It’s spooky season, and you know what that means — it’s time to break out the pumpkins, throw on a scary movie, and celebrate black cats! October is Black Cat Awareness month. Outdated superstitions around black cats bringing bad luck may be a thing of the past, but studies show that black cats spend more time in shelters than other cats and have the highest euthanasia rate. So, if you’re thinking about adopting a furry friend this month, consider changing the luck of one of our black cats by giving it a forever home! Butch is a 5-month-old purry love bug that just wants to be around his favorite people. Sweetie is a 2-year-old biscuit-making house panther that lives up to her name. Both are currently available at our Adoption Center and would be a purrfect snuggle buddy for those cold and spooky nights.

2022 Calendar Update

Thank you to everyone who participated in the 2022 Calendar Photo Contest! Your votes and photo submissions helped us raise over $30,000, which will help us continue our life-saving efforts and find loving forever homes for more cats — like our 2022 Cover Cat, Chunky Monkey. In celebration of Chunky Monkey’s win, we’re sharing some throwback pictures from his time at the Nine Lives Adoption Center. Chunky Monkey was a volunteer favorite and although we still miss his cuddles and head butts, we are thrilled he’s happy, healthy, and thriving in his forever home.

Don’t forget — you can also support Nine Lives by buying a 2022 Calendar. They will be on sale soon, so stay tuned for more info!

Celebrating Our Staff

October 17th – 24th was Vet Tech Appreciation Week! We took that opportunity to celebrate our valued Registered Veterinary Technicians and Veterinary Assistants, who play a vital role in furthering the mission of Nine Lives. As a small token of our appreciation, we bestowed them with a series of small gifts and goodie to brighten their special week. To Robert, Everett, Macie, Alejandra, Alyssa, and Curie: we are so grateful for all you do. Your compassionate dedication to your life’s work is our great fortune!

Rescue Report

At the end of the summer, we rescued eight cats from a hoarding situation in the Stockton area. These kitties, and almost a hundred more, were left behind after their owners were evicted from their property. A couple of these kitties were healthy enough to be made available for adoption right away — and found their forever homes almost immediately! However, the other six kitties were suffering from a variety of medical conditions, including malnutrition, dehydration, ear mites, gastrointestinal parasites, upper respiratory infections, and dental disease. Two of those kitties, Basil and Tulip, pictured here, received several weeks of treatment at our clinic for malnourishment, parasites, and chronic upper respiratory infections. A few weeks ago they found a foster-to-adopt home where they could continued their recovery. They are both eating well, gaining weight, and enjoying the security of a loving, attentive home.

Azalea, another rescue from the hoarding situation, a gorgeous five-year-old gal. Upon arrival, she was under-socialized, depressed, anemic, dehydrated, and suffering from a painful dental condition. She was immediately given fluids, x-rays, and an array of laboratory tests, and then received multiple dental extractions at our clinic a few days later.

Several weeks later, Azalea is still being treated for chronic ear and upper respiratory infections and soft stool. Although she has made lots of progress, and has gained over 40% of her initial body weight, she still has a ways to go. We are now continuing her treatment from the comfort of a caring foster home so she can get the extra love and attention she deserves.