Kingston Community Animal Welfare-Unbelievable Part 2
As I was writing Unbelievable Part 1 in June, I realized that there were far too many rescues and I had too much news from KCAW to squeeze into one AKI Blog post. Here is Part 2:
One June morning when Deborah was heading down her hill on her dog and cat feeding rounds, she turned the corner and right there in front of her was a little bitty baby pup. One more step and he would be in the road and could have been run over. Deborah was about to grab him, but he led her over to a box and when Deborah peaked inside, there was another one! Deborah searched all over to make sure there weren't anymore itty bitty puppies. And then with the 2 new pups in tow, she headed back up the hill to de-worm, bathe, and feed them and get them settled into the KCAW kennel. And already Deborah found a wonderful home for them where they could be together. They were so attached, she couldn't separate them and didn't have to!
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This is an old lady who waits for Deborah at the foot of her hill. She is very poor and loves her cat and dog. Deborah helps her with cat and dog food and got both of her pets spayed 2 years ago. And now she adopted another little kitty who was not so well. She was malnourished and had a bad case of worms. Deborah de-wormed that kitty, got her spayed, and now Deborah brings some extra kitty food:
This sweet girl gets fed Thursdays and Sundays. Of course, she would prefer every day and so would Deborah, but there just aren't enough helpers or enough money to make sure everybody gets food every day of the week. So instead, KCAW splits Kingston into areas and certain areas are assigned certain feeding days. Deborah is looking for a home for this pretty girl-she's a street dog who would be a really nice family dog. (Most would, but some do better than others on the street.)
Deborah always look out for the older dogs. In Jamaica, it's fairly common for people to dump their dogs when they get old. So when she sees an old dog on the street scrounging for food, it's a safe assumption that the dog was dumped. When that happens it's hard for them to compete with younger dogs for food. Most old dogs who have homes will remain in their yards especially if they suffer from aliments like arthritis. So if they are on the road they are more than likely homeless. Like this sweet girl, one of Deborah's favorites:
And like this dog, who Deborah recently saw while driving around doing her feedings (no pups in sight, although she looks like she recently had pups):
Although not an old dog (young dogs living on the street become old quickly), Deborah saw this very skinny dog when driving along on her feeding route. The poor dog was so afraid, but Deborah gave her a good meal and hopefully she'll see her again and slowly get her used to the idea that not all humans are bad.
It's just not possible to take in all the dogs and cats who live on the streets in Kingston. And some do fairly well there. Remember, they don't have to endure bad winters and Jamaica is rabies-free, so living on the street, when food is available, and when people watch out to make sure no one brings you harm, can be an ok life for a dog (not like our couch potatoes, but it can be ok).
This dog belongs to an old man who is very poor and can barely walk. Even so, he walks all day long with his dog. That's how Deborah first met him, when he was walking with his dog and her new pups. She gave him dog food and arranged to have his dog spayed. And now here she is, spayed and oh my, look at that little tail move:
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In early June, Deborah saved this amazingly cute little kitty from a roaring gully. If you know Jamaica, you have seen the deep gullies that collect flood water and garbage. Can you imagine being a tiny kitty, flowing helplessly with the floodwaters and midst the garbage? It's not easy, even for humans, to maneuver in flowing gullies. But I've seen Deborah do it before, and she did it again to save this cutie:
Here are 2 cats that KCAW had spayed in June and then returned to their owners:
In the picture above (yes, there's a kitty in the crate), this man, a caretaker at a house, asked for help to catch a wild cat that made a home on the premises. The man likes the cat but didn't want any kittens, so Deborah helped him by getting her spayed and then returned her to him.
And remember the cat family at the Tennis Club in Kingston (Miltie's family)? Finally Deborah was able to trap 4 of the kittens in that family and she brought them to the KCAW kennel for safety (and eventual s/n):
If like me, you agree that KCAW and Deborah are unbelievable (but thank goodness, true), please consider a donation to AKI for KCAW's work to help Kingston's street cats and dogs and pets who belong to poor people-so that they can keep their pets rather than abandon them to the streets:ds://www.animal-kind.org/jamaica