Robin Olson's blog

$20 HAIR-CUT-A-THON To Raise Money for KA!

SAVE THE DATE!

Mark your calendars and don't miss out on a GREAT WAY to help cats and kittens in need, while freshening up your own look! Patrick Lomantini, a Master Hairstylist and his team from BarkAid, will be making Kitten Associates his ONE CONNECTICUT stop on his 50 States Tour! Patrick will be joined by the talented staff at Salon Michele, to offer $20 haircuts on Tuesday, August 6th.

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100% of the proceeds goes to Kitten Associates!

So if it's time to get a Back-to-School haircut or you want to try a new style, this is your chance to save money and help us save more cats in need!

We're also going to have a Kitty Boutique of fun cat-centric items as well as face painting by JeriAnn! We may have some special goodies available, too, so DO STOP BY and say hello even if you're not ready for a haircut.

Stay tuned for more details!

Meet our Newest Family!

Though everyone here at Kitten Associates is still heartbroken over the loss of our dear cat, Fred, we realized that the best way to heal was by helping another family in need. We got a call a few days ago to help a very young mama-cat who had just given birth to five tiny kittens on a sidewalk on a very busy street. Her life and the lives of her kittens were in danger. She had no one to provide for her and no shelter for her newborns. She was extremely thin, giving everything she had to her kittens, leaving nothing for herself.

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We named this sweet cat, Minerva, the Roman Goddess of Wisdom (though we call her “Skinny-Minnie”). Minnie was very wise to not hide her kittens so a good samaritan could find her and seek help.

Minnie's kittens were born on June 1, 2013 and are just over a week old today. Though Minnie and her family have many challenges ahead, they are all doing well so far, are growing and gaining weight. Even Minnie gained 3 oz, which she desperately needs to do so she can continue to provide for her offspring.

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If you'd like to see our family, you can visit our brand new web cam that runs 24/7! Just visit this link: http://dropc.am/p/N7S3no. With any luck everyone will be ready for adoption in early August!

If you'd like to help us provide for our new family, please consider making a donation towards their care. Use the Donate Today button on the right side of this page or mail a check made out to: Kitten Associates to: Kitten Associates, P.O. Box 354, Newtown, CT 06470.

Fred, Mascot for Kitties for Kids Has Passed Away

Our beloved, Fred, mascot of Kitties for Kids, died after a long struggle, with what initially was an unknown illness. After months of tests and treatments it was determined that Fred probably had Feline Infectious Peritonitis, which is a fatal disease caused by a spontaneous mutation of the corona virus. FIP is only determined after ruling out everything else because there are no tests for it, which is why we needed so much funding to search for a way to help Fred.

Only a month prior, Fred had been honored with the Connecticut Veterinary Medical Association “2013 Pet of the Year Award,” as well as being part of the team given special recognition by US Senator Richard Blumenthal for “providing compassionate and dedicated service” in comforting traumatized children, first responders, and caregivers following the events of 12/14.

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“We worked so very hard to save Fred’s life. FIP is a diagnosis made by ruling out other diseases. We spent weeks seeing specialists and trying different treatments hoping the results would not tell us it was FIP,” said Kitten Associates President and Founder Robin A.F. Olson. “Fred was a charmer, his high leaps made children giggle with glee, but the FIP, over the past month, robbed Fred of being able to move at all.”

“Everyone was rooting for Fred to survive. We had a saying; ‘Go, Team Fred!’” said Kitten Associates Vice President Sam Moore. “Tens of thousands of people knew about Fred’s story and many of them sent us messages of encouragement and love. We know if love cured illness, Fred would never have been sick for even a second.”

In honor of Fred’s passing, Kitten Associates is going to rename its “Boo-Boo & Sniffles Fund,” which they use for special veterinary care, “The Fred Fund,” said Ms Olson.

“Though I am devastated at losing Fred, a few people said to me that they thought maybe Fred had finished his work here and that the children who died in the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary needed him more,” Ms Olson explained. “That’s why, after Fred passed away, we tied a green and white bow around his neck so the children would know him when he arrives in Heaven.”

As a final gesture, Ms Olson and Mr Moore filled out and signed Fred’s adoption contract, formally adopting him as one of their own family. They wanted Fred to have what all Kitten Associates cats have—a forever home, even if in this case it was only for a day.

Fred passed surrounded by the people who loved him most including his brother, Barney, who survives him and has shown no sign of the illness.

Latest Blog Post

Help Pom Pom Walk

We tried. We tried so hard, but now we need you.

Pom Pom Pomegranate has no chance of walking without discomfort unless we remove her back left leg. It’s taken us 10 months, specialist visits, tests, treatments, and zillions of hours of physical therapy to come to this decision. We need all of you to make it happen.

We need to raise $6,000. by March 9^th.

Give Pom Pom the gift of less pain and a chance to walk more easily.

You can use PayPal

Venmo @KittenAssociates

Checks: made out to Kitten Associates, P.O. Box 354, Newtown, CT 06470-0354

Why Now?

Pom Pom is almost a year old. Her body will not improve beyond what we've been able to do for her.

Imagine you have to keep your leg stretched out. You can’t bend it. You can’t support yourself on your foot because it bends backward at an awkward angle. The weight of the malformed leg forces your back to twist unnaturally. It causes shocks of nerve pain. How can you live like that?

Pom Pom can’t continue to live like this.

We know there are surgical risks. We’ve done extra testing to be as safe as we can be. Will this surgery make everything perfect? No, but her back leg hinders her mobility, so we feel this is her best option. We have to try for Pom Pom.

We can do it with you by our side.

Your gift is tax-deductible as we are a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.