Interview! Sandy Rees, Arf Club Founder
February 16, 2019
Interview! Kay Stout, ED of PAAS Vinita
February 23, 2019
Here’s the next installment in our series on Feline Leukemia (FeLV) adoption programs around the country. The series shares different groups’ answers to our questions about their FeLV+ adoption programs. We have heard about so many wonderful groups and programs that we’re declaring February to be Fe-Leuk February and running a profile every week this month!
We hope you enjoy and are inspired by this series, and if you have a suggestion for an organization we should consider profiling, please shoot me an email.
This week we’re talking with Dana Widmer, Feline Manager at Five Acres Animal Shelter in St. Charles, Missouri.
How many cats do you adopt out annually?
Our FELV program has been in existence for years. I have only been here two years, so [I’m] not sure of the exact date we started taking in FELV+ cats. It was when I started that I began to push a foster program for them rather than adoptions only, since adopters are harder to find and our wish for [these cats] is to get [them] into a home and out of the shelter.
Medical bills keep people from wanting to commit. So instead, we look for long-term foster homes. As a foster, we supply everything they need, including medical care. We currently have about 15 FELV+ kitties in foster homes and 9 in our shelter.
Do you provide or cover vet care for the cats after adoption?
If people do adopt, the responsibility of vet care is up to the adopter.
What are the challenges?
The biggest challenge with these cats besides finding homes would be dealing with the fact that they may pass away in our care or much too soon. But the flip side is that we try to make their life as good as it can be for as long as they have. We are the only shelter in the area that houses FELV+ cats and most places will choose euthanasia as the solution.
For more information about Five Acres Animal Shelter, or to apply as a foster home, visit their webpage. You can also email Dana directly at felines@fiveacresanimalshelter.org.
