Calgary’s Canadian Animal Task Force is putting out a plea for financial donations to help with the medical costs of 125 surrendered cats.
“We initially anticipated to intake approximately 50 cats, but by the time all of the cats were collected from the property, we drove back to our facility with 125,” said CATF executive director R.J. Bailot.
All of the cats require extensive medical care, which has created a large financial strain on the organization, according to Bailot.
“Medicating 125 cats twice a day is a challenge in itself, but the costs associated with an intake of this size have a huge impact on our organization. At least 20 of the cats are needing extensive dental care, therefore, we are putting out a desperate plea for help,” said Bailot.
With the aid of the Alberta Veterinary Medical Association, CATF was granted a temporary licence to do spay and neuter clinics from April to November 2021.
On Saturday, 25 volunteers and four veterinarians performed spay and neuter surgeries on 60 of the surrendered cats in Calgary. The other half was completed the previous weekend.
“We are asking for support by making a financial contribution so that we can continue the work we do. Spay and neuter plays a huge role in addressing the cat overpopulation, and since the inception of our organization, we have been able to spay and neuter nearly 20,000 dogs and cats,” said Bailot.
CATF relies solely on public donations and grants.
“In a typical year, we would visit at least six communities in the province to provide on-site, high-volume spay, neuter dog and cat wellness clinics. We’ve had to cancel and postpone almost all of our clinics due to the various safety measures surrounding COVID,” said Bailot.
“Your financial support will allow us to provide these cats with the medical care they need so that we can transfer them to organizations that are able to move them into their adoption programs.”
CATF was formally known as Alberta Spay and Neuter Task Force.