Rescue agencies caring for feral senior cats left without caretaker after Kamloops house fire

“At that point in time, we were doing a sort of ‘wait and see’ to see if other rescues would step up, but also with it being the spring and summer, they weren’t in a lot of danger because there were other people able to feed them and we were full,” explained Wilson.

Once RAPS had some more space, the organization began figuring out the logistics of taking in the cat colony from Kamloops to Richmond.

“Taking in that amount of cats all at one time can take a lot of planning on our end to be able to do it,” said Wilson.

“Now that it’s starting to get colder, we’d like to get them off the streets to somewhere warm with food.”

Rescuers do not currently have an accurate estimate on the number of cats within the colony, but a few of them were given names, including Larkin, Brave Girl, Shadow, Orange Fluffball and Black Scruffy.

“Right now, it’s ‘rescue math,’ which means we really don’t know. We could say there are eight when there really could be 12. There are usually more than what you see out there,” said Wilson.

Kamloops-based Sammy’s Forgotten Felines began trapping the cats on Friday (Sept. 25), while RAPS will take care of them.

“Right now, the gentleman who has been feeding them is going out to trap-train them, so they get used to doing it – which is wiring open the trap and feeding them in the trap and getting them used to it,” said Wilson.

“We’ve actually found out some of the cats from this rescue have historically been pretty sick, so we might be dealing with some sick cats when they come in.”

Another non-profit group, Sky Whisker, is helping with the rescue operation by flying the cats from Kamloops to RAPS in Richmond.

Wilson said RAPS is well-positioned to take care of cats with complex medical needs.

“We actually have an animal hospital, as well, and we have eight vets,” said Wilson.

“I know Sammy’s has been dealing with it a lot and we have been taking a lot of cats from them. They have had heart conditions, a cat with leukemia, Sammy’s just had an [Feline Immunodeficiency Virus]-positive cat come from the area. We’re unique in that we have a leukemia and FIV area, where a lot of smaller rescues aren’t able to have those resources.”

RAPS does not plan to put any of the cats from the Kamloops colony up for adoption, but they have space to care for the animals in a suitable environment.

“They’re feral. Some of them have probably never been inside of a house. We are able to socialize the cats. They come in feral and they come around and will rub your leg and sit on your lap, but once they go into a home, they can regress,” said Wilson.

“These cats are 10-plus years old. We don’t want to put them through that. We have a nice retirement home here and we have 250 volunteers to help take care of them. They’ll have a good life here.”

The public can help out with the rescue by making a donation to RAPS or Sammy’s Forgotten Felines.

by Elora McCormack

Rescue agencies caring for feral senior cats left without caretaker after Kamloops house fire

Our Community