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The Story
of Mr. Kitty |
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a tale of wonderful irony, of how animals who
normally
share a predator/prey relationship, ended up saving each
other. |
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 The story
starts with feral cats. As with many small towns,
Mineral Wells, TX,
the location of Bat World Sanctuary headquarters, has its fair share
of stray cats. Several years ago two cats began hanging around the
trash bin outside the back of the Bat World facility. Both cats were
very thin and both were pregnant. Taking pity, we started feeding the
cats, created a shelter, and a relationship began. One of the cats
(later named Dumb Bell) had 3 kittens and promptly abandoned them.
We
watched in amazement as the other cat (dubbed Miss Kitty for the
lack of anything more original) moved the abandoned kittens to the
spot she had chosen for her 3 newborns, and proceeded to nurse and
care for all 6 of them. Within two years, however, the situation had
grown well out of hand when 14 cats and kittens of various sizes had
taken over the back parking lot.
Upon looking for a
humane solution over the internet, we came across the TNR (Trap,
Neuter, Return) plan, a rapidly growing program promoted in
the US by Alley
Cat Allies. The TNR program is the most humane and effective
way to reduce feral cat populations. It is designed for homeless
cats living outdoors in cities, towns and rural areas. |
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Miss Kitty |
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Kittens and tame adult cats are caught and adopted into homes if
they are available. Feral adult cats are humanely trapped, then
spayed/neutered and vaccinated. After recovery they are
returned to their familiar habitat where they remain under the
lifelong care of volunteers. Some people feel that the TNR program
is destructive to wildlife. However, the destruction to wildlife is
greatly lessened when wild cat populations are controlled and care
is provided. One wild, unspayed cat is capable of exponentially
producing a whopping 59,049 offspring in just 5 years, and cats that
are regularly fed by caretakers hunt less wildlife as a source of
food. Lethal methods to control wild cat populations do not work as
they don’t get to the root of the problem. New cats take over the
territory of the previous cats, and they will continue to breed. |
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We were able to find
homes for a few kittens. Others were captured and taken to a no-kill
shelter in a larger city. The two original cats remained. Miss Kitty
was the first stray cat to enter our local TNR program. After her
return from the vet she tamed a bit and allowed us to slip a collar
and ID tag around her neck. Although still wild for the most part,
she began hanging around a few hours each evening, allowing us to
pet her at times. Not long after she began bringing us presents.
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 As
any cat owner will tell you, cats have long been known to bring
their owners little gifts of live bugs, mice and the like. Miss
Kitty, however, brings bats. Not bats she has hunted and caught, but
grounded bats that are in need of rescue. To date she has brought
three grounded bats to Bat World. One bat was emaciated and
dehydrated, with no injuries from being carried in her mouth.
Another bat had a wing tear and was unable to fly (again, no
injuries from being carried in her mouth) and a third had an open
fracture, the exposed bone long-dry, indicating the break was at
least a few days old.
The first two bats arrived during the fall of 2005. Each bat was
deposited on the sidewalk while Miss Kitty sat close by, waiting for
us to emerge from the back door, seemingly holding her stance to
make certain it stayed in place until helping hands retrieved it. |
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Mr. Kitty snuggled
inside his padded roosting rock. |
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These two bats only needed a short stay in rehab and were eventually
returned to the wild (with, we imagine, harrowing tales to tell
their roostmates when they returned!). Amanda Lollar, President of
Bat World, had the opportunity to witness the third bat being
brought to us in May of 2006. She was outside at dusk and noticed
Miss Kitty scurrying across the parking lot toward the back of Bat
World, carrying something gently in her mouth. Amanda cringed at the
thought while hoping for the best. Miss Kitty gently laid the
injured form at Amanda's feet, then looked up into her face and
proudly meowed while arching her back to be petted. Amanda bent to
scoop the bat up with one hand while petting Miss Kitty with the
other. |
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 The
dried bone in the little bat’s wing could not be repaired well
enough to allow flight, so he is not releasable. However, he healed very
quickly and has adapted well to captivity. To honor his rescuer he
has been named Mr. Kitty. Mr. Kitty is now a permanent member of the
indoor cave at Bat World Sanctuary. Oddly enough, like his rescuer,
Mr. Kitty himself has a ‘take charge’ attitude and spends his time
in multiple roosting rocks, seemingly checking on the activities of
the other bats. Mr. Kitty learned to self-feed on mealworms and has
grown quite plump. He does not, thankfully, bring us presents. |
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Mr. Kitty peeking
out of a roosting
rock, checking on his neighbors. |
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For information on
starting a TNR program in your area visit
alleycat.org.
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NOTE: To sponsor
Mr. Kitty through the Adopt Me! button, please enter the
appropriate amount (see list below). If the Adopt-a-Bat is a gift
or a school sponsorship, please remember to include the name you
want listed on the adoption certificate.
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New members & gift
adoptions - $35.00
International new members & gift adoptions - $38.00
Existing members & school/class adoptions - $25.00 |
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