2005 Annual Report

Educating our community on responsible pet ownership while providing safe haven for cats and kittens in transition to new lives in permanent homes.

Founded on July 1, 2003, FieldHaven Feline Rescue is the City of Lincoln’s only “no kill” feline shelter. The organization dedicates all efforts by board members, affiliates, employees, and volunteers towards the mission of educating the community on responsible pet ownership while providing a safe haven for cats and kittens in transition to new lives and homes.

To further meet its mission, FieldHaven Feline Rescue became a tax-exempt, non-profit corporation under Section 501(c)(3) on April 7, 2004, and adopted the following organization goals and activities:

• Rescue abandoned/unwanted felines and provide housing at the shelter or in foster homes.
• Provide medical care to rescued felines.
• Adopt rescued felines out into responsible, permanent homes.
• Educate the community on responsible pet ownership, including spaying and neutering to prevent overpopulation.
• Assist the community with Trap, Neuter, Return (TNR) and maintenance of feral colonies.
• Assist low- and fixed-income individuals with catastrophic medical care for their cats.
• Provide shelter and adoption services for cats and kittens rendered homeless by the death of a caregiver.
• Utilize funds receiver through grants, donations, or other contributions for the activities listed above.

What is a Feral Cat?

A feral cat is an unsocialized cat who was born to a feral mother and has never lived with a human family, or a house cat who strayed from home and over time has thrown off the effects of domestication, reverting to a wild state.

What is Trap, Neuter, Return?

Trap, neuter, return (or TNR) is the humane, non-lethal method of feline population control. It is more effective than trap-and-kill and is more reflective of a caring society.

Adult cats are typically more difficult to place into homes than cute, appealing kittens. As a result, many older cats languish at the shelter for months before finding homes. We established the Mature Cats for Mature People program to promote the benefits of pet ownership and to encourage the adoption of adult cats.

The medical community recognizes having a pet as having a positive effect upon a variety of medical conditions, including depression, hypertension, dementia, and cardiac conditions, as well as general-well being. Considerable amounts of research have proven the health benefits of companion animals.

A study done in nursing homes where companion animals have become part of therapy showed the use of prescription drugs and the overall cost of caring for patients dropped significantly. In new nursing home facilities in New York, Missouri, and Texas that featured animals and plants as an integral part of the environment, medication costs dropped from an average of $3.80 per patient per day to $1.18 per patient per day.¹

Another study revealed only 6% of non-pet owners survived at least one year after hospitalization for heart problems, compared to the 28% of persons with pets. Additionally, pets may actually lessen the risk of heart attacks.²

This research has created an increased tolerance for pets in elderly housing facilities. All states now allow pets in senior housing, including nursing homes. This policy shift has helped to reduce the number of owner relinquishments, as it no longer is necessary for any person relocating to senior housing to automatically give up their pet. It also provides another avenue for adoptions of senior pets.

With the Mature Cats for Mature People program, the adoption fee is waived for senior citizens adopting a senior cat. The program promotes adult cats while also providing an affordable way for the adopter to obtain a pet. The cats have received thorough medical exams, including lab work (if warranted), and any necessary medical or dental treatments prior to being placed up for adoption. This allows adopters a reasonable amount of assurance of the pet’s health, minimizing the chance of veterinary care being needed in the weeks following the adoption.

1 Eileen Mitchell, “Just What the Doctor Ordered,” San Francisco Chronicle E12, September 20, 2003.

2 Erika Friedmann, The Role of Pets in Enhancing Human Well-Being: Physiological Effects, 1995

Education is key to achieving the universal goal of all animal welfare organizations: no more homeless pets. The undisputed solution to this goal is to impart a social philosophy that pets should be treated in a responsible, caring manner, including ensuring that pets do not breed and produce unwanted offspring.

FieldHaven’s volunteers accept every opportunity to provide education within the community: at the shelter, “virtually” by phone and email, and by circulating newsletters, newspaper articles, and other informational literature. We provide information on the importance of spaying/neutering, referrals to low-cost clinics, and transportation assistance.

Our volunteers also assist the public with cat behavior issues that often result in owners being willing to keep cats they were considering relinquishing and consulting with new adopters and offering advice on how to transition the new family member into the household.

FieldHaven receives many calls each month requesting us to accept cats and kittens into the shelter. Unfortunately, our space only allows us to accommodate a small percentage of those requests. We offer a “self-help” program to assist owners in placing their pets in homes on their own, provide information and resources on effectively finding homes, and feature space on our website to post information and pictures. Space at outreach adoption events is also offered. This support often empowers people to find placement for their cat(s), leaving them feeling less overwhelmed and helpless.

As part of our effort to provide information to schools, civic, and youth groups, FieldHaven has created a video presentation to educate elementary school children on responsible pet guardianship. We have hosted a number of field trips at our shelter.

FieldHaven has also participated in community events, such as the Lincoln Farmer’s Market and Chamber of Commerce events. Because of our visibility within the community of Lincoln, we have established a solid reputation as a resource to individuals and businesses. We wish to continue expanding our visibility as the community grows by providing more educational opportunities and resources to every age group.

Board of Directors

Joy Smith, President
Jann Flanagan, Vice President
Mary Swanson, Treasurer
Sharon Kurth, Secretary
Janice Covington, Member
Courtney Nunes, Member
Reba Miller, Member

Staff

Peri Oldham, Volunteer Coordinator
Jen Paul, Shelter Manager
Roberta Peterson, DVM, Veterinarian

FieldHaven’s volunteer base, which began with only a handful of volunteers in late 2003, has grown to over 100 people who provide assistance in a variety of areas.

Our rather active youth volunteer program encourages children (with the supervision of an adult family member) to help with everything from cat care to fostering to assisting adoption counselors interview potential adopters. FieldHaven’s mission includes educating the public on responsible pet ownership, with a core focus on children as the missionaries of the message to future generations. We feel it is important to promote volunteerism and involvement for children in the operation of the organization. Many young volunteers participate to fulfill their community service requirements for school.

Foster homes are an integral part of our success, as they provide shelter and care for up to 60% of the cats in our care. In addition to increasing our shelter space, foster parents fill a niche in several special need areas, such as:

• Bottle-feeding orphaned kittens
• Caring for moms with litters
• Providing a comfortable and safe environment for kittens too young for adoption
• Socializing shy or semi-feral kittens and cats
• Rehabilitating cats with medical, social, or behavior issues

FieldHaven supports the cost of maintaining animals in foster homes by supplying food, equipment, and all medical care. Foster parents must comply with our stringent guidelines and policies, as well as pass our screening criteria before being approved as a suitable foster home.

Many foster applicants are families looking to care for kittens as part of a family project, thus expanding our education program while helping us care for more animals. It is a terrific “win-win,” as it also expands our networking since the kittens are often exposed to the family’s circle of acquaintances, meaning potential adoptions!

I feel truly blessed that I found a place with people as loving and caring as everyone at FieldHaven.

– Volunteer

In special recognition of volunteers who contributed more than 500 hours of their time in 2005:

• Wendy Lemons
• Martha Maldonado
• Bob Miller
• Jen Rosenbrook
• Bruce Valencia

Home 4 the Holidays – Iams Excellence of Execution Award and Grant

FieldHaven participated in the second year of the Home 4 the Holidays adoption campaign, coordinated by the Helen Woodward Animal Center. FieldHaven received the Iams Corporation “Excellence in Execution” 2004 award for the innovative approach used to successfully place over fifty cats and kittens. Our participation at off-site adoption venues made a tremendous difference.

A holiday-themed display bay window house three to four felines each day at Il Gardino, a garden decoration business in downtown Lincoln. By far, this location received the most press and foot traffic. Other venues included the Barnes & Noble Bookstore (in conjunction with gift wrapping services by our volunteers) and our regularly scheduled feline showcasing at PetSmart.

Each venue supplied adopters with a gift basket for their new family members. The multi-media exposure of the entire event and our success in meeting our adoption goal resulted in FieldHaven receiving one of just twenty awards in a competition involving 1,700+ organizations on a worldwide basis.
We used the $5,000 grant funds in 2005 to improve our overall organization and challenged ourselves in our third Home 4 the Holidays adoption campaign by increasing our goal to 75 cat and kitten adoptions.

Glide Family Foundation Grant

The Glide Family Foundation awards funds for construction and/or equipment and favors organizations that provide animal welfare services. As FieldHaven expanded services and hired its first part-time employee to act as volunteer coordinator, there was a need to acquire equipment for the incumbent to carry out the administrative duties assigned to the position; therefore, the grant-funded the purchase of a projector to aid in creating professionally prepared presentations. The funds also allowed for the purchase of traps and carriers used in the transportation of felines for spay/neuter surgeries.

Placer Area Animal Coalition Dinner and Silent Auction – Spring 2005

FieldHaven joined forces with The Auburn Area Animal Rescue Foundation (AARF), Placer County Animal Services, and Friends of Placer County Animal Shelters to form the Placer Area Animal Coalition (PAAC), created to combine efforts to develop programs and initiatives to benefit all animals by stressing responsible pet ownership and controlling pet overpopulation.

The first fundraising event for PAAC was a spaghetti dinner hosted by Daniel Alcantaro, chef and owner of Buonarotti Ristorante in Lincoln, and a silent auction, featuring items donated from businesses and individuals. Over $30,000 was raised and equally divided among the organizations.

A Taste of Placer County Wine Tasting and Silent Auction – Summer 2005

The Pet Gazette sponsored a fundraiser to benefit FieldHaven, the Sacramento Pet Gazette, and Harvey’s Help for Pets in need. It was a wonderful evening featuring live musical entertainment, food, beer, wine tasting, and a silent auction.

Vendors included Mt. Vernon Winery, Fawnridge Winery, Ophir Wines, Pescatore Vineyards, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, Lost Coast Brewery, Dos Coyotes, and House of Bread.

Home 4 the Holidays Gift Basket Fundraisers – Fall 2005

FieldHaven entered a third year of competition in the Home 4 the Holidays adoption campaign coordinated by the Helen Woodward Animal Center and sponsored by the Iams Corporation.

Volunteers coordinated two fundraising efforts in order to purchase the items contained in the seventy-five gift baskets that accompanied each adopted feline. Marie Bevilaqua held two craft fairs at local churches, raising over $300. A private fundraiser at the home of Sharon Kurth and Marie Salers themed “Big Cats Helping Little Cats” fundraiser brought in $1,165 by featuring home video and picture displays of their African safari trips to Kenya and Botswana.

Other volunteers contributed by collecting donations from canisters placed near cash registers in local retail establishments, providing gift-wrapping services at the Barnes & Noble Bookstore, soliciting businesses to sponsor the campaign, and giving individual donations of money and items.

This is a partial, unaudited presentation of the financial statements of FieldHaven Feline Rescue. The entire financial statements are available upon request.

Income

Adoption Fees: $21,601.00
Surrender Fees: $1,150.00
Donations/Fundraisers: $36,481.00
Grants: $11,500.00
Other: $2,047.00

Expenses

Animal Expenses: $34,668.00
Misc. Business Expenses: $4,075.00
Marketing/Publicity: $6,610.00
Misc: $1,472.00
Staff: $2,000.00
Occupancy: $5,197.00

Totals

Income: $72,779.00
Expenses: $54,294.00

Donation Levels

Bombay: $25 – $49
Tuxedo: $50 – $99
Tabby: $100 – $249
Siamese: $250 – $499
Ragdoll: $500 – $999
Maine Coon: $1,000+

Monthly Giving Program

Donations are the lifeblood of any tax-exempt non-profit organization and FieldHaven is no exception. Your donations support the work we do to continue our existing rescue efforts and develop new programs to assist animals and animal lovers in our community.

By joining our Monthly Giving Program, you can make life better for stray and feral cats every day. Donors receive our newsletter and announcements of special programs or events. Your monthly donations via credit card or electric funds transfer ensure resources we need for our ongoing programs are always available and respond quickly to when feral cats and kittens are in peril.

Leave a Gift to FieldHaven in Your Will or Living Trust

By including FieldHaven in your will or living trust, you create a powerful legacy that will protect stray and feral cats for years to come. Living trusts eliminate the need for an often lengthy and expensive probate process and help to ensure the proper protection and distrubution of your estate in the event you become incapacitated and after your lifetime.

Contact FieldHaven to request additional information.

Tribute and Memorial Gifts

Honor a special person or pet by making a tribute gift in his/her name to FieldHaven. Your honoree will be notified of your contribution with a personal card from FieldHaven and a complimentary subscription to our newsletter for one year.

Few things are more difficult than losing a beloved companion, whether human or animal. Now, you can honor the memory of your loved one or someone else’s by helping a cat or kitten who needs a friend. With a Memorial Gift, FieldHaven will send a sympathy card to the person you designate, noting that a special gift was made in remembrance.

Should you wish to make a more lasting and public gesture, a gift of $500 or more entitles you to an engraved memorial or tribute plaque honoring your loved one.

Gifts of Appreciated Stock

Giving stocks and bonds to help FieldHaven fund programs can drastically reduce your tax bill while helping us prove the lives of stray and feral cats.

Workplace Campaigns

Beginning in 2005, some of our volunteers have designated FieldHaven as a write-in beneficiary, receiving donations through workplace giving programs. FieldHaven has applied to be a designated choice in the annual California State Employees Charity Fund Drive in the category of “Animal Welfare Agency.” This will offer state employees a simple, efficient way to help cats through our Workplace Giving program.

FieldHaven will be seeking new opportunities to extend this convenience to others working for non-state employers.

For more information about the many ways you can help FieldHaven continue to make the world a better place for stray and feral cats, please contact FieldHaven board president, Joy Smith, at (916) 434-6022 or by email at [email protected]

2004 – 2005

Garfield was just one of the millions of kittens born into feral colonies each year. His spine was deformed, leaving him without the use of his hind legs. He would surely have died soon after birth if nature had its way, but Garfield defied the odds and lived a full life, thanks to the love of humans.

He was plucked from his litter by the colony’s caregivers and lovingly bottled-raised to become a strong, healthy, playful kitten even in spite of his handicap. When the caregivers knew they could no longer provide for his special needs, they contacted FieldHaven.

For ten months, Garfield became the center of daily life at FieldHaven. Using his powerful front legs, he would scoot around as fast as the other kitties could run. Nothing stopped him and he always said exactly what he thought, especially when it came to asking for food. He loved the outdoors and became irritated it the weather wasn’t nice enough for him to be out in the grass.

Whenever presented with the chance, he would sneak out the front door and bump, bump, bump down the steps, off and running with his humans, trying to catch up before he scooted under the trailer to play in the dirt and cobwebs.

Garfield became a local celebrity, starring on TV and having a large fanbase at FieldHaven. He visited handicapped children and went home with volunteers for “slumber parties.” In his innocent way, he became symbolic of each and every life we save in our rescue efforts. He taught us to make the best of what life gives us, even if it doesn’t seem fair. No one walked away feeling sorry for Garfield after meeting him.

Throughout his life, his urinary system was troublesome. Major reconstructive surgery became necessary, but unfortunately, it led irreparable complications. Garfield passed with the hands of six of his humans holding him. We laid him to rest on his favorite blue pillow on the first summer night, under a golden moon that matched his eyes.

At last, dear friend, you can run on all four legs. We will see you again at the Rainbow Bridge.