RENTSCHLER BARN CATS TNR'D
Rentschler Farm on Michigan Avenue just east of downtown Saline is a historic farm owned by the City of Saline and operated by the Saline Historical Society.  Among their farm animals is a colony of feral cats living in their barn and outbuildings.  Thanks to caregiver Laurie Eller and Saline's City Manager, Larry Stoever, these cats are now being TNR'd (trapped, neutered and returned).  The Animal Medical Center of Saline is doing the surgeries and vaccinations.  Visitors touring the farm this summer will see the results of a managed feral colony -- a group of healthy, non-reproducing cats peacefully enjoying their environment.  This is our first publicly-viewable colony.  If you visit, note the tipping of their left ear -- that's what identifies them as sterile and vaccinated.

TLC RENOVATION UPDATE
Renovation of our new facility on Textile Road is underway.  Planning, permits and lining up trades took more time than we would have liked (but that seems always to be the case).  We're now targeting for a July opening.

One of the planning delays was working out how to make the facility more accessible for older people.  Since we'll be housing a cage-free colony of geriatric cats, we'd like to experiment with pet-assisted therapy for the elderly -- put the cats "to work" so to speak.  Since cats, unlike dogs, don't "travel" well, we'll need to bring the elderly to them.  By providing easy wheelchair accessibility and fixturing the cat area for the comfort of senior visitors, we hope to make it an attractive outing destination for local nursing homes and assisted-living facilities.

VISIT OUR WEB SITE
We've added a Photo Gallery to our website, TLConline.org, containing photos and notes that some of the caregivers of feral cat colonies we've helped with have sent us.  We now number over 60 colonies throughout the county -- no small feat when you consider each colony requires both a committed caregiver and a property owner's permission.

PICASSO GIVES SPECIAL CARE
In the short history of our cat programs -- less than one year -- no cat has been as touching as Picasso.  Aptly named for the little dab of white "paint" on his nose, Picasso was turned into the Humane Society of Huron Valley last winter.  A caring person found him walking the streets of Saline and drove him to the shelter.

Elderly, blind and with obvious neurological damage (he tends to walk in circles), HSHV staff was captivated by his gentle, friendly manner, resolutely coping with his disabilities, and asked if we could take him.  We too were captivated.  Despite his afflictions, he fit right in with our other geriatric cats and shortly was right at "home".

Because of his afflictions, we thought it unlikely we could place him with an elderly companion.  However, around Christmas we received a call from a woman whose husband was terminally ill and wanted a "lap cat

About TLC TLC/for The Love of Cats is a program of the Zimmer Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation founded in 1980.  Our mission is to provide humane alternatives to euthanasia for the community management of companion and feral cats in Washtenaw County.  Financial or service contributions to our spay/neuter programs will help extend the number of spay/neuters we can accomplish.  For more information visit our web site at TLConline.org.