Buy cruelty-free feathers help feed a colony of 15 cats

Meet Chayah Cat.  She was a poor starving stray, begging for help at our doorstep in freezing winter weather  at bthe end of January 2007.... so we took her in.  This pic was taken the day we found her -- she was SO hungry!  Well, she recovered fine and never went outside again all winter.  (I can't blame her -- she was taking no chances!)  As it turned out she had met a tomcat before she met us and was pregnant -- so we cared for her seven kittens, too.  After they were weaned, we got her spayed.  Her forever home is with us now, along with 14 other cats. 

Why do we have so many cats?  Because people keep dumping them here on our hobby farm, or we find them lost, abandoned, scared and lonely.   Some people think you can just dump a pet cat in the country and she'll live off the land just fine.  DEFINITELY  NOT !!  Most of the time she ends up hungry on somebody's doostep -- or worse.  

Coolio, the white cat sitting in the sink here, was a young stray hanging around our neighbor's place, stealing dog food.  He is missing half his tail, the rest was broken and had healed all bent up.  Did he get caught in a trap?  Who knows.  His forever home is with us now and he turned out to be a big loveable, cuddly friend.  (What is it about the sink that cats love so much?  Maybe it's cooler in hot weather.)

Tigger, the grey tabby on the left, was a half-grown kitten hanging around a gas station parking lot.  The station owner said he didn't belong to anybody, so my grandson brought Tigger to us.  He grew up to be a gentle 10-pound "baby" who still loves to be cuddled carried around by the grandkids when they visit. 

Every cat we have has his or her own story.   We don't take them to shelters because out here in the boonies, there just aren't any no-kill places.   I simply could not bear to think of these beautiful animals being put to death because nobody wants them.

We have 15 acres of land in the country and big open hearts, but not much money.  Feeding and caring for these cats gets expensive.  Two of the females we took in, Chayah and Dusty, turned out to be pregnant -- for a total of 15 kittens.  We found homes for most of the kittens but ended up keeping four.  (And yes, we do spay the mothers!) This male kitten, named Bugsy, was born with chronic bowel problems.   Few people would have put up with that, so we kept him.  he grew up to be a very affectionate, loveable cat, even though he still has medical issues. 

Over the past year we finally got everybody spay/neutered, except for a feral tomcat who shows up now and then.   So the colony population is now reasonably stable, but I'm deep in the hole with my vet and it's costing me a lot to feed them, too.  Not to mention all that kitty litter!!!

How can you help?  Buy a souvenir feather (naturally-shed by our own happy free-run chickens or geese, or an indoor companion bird) and with it, you will get a thank you card autographed by me.  (Only one card per order, but buy as many feathers as you like.)  Visit our About our Cruelty-Free Feathers page to learn more about our birds and see some pics.  We are vegetarians, we do not slaughter, although we do eat the eggs.   

Who am I and why would you want my autograph?  In real life, I'm Rabbi Yonassan Gershom, published author, peaceworker, vegetarian and animal welfare activist.   Click the ME icon next to my ID to learn more about me.   Here you see me holding Dana, one of Chayah's kittens who was born here.   She was adopted out for a while but didn't work out, so we got her back.  I always make that offer so they don't get abandoned.  Her forever home is with us now. 

I am best known for my books on reincarnation.  But, as any author knows, you rarely get rich as a writer, and freelancing does not come with a pension.  So, my retired-nurse wife and I sometimes struggle to feed the cats on our meager income.  Again, I stress that this is NOT a charity auction, and it is not tax deductible.  I'm not begging, either.  I'm  just doing an off-beat sale to give people a way to help these wonderful cats.  You are actually buying a feather, with a BONUS autographed thank-you card.  You will also get blessings from me and very good karma for helping God's wonderful creatures have a happy home.

If you want us to send this to someone as a gift, we can do that, too!

(If you don't actually want the feather and card and just want to help the cats, you can donate it back -- just ask for an invoice with no shipping charges.) 

And yes, we give PROMPT feedback !!!

UPDATE August 2009:  <<<<< Bugsy, the orange kitty born with bowel problems, crossed the Rainbow Bridge in February 2009.  His life was short, but full of love.  I dedicated my latest book, Eight Candles of Consciousness: Essays on Jewish Nonviolence (Lulu Ptress, 2009) to him.   There is a chapter telling his story, and how he taught me to treasure every day of my life.  

This pretty orange and white cat >>>> has been hanging around our place on and off since last fall -- I would get a glimpse of him occasionally but  only recently has he gotten brave enough to come in for a meal. 

Here you see my black female cat, Nightshade, hissing at him on the steps (her personality matches her name!)   My other cats also growled and hissed at first, but they seem to be accepting him into  the colony If I show myself he retreats to the bushes, but will come out for a bowl of food.   So I  have been putting out food near the bushes where he hides and peeks out at me. 

I don't know if he was dumped here or abandoned when somebody moved, or is feral.  I thought maybe he had a home somewhere because he was gone all winter, but lately he has been eating here every other day.  We named him "Tang."