Part of being involved in a small independent cat rescue is putting our heart and soul into everything we do.  Our cats are the first thing we think about when we wake up in the morning, and the last thing on our minds before we sleep.  Rescue takes a toll on us physically, mentally, and emotionally.  Social media is a double edged sword, in that it lets us reach a wider group of people than we would otherwise be able to via word of mouth, but it also allows anyone with an option (including the ill informed) a platform.   Recently, a person we shall refer to as A, mad ..read more

Browncoat Cat Rescue focuses on feral and discarded cats.  Discarded.  To discard: get rid of (someone or something) as no longer useful or desirable.  This Waterloo house was abandoned, and along with it the seven cats who lived in it.  The blind tabby found a home with the neighbors; the people decent enough to keep feeding them after their person left. Two went missing; either deceased in the house, or out into the world.  Four joined BCR's crew, and got medical attention for the second time in their lives.  (Unlike many of the discarded cats we take in, all t ..read more

When BCR's Captain heard there was a hoarding situation that had a quickly approaching deadline, we got involved.  Over 50 cats were living in a single house, and they were slated to be euthanized because they through no fault of their own, were creating a health hazard.  By November, rescues are all burned out and full and running over budget...and so only 8 of the cats had been pulled.  Fantastic foster mom Susan volunteered to drive out and bring three cats to safety with Browncoat Cat Rescue. And so a one year old tabby with a throat wound, a delightfully quirky tuxedo ..read more

For the entirety of its existence, Browncoat Cat Rescue has operated as a series of foster homes.  All of our cats and kittens are raised as beloved members of their foster families.  As the years have passed, we have trapped in more locations, and taken in more unwanted cats and kittens. The need has always been higher than our ability; one person cannot remedy all the wrongs of the world.  Even with our wonderful community of caregivers, there's always more that can be done. And so, the Alley Cat Cafe was conceived.  We wanted a place that could serve both as an adoption ..read more

If you've adopted (or considered adopting) from BCR, you know that a home visit comes with the territory.  One of the things we look for are houseplants, and how toxic they may be.  Here's a short list of common plants we find inhabiting houses near us.  Aloe Vera A great plant to have in the house in the event of sunburn, Aloe is a reasonably pet safe plant.  The gel doesn't hurt cats, but the "sap" (which is white, instead of greenish or clear) can cause vomiting and diarrhea.  I had a pair of foster kittens eat a 5 year old Aloe plant to the dirt with no ill effect ..read more

What happens when BCR gets the call that there are crew members out there in need of rescue? While the details may vary based on individual cats' needs, our routine tends to stick to these basics.  Peek inside the magical world of cat intake!  We're using the kittens we rescued from dumpster life as our example here.  One of our foster moms let us know that there was a mom and her five kittens living under a dumpster.  Mom would range around, and scrounge in the dumpster, and the babies mostly hid underneath it.  That's no way for kittens to grow up! You can't resc ..read more

Whoo boy.  BCR's Captain has had quite the week...month...fuzzy timeline.  We are currently on round three of kittens for this kitten season, and have run into some really lousy situations.  There are two ways we can look at this...examples below. (1) Why did I take in a pregnant cat!?  I don't have space for more mystery butts!  Mama is kind of weird too...am I going to have to bring her back to her barn, or will she warm up enough to humankind to be adopted?  Oh look, she shat in her birthing box.  Twice. (2) I don't even know where that town is!/Over 1,0 ..read more

This post is a bit of a rambler...bear with me! I've been thinking a lot about age lately.  About the stages of life that we go through.  Kitten, cat, senior; Maiden, Matron, Crone. I started bringing home unwanted kittens around the age of four or so.  While volunteering at the local animal shelter in college, the older women would ask me why I wasn't spending my time and money on underwear, nails, and partying.  (I never understood why they bemoaned the lack of help and awareness in from "the youth" but kept up a steady stream of encouragement for me to be more shallow a ..read more

Here at BCR, we get a lot of emails asking for advice.  And a very common thread is cats and pregnancy.  There's a lot of fear mongering out there, about the affects of toxoplasmosis on an unborn baby.  While I will never EVER tell anyone not to worry about the health of their child, I can tell you that you can have a cat (or 6) and still have a happy and healthy pregnancy, without the heartbreak of losing a family member. Let's break it down! How do pregnant women get toxoplasmosis from cats? Answer: By eating poop.  Seriously.  You have to get particles of feces in ..read more

What sort of cat rescue blog would this be, without a blog post about the benefits of the indoor cat lifestyle?  Here we go!   Browncoat does cat rescue. That means we take cats from unsafe environments, and move them to a safe and loving environment where all their needs can be met...sometimes for the first time in their lives.    Why should their forever home be less safe?  It shouldn't! Cats are not safe outside.  The main cause of death in the US for cats is euthanasia for abandoned/stray/unwanted cats. ​*cough cough people cough* After that, the highest caus ..read more