Ark Animal Sanctuary

By Lorraine Monfils
    This past fall, a woman asking for help approached the Ark Animal Sanctuary. They were getting ready to close up their camp for the winter and move back to town. During the summer a stray cat had been living under their camp and she was concerned about the welfare of the cat. She could not bear the fact that it would be left out in the cold and she was almost certain the cat was pregnant. She had had a similar experience the year before and had ended up taking the mother home and when she had kittens she ended up keeping the mother as well as one of the kittens and finding homes for the others.
    History had repeated itself again this year and she knew that she couldn’t keep any more kittens, so she asked us for help. She agreed to keep the mother once more and get her spayed and give her a home and asked if we could help with the kittens once they were born. We agreed to help. The first part of December she brought in four of the most beautiful little kittens, they were healthy and they were happy. It was very difficult for her to bring them to us but she knew she was making the right decision. She brought a supply of kitten food and their toys and she also made a very generous donation to the Ark. All of the kittens were adopted and went to very good homes and it was a happy ending for everyone.
    This cat and her kittens were some of the lucky ones. There are hundreds of others living under camps or in abandoned cars or cardboard boxes struggling to survive in the bitter cold not knowing where they will find food or water. The babies born in the dead of winter have little chance of survival. It all seems so senseless. Each and everyone of us has the ability to help put an end to situations like this. 
    If you can no longer keep your pet, don’t abandon it, find it a home. If you have a cat, neuter or spay it. If you can’t afford to neuter or spay it then don’t have one. Sometimes we just have to do the right thing because in the end the one that pays the price for your mistakes are the animals.
    The lady that helped these cats did so out of compassion for the cats. She chose to be a part of the solution, not the problem. I guess you could say that she paid it forward. What a wonderful thing!
    For the month of December, our expenses were $1,899.74 and we took in $4,469.00 in donations and fundraising. We adopted eight cats and took in five. We currently have 38 cats. We took in no dogs and adopted none. We currently have three dogs.
    Thank you to everyone who came out to Miracle on Mechanic Street and participated in the 12 Dogs of Christmas. We raised $1,600 that day. A huge thank you goes to Town & Country and the wrap it up fundraiser they did for us. They raised $1,300. Thank you all for the generous donations made to The Ark during this holiday season. Your generosity is greatly appreciated.
    Thank you for your continued support and as always thank you for reading our column. We would like to wish you all a very happy New Year.