requests for public records under the West Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). With the ability to access the public records we requested, Alley Cat Allies can make decisions on how to best protect cats and kittens in Berkeley County.

19. We protected cats and kittens during a Dallas digital disaster • When the City of Dallas was the victim of a widespread outage incident earlier this year, Dallas Animal Services struggled to meet the needs of cats and other animals without access to even basic records.

20. To prevent cats and kittens from being “euthanized” in the chaos, Alley Cat Allies provided emergency grants. Working with Operation Kindness and Friends of Dallas Animal Services, we facilitated the transfer of cats, dogs, and neonatal kittens out of the shelter while also funding bottle-feeding, veterinary evaluations, treatments, wound care, spay and neuter surgeries, and more. • Help us save more cats in 2024 • Before December 31, your gift will be triple-matched to go three times as far for cats and kittens in the new year. We have big plans to make big changes for cats, and we need you at our side. Please consider giving today.