For their Silver Project girl scout troop 31242 decided to create trap covers and share their pattern with Spay and Stay in the hopes of helping local crafty Caretakers to create their own and potentially make some to donate! We’re pleased to present their instructions here for your use and we want to give them a great big “thank you!” for their time and effort, as well as for caring about the feral cats and their well being during the TNR process! To download the instructions click here: Troop 31242’s Trap Cover Instructions
2021 Winter Shelters Made and Donated by Nathan Behnke of Troop 1987
Nathan Behnke of Troop 1987 is shown below with just a few of the 30 winter shelters he donated to Spay and Stay as his Eagle Scout Project. He planned, fundraised and organized his troop and other volunteers to build, paint and deliver these for fall!
Appeal Letter Update - We passed our Goal!
We want to give the biggest THANK YOU to everyone who donated for our Fall/Winter 2020 Appeal Letter - not only did you get us to our goal but we actually passed it! Because of all the kindness and generosity we were able to finish out last year and keep our mission to help the cats and kittens going strong!
December 2020 Appeal Letter
Spay and Stay's Life Saving Work is Proudly Supported by the Petco Foundation
Once again we would like to thank the Petco Foundation for supporting us in helping the stray and feral kitties of Lake County!
April 2020
With the effects of the pandemic affecting everyone, our TNR efforts have been reduced as our Vets are taking the necessary precautions to protect their staff. While we are still able to continue TNR efforts, the appointments are limited. Please reach out to the office via email (info@spayandstay.org) to check availability before you trap. Please, remember to practice social distancing if you have to trap.
Grainger Shelter Build
On January 9, 2018 our friends at Grainger, located in Lake Forest, held a shelter build on behalf of Spay and Stay. This awesome group of people were able to provide us with 10 new shelters to help our feral cats located throughout Lake County.
Huge thanks to the Grainger team for donating their time to our cause.
Shelter Builds in Winter 2018
Shelters built in November 2018 by Clara Abbott Foundation volunteers.
Waukegan Animals Get Saved (WAGS) and Spay and Stay joined together at Petersen Excavating on December 2 for their annual shelter build for community cats. Straw is available with the shelters through either group.
Thank you to the eleven new volunteers who came out to build and learn about winter colony care.
WAGS and Spay and Stay built shelters on December 2, 2018.
Harper's Rescue
Harper with her two kittens, Ace and Twigs.
This past summer, Spay and Stay received a called from a resident of Beach Mobile Trailer Park about a recently discovered new momma cat and her two newborn kittens. Spay and Stay’s multi-tasking Trapper, Foster, Volunteer and Board member, Janet, headed out to the Trailer Park to locate the animals to see how she could help. It took some work to remove the dead leaves and twigs that concealed their location, but Janet found two day old kittens in a discarded Ace Hardware lawn bag next to a trailer. Inside the bag was one beautiful all white kitten and its all black sibling, which were quickly named Ace and Twigs.
While Janet was discovering the kittens, the mother cat could be seen across the street nervously watching Janet discover her new babies. With luck on her side, she was able to coax the momma cat into a playpen with some much needed food. Our wonderful Volunteer was able to bring this tiny, precious family to her home safely. Janet reported that momma cat, who is now affectionately known as Harper, turned out to be the most attentive mom that Janet has ever encountered. This loving cat even cared and nursed another motherless kitten that Janet had also recently rescued. Harper spent her time caring for her babies, safe and secure until all were able to be spayed/neutered and finally adopted.
With funding and donations from our generous supporters and grantors, Spay and Stay continues the good work of locating cats in need in our community, and when possible, finding forever homes for these magnificent creatures. Please consider making a donation so that we can continue making happy endings for our feline friends.
Beach Park Update
Thank you for your continued support as we start up another year of saving lives in the Beach Park trailer parks. Spay and Stay would like to show our supporters the real numbers that demonstrate the impact that your donations have had on these homeless kittens and cats. It has taken a village to begin to curb this problem and the numbers show that it’s working.
Through November, 98 cats were neutered and vaccinated with 45 adults/adolescent cats returned to the parks and 53 cats/kittens taken into foster care in preparation for adoption. Thanks to your donations and our volunteers’ commitment, far fewer kittens were born and even fewer have been lost to illnesses this year. For more details on Spay and Stay’s Beach Park initiatives, please check out "Over 200 Feral Cats and Kittens Helped by Two Dedicated Women in Beach Park, IL" by Pamela Kramer.
Shelly’s Story
Shelly recovering after surgery.
Shelly and her two-week old siblings were found and rescued last March with their feral mama. By July, Shelly was adopted to her forever home. However, by October she was found wandering outdoors over a mile from her adoptive home, lost and alone. The adoptive family failed to report her missing!
Thankfully she was discovered by a gentleman who noticed her and brought food for her, but he knew something was wrong. He called the Mundelein police so they could scan her for a microchip. Spay and Stay was contacted about Shelly and a volunteer picked her up along with her rescuer’s contact information. Shelly was taken to a vet where an x-ray revealed her leg was broken in several places and required pins to set it. Her rescuer kept in touch with Spay and Stay during her surgery and recovery. Following recovery, we’re grateful to report that Shelly will have a new forever home with this generous soul who did the right thing by contacting authorities and getting her the help she needs.
A fully-recovered Shelly visited one of our adoption events.
The surgery to pin the bone, hospitalization, x-ray, and follow-up care cost Spay and Stay upwards of $1,000. Not every story like this ends well for these abandoned, neglected animals.
Please consider making a donation to help offset the cost of her surgery. Spay and Stay has been able to continue its humane work through the generosity of our donors, grantors, adopters and caretakers.
We are always in need of funds for medical care such as antibiotics, wound care and life-saving treatment of the community cats.
The Car Kittens
In May 2017, the Spay & Stay office received a call about a mama with 6 kittens living in an abandoned car. Two volunteers arrived and found the car covered in a plastic sheet. Peeking under the plastic, they saw a calico mama nursing her 6 beautiful kittens in the back seat. While one volunteer was able to collect the kittens, it took a team effort to get the mama out. With one volunteer leaning into the car with her feet dangling off the ground and the other holding her belt for support, she was able to get the frightened mother cat out as well.
The family was taken to a foster home and thrived. Shelby, Cooper, Royce, Porsche, Maserati, and Ferrari are all now adopted into loving homes. You can see more adoptable cats and kittens on Spay and Stay's Petfinder listing.
Ferrari at an adoption event.