How can I admit a stray cat to Tenth Life?
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT ADMISSION AT TENTH LIFE
First and foremost, thank you for caring enough to be here, asking this question and reading this information. While we help many typical cats, our emphasis is on those with special needs and injuries, including neonatal kittens and geriatric cats. We've provided our answers to some frequently asked questions about our admissions process below and we hope it helps.
We highly recommend reading through this entire page before requesting admission. Thank you!
ADMITTING A CAT
Q: HOW DO I REQUEST ADMISSION AT TENTH LIFE?
A: If you're seeking placement for a stray cat, especially one with special needs or injuries, including very young or very old cats, please click the request button below to complete the request form and we will be in touch as soon as possible. If your admission request is not for a stray cat or kitten, please read on to learn more about how to help the cat for which you're seeking placement. Please keep reading and see below for TRANSFER information.
That link is www.tenthlifecats.org/resources/admission.
TRANSFERRING FROM OTHER ANIMAL WELFARE ORGANIZATIONS
Q: HOW CAN I TRANSFER A CAT FROM OTHER RESCUES AND ANIMAL WELFARE ORGANIZATIONS?
A: If you work for a local area animal welfare organization or advocacy group and are interested in transferring over a cat who meets our mission, you can complete the form above which is very helpful for us or you can simply email admissions@tenthlifecats.org, if desired. When emailing, please include as much of the following information as possible (you can copy and paste this list into the email body, if desired):
- Animal ID number
- Gender and approximate age
- Level of friendliness with people, cats, dogs, children, etc.
- Testing status for FeLV and/or FIV (negative, positive, or untested)
- A list of any special needs
- The name and contact information for the person responsible for release
- Final date we can pull the cat
If you work for a local advocacy group and cannot legally transfer a cat on your own, please note that we will need direct contact information to reach the person who has ownership of the cat and is able and willing to legally release them to us via our transfer or individual surrender forms.
WHAT TO EXPECT
Q: WHEN WILL I RECEIVE A REPLY?
A: Usually within 24 hours. We check our messages throughout the day and will reply just as soon as we can. We triage all messages so the most pressing matters will receive replies first. Please use our resources listed here to empower you to do all that you can for the kitty in the meantime. While we cannot take every cat, we will reply personally and compassionately as soon as we can.
Q: WHAT SHOULD I DO IN THE MEANTIME?
A: At Tenth Life, we believe in individual advocacy and we are here to help you help the stray cat you've found get care and live the life it deserves. We believe cats find people who care enough to fight for them for a reason and you are the best person to make sure that they get the help they need until they can find placement. Please visit our RESOURCES page to find other rescues to reach out to and additional placement opportunities.
Q: WHY DO YOU ASK SO MANY QUESTIONS ON THE ADMISSION FORM?
A: We ask the questions that help our foster parents can get a well-rounded picture of the cat so that they can determine if they are well equipped to handle the needs of the cat they're offering to bring into their home. Each foster has a specific role and can handle different cases than another foster so it also helps us know who to reach out to for placement and help placement go as smoothly and as quickly as possible when space is available.
ADMISSION DECISIONS AT TENTH LIFE
Q: HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHO TO ADMIT?
A: Tenth Life prioritizes stray cats with special needs and injuries.
We prioritize cats in our local area with special needs and injuries and triage requests as such. Of course, we help many typical cats, as well. This simply means that our emphasis is on those with special needs and injuries, including neonatal kittens and geriatric cats.
Q: WHY CAN'T YOU TAKE EVERY CAT?
A: Wouldn't that be lovely? At Tenth Life, we do not have a traditional shelter. We have an adoption lounge that you can visit filled with couches and cats who live harmoniously together in a home-like environment. Most of our adoptable cats reside in foster homes. A handful of those cats, once temperament-tested and healthy enough, will move to our adoption center and will remain there until they are adopted, making room for more cats to move in. Regretfully, we are currently unable to accept any new admissions through our adoption center in order to protect the health and balance of the cats who reside there. We must typically have a foster parent available for a cat to be admitted. You can apply to become a foster parent here, if you'd like to help.
While we will reply as quickly as possible and will do whatever we can to help, it is sadly and simply impossible for us to help every cat who needs immediate help even though they're all worthy and tug at our heartstrings. If we cannot help, it's nothing personal and we will always do our best to support you in your search for placement.
We also often operate at (or very near) capacity.
We realize that many rescue organizations are often full but please continue to reach out! Circumstances at rescues tend to change from day to day and many will tell you if they have space available or might soon. Tenth Life offers a wait list when capacity allows us to do so.
Veterinary bills are very real, indeed.
As you can imagine, special needs and injuries are expensive to care for. Tenth Life spends over $100,000 each year on medical care, much of it for emergent care. Like most, we must be able to afford to care well for all the cats we take in. If you'd like to donate, you can do so here or start a Tenth Life fundraiser on Facebook or at your place of business. There are other ways to help listed on our donation page, as well. Please send an email to donations@tenthlifecats.org if you have questions or want to set something up.
HANDLING EMERGENCIES
Q: WHAT SHOULD I DO IF THIS IS AN EMERGENCY?
A: Emergency? Don't wait! Be an advocate as well as you can. Please do not wait to hear from us or any rescue before seeking help for a cat who is in need of emergency medical attention. Sadly, Tenth Life does not have an emergency medical clinic and we do not currently have a veterinarian on staff and must schedule with our partner veterinarians and emergency services.
We do our very best to triage admission requests quickly and we realize that time is often of the essence. Perhaps you need an answer or help faster than we can manage. We wish we could do more to spring into superhero mode immediately and swiftly. Often we can but that's not always the case due to the number of requests and our limited time, space, and resources. If you need immediate assistance and cannot wait for a reply from us, please don't wait to help. Contact all the resources listed here and think about being that hero, if you can, by heading to a veterinarian and possibly starting a fundraiser to help the cat you've found. You can cross-market the fundraiser on Facebook pages which promote cat rescue in your area while you wait for help from local rescue organizations.
CRUELTY AND NEGLECT CONCERNS
Q: HOW CAN I HELP IF I FEEL A PET IS NOT BEING CARED FOR PROPERLY.
A: If you can talk with the person, start there with gentle but, when necessary, firm love and concern. If you need to, find a mediator. Ultimately, you should report suspected animal cruelty or neglect to the Humane Society and the police or other sympathetic local government professionals.
IF YOU WISH TO SUPPORT OUR MISSION AND HELP US GIVE MORE CATS THE LIVES THEY DESERVE, PLEASE CONSIDER A DONATION. THANK YOU!
tenthlifecats.org/donate