Save A life By Just BY Changing Your Social Media Picture!!!!

Every day is feral day here at WTRF, and although National Feral Cat day is on Oct. 16th and we will be having our feral cat shelter building event, we wanted to go a step further. We want to get the word out about Trap-Neuter-Return. Would you believe that there are still some people who never heard of it and don't know what it is? Let's change that!!! Every opportunity we can take to educate and save more lives is one worth taking. We are asking for everyone for the MONTH of October to change their Facebook, Instagram, Twitter profile picture to show their support for Trap-Neuter-Return. We have compiled two pdf fliers that you can print out and fill in 1. If you are a colony caretaker 2. If you are not a caretaker, but still support the TNR cause. We are asking that you print out the PDF's and fill in your information and take a picture of yourself holding it and make it your profile picture. You can also just fill out the PDF and save it as a jpg and also use that as your profile picture. Lets go even a step further, many of you have cute little icons in your emails etc, how about your replace it with this? A small changing of a picture will help educate which in turn will save more lives. Let's do this!!! Click on the links below to download the pdf's.

I AM A Colony Caretaker

I Support Trap-Neuter-Return

Mr. Orange Amazing Transformation

I wanted to post an update on Mr. Orange. He is doing phenomenal. As you remember, this poor guy was a hot mess. He had been severely injured over and over again from being outside. We trapped him and got him fully treated and vetted and helped him on his journey to live a safe life for him indoors. Well here are some pictures of his transformation.

From his adoring eyes, you can see how happy and healthy he is getting

After receiving medical treatment and living in a forever home

After receiving medical treatment

Before we had him trapped and treated

After receiving medical treatment

Grace - Prospect Colony

Please meet Grace who is also from the Prospect colony. She is the momma of the 2 wonderful boys Billie and Jackie. She received her TNR vetting services yesterday, so no more babies for her in the future. Thanks to Andi Druh and Robyn​ for helping with the transport of her to and from the clinic for us!

TNR - Prospect Colony Jackie and Billie

Please meet Jackie and Billie from the Prospect Colony. They received their Trap-Neuter-Return vetting services today at The Anti-Cruelty Society. They will be returned back into their colony after they recover from their surgeries. Thank you Jamie for providing the transport! #TNRMakesADifference

TNR - Wood Colony

I'd like for everyone to Please meet Mila, Felix, and Smokie from the Wood Colony. They all received their TNR vetting today and will recover indoors for the next few days. They will then be released and returned back into the colony.

Update on Mr. Grey - Return After Medical Treatment

It was so hard to return Mr. Grey outside. I enjoyed his time with me. However, his laceration is healing nicely and he started to hiss at me regularly so I knew he was feeling 100x's better. I released him back into my yard this evening and he went straight back to Dr. Watson and Momma Madelina. They are currently lounging in the sun in the neighbors yard. I will continue to moderate the situation. I'm still curious to know how he got it.

When I took one of my dogs out this morning at 5am to go potty, Dr. Watson and Momma were on the roof of the garage which is completely abnormal for them. They have NEVER EVER done that before so I'm wondering if I have a racoon visitor. Time to put the trail cam in a different area in the yard. In the meantime, I'm glad Mr. Grey is back with his 2 other musketeers.

Operation Trap Mr. Grey For Wound Treatment

Operation trap Mr. Grey was a success! Mr. Grey has been very absent in the yard lately. Normally he is always out and about, but I noticed he hasn't been a fixture like the flowers. I have been consistently checking his hiding places in my yard and trying to keep a close watch. I finally saw him from my window and noticed he had a limp. I decided to put up a trail camera in my yard to see what was going on and at the same time ziptied a trap open and fed out of that strictly. I noticed that he had a wound on his left side and was for sure limping. I also noticed that his best friends Dr. Watson and Momma Madelina would run from him when they saw him. As soon as I saw his wound, I knew I had to trap him and bring him to the vet right away to get him treated and checked out thoroughly. The trail cam helped me to see what spots in the yard were his favorite and what times he was coming out. I set the trap last night and voila he was mine. I brought him in the house and took him to the vet today.

He was fully examined and provided his update on his vaccines, revolution, deworming, etc. His wound was a laceration that was healing so the took the scab off to flush it out and clean it and gave him a convenia antibiotic shot. They didn't feel a drain was necessary. They checked his limbs and said everything was okay and he was probably initially limping due to the wound. Mr. Grey will recover in my bathroom for another day or two and than will be released right back into my yard to be with his colony. I can't wait until this old man is feeling 100% again. In the meantime, he will get to sleep in a nice cool safe place away from this horrible weather and have meals galore. So glad to have him home with me. I'm sure his colony will be happy also once he's back at 100% too.

Surveillance Photos of Feeding and Trapping

A Trapped Mr. Grey

Wounds that Mr. Grey had that needed to be treated

After his vet appointment. The wound areas were clipped and cleaned and the scabs were taken off so they can heal properly

Mr. Orange - Medical Update

Mr. Orange Update...

Mr. Orange is resting comfortably. He's appetite is good and he's healing well. He had a really busy day at the vet on Sunday. We had him neutered, given his rabies and distemper shots, microchipped, revolution, and snaptested (he's neg/neg). He also had his ears cleaned out and the vet did a cytology test for ear mites. He was given Claro in both ears. They opened up the lacerations on his face and explored to see if there were any infections etc. Unfortunately, all of his wounds are from past fights and unfortunately kept happening in the same area, so they did a laceration repair and laser therapy. They cleaned all of his wounds out and stitched them up leaving a little bit of the wounds open, so it can drain naturally on it's own rather than placing a drain in. He was also given a shot of the antibiotic convenia to help keep any infection away. This shot will last in his system for 2 weeks. He is taking Onisor pills for his pain. As you can, he had a lot done which gave us a quite hefty bill of $600.00. If you would PLEASE make a donation, to help us recover some of these cost, we would be most appreciative. Thank you!

Mr. Orange A Severely Injured Community Cat

A very sweet woman from the Ukrainian Village community reached out to me to ask for help for Trap-Neuter-Return for some cats that were coming around. She told me that one of the cats in the group that she adored and named Orange, had something wrong with him and she wanted to know what to do. She also wanted to see if there was a way she could bring Orange inside and make him a part of her family. We were finishing up another project and I told her that I would help her after the holiday. 

I wanted to assess Orange to see if he should be brought to the spay & neuter clinic or straight to one of our regular vets for treatment dependent upon his wounds. When I saw him, I definitely believed he should go straight to the regular vet for treatment to which he will get all of his necessary vetting done and additional services. I also believe that Orange is just shy and not feral. He didn't cower in the back of the trap and he let me give him chin rubs. These are all good signs so we will be bringing him inside after vetting to help socialize this big lug.

It loos like he has a severe ear mite infection like Simba had and we will do everything to get this guy back to 100%. The woman and her family are so happy and devoted to making this work out for Orange and so are we. Orange is currently at Animal Care Center of Chicago this morning for a full examination and to get treated. If anyone would like to donate towards the cost of Orange's vetting, we would really appreciate it. We will post an update on his prognosis after he is seen today. Thanks!

Mr. Orange had severe wounds all over his body especially on the right side of his face

Lenny Update From His Forever Home

We are thrilled to see an updated picture of our Lenny in his loving home. Looks like he's living it up. Soo good to see this guy enjoying life off the streets and indoors where this cutie belongs. His new meowmie posts videos of how dramatic he is. Has us in stitches.

Kohlina & Poppy Admitted To A No Kill To Find Their Forever Home

It was so hard for me to say goodbye to these two yesterday.They were admitted to P.A.W.S. Tinley Park to go up for adoption. I have grown so attached to my little Kohlina and Poppy during their stay with me and it's taking every bit of me not to drive back there and get them :(

Mackinaw 13 Colony - 4 Cats? Nope. Much More.

An 80yr old couple reached out to us needing help to get their colony under control. They stated there was only 4 cats, but with our experience there is always more. Well, indeed there were, Please meet the members of the Mackinaw 13 Colony. All 13 cats were trapped Tuesday night and brought in to receive their TNR vetting services at The Anti-Cruelty Society Wednesday morning. If you are interested in sponsoring the vetting for any of these dahl-ings, let us know. In the mean time, meet the newly vetted crew! Happy Caturday!

Robin Gets Adopted

We are so excited that our little Robin found his forever home. When we trapped this guy and brought him to the vet, we found out that he had a horrible infection in his back leg. If we wouldn't have trapped him when we did, his leg would have had to be amputated or he could have died from the infection (it was that bad). Instead, he only had to be on 2 different antibiotics for 20days. Once he was all healed and 100% healthy, we admitted him to F&C to go up for adoption. Thank you to the F&C team and a big thank you to Natalie for fostering this guy! Another fairy tale ending.

Meet The Triplettes From the Campbell 41 Colony

These 3 little cutie patooties are currently at The Anti-Cruelty Society getting their TNR vetting services. Please meet Sage, Ash, and Pipper. Can you tell they're siblings? Meow. As you can see they are triplettes. They are all male and look almost identical not only to each other, but to their mother. Thankfully this family has all been vetted, so there won't be any new blood siblings added to this group. They can now live out their lives living in a happy, healthy, and well cared for colony.

FOUND- Baby, Lost Cat

We are so happy to announce that Baby is back home! After going out there and setting up traps in the proper place and placing fliers. Baby was trapped this morning. She lost a little weight, but will have it back on in no time. We couldn't be more thrilled that the family is reunited. Thank you to those who took the time to share our post.

Baby, Lost Cat, Westchester, IL

Yesterday we spent our 1yr anniversary trying to help this wonderful family in Westchester, IL trying to find their lost indoor cat. We looked everywhere, created fliers, etc. The son cares for a colony on the SW side of Chicago and they are such amazing people. This cat is his mom's indoor cat who accidentally escaped and she is heartbroken. Please help us share this flyer #bringbabyhome . Good things should happen to good people. We must believe. We must share.

Happy Anniversary To... Us

Today marks our 1yr anniversary of becoming a 501(c)(3). Our organization could not have been so successful this past year without all of the help from our volunteers, our donors, and supporters. We are truly making a difference in the lives of community cats. There is still so much more for us to do and we will continue to be a voice and we will continue to fight for the humane treatment of community cats.

We will be having our 1yr anniversary event on Saturday, June 3 (details to come) so save the date! We hope to raise more awareness and more funds to continue our efforts. If you think last year was fun, wait until this year! We hope to see all of your lovely faces there. Thank you for your love and support this past year

The Leader Of TNR Alley Cat Allies Recognizes Whiskers & Tails Rescue Foundation

We are so honored that Alley Cat Allies the nationwide leader and creme de la creme in Trap-Neuter-Return recognized our organization for the work that we do.We promise to continue our efforts in fighting for the humane treatment of all cats in the community.We are truly blessed. Every day we live, breathe, and fight to go above and beyond. We believe we have to be their voices and we believe they deserve the best. We have made it our mission and we will continue to fight the fight for them. 

When You Find A Friendly Cat...

After we participated in the Chicago Animal Care and Control Town Hall meeting to talk to the community about feral/stray/community cats at the Humboldt Park Field house, we went to do our weekly food drop off to community members and do feral colony wellness checks. Well, we picked up this guy along the way that we found in the alley where we have a colony. We named him Whiskers. He is super friendly and is skin and bones. I scanned him for a microchip and found nothing. From what I can tell he's neutered. We are on our way with him to the vet to get him checked out and treated. He is going into foster care until we can investigate his history and see if he was a dump or we can find his owners. Just another typical day in our lives. Meow. Btw, we are in love with that face.