Why We Can’t Take in Another — Yet
Imagine waking up to to urgent texts and email requests to save litters of kittens who will be euthanized without your help… a puppy facing death for a treatable skin condition… and countless other pets whose time is running out. You and your colleagues want to say “yes” — because it’s in your hearts — and you even have a foster home ready — but you know you’re just scraping by to cover the next round of medical appointments for the pets already in your care.
Right now, with so many unpredictable medical needs for pets in our care— and funding at an all-time low not just for us, but for rescues across Texas — we’ve had to make the heartbreaking decision to pause intake of new animals so we can focus on the cats and dogs already depending on us for critical vet care. Many rescues have shut their doors entirely this year, but we are closing intake temporarily to keep ours open so we can continue saving lives for years to come.
Why? Every pet we take in represents a potential unexpected vet bill outside of their basic vet care — and one recent example is Lumina and her four tuxedo kittens. Just days before we picked them up from the shelter last week, they seemed healthy and ready for a second chance. When we arrived, we were told, “One of her kittens just died.”
We met the family at the shelter, they appeared healthy, but when we arrived a few days later to pick up, one Lumina's 4 kittens had just died and Lumina was declining quickly [She tested negative for panleukopenia and is also FeLV/FIV negative]
They had been in the shelter for 42 days — unvaccinated, not dewormed, and exposed to dangerous pathogens. By the time they reached us, they were already full of intestinal parasites, stealing the nutrients their tiny bodies needed to survive. Despite immediate urgent vet care along with prescribed antibiotics, deworming, and daily fluids — the kittens and Lumina have gotten sicker and thinner each day. Our volunteer Cat Program Coordinator, Sam Larsen, is syringe feeding the family and fighting for their lives around the clock as we continue consulting closely with our veterinarian. While still frail, Lumina just in the last 24 hours seems to getting a little bit stronger and her eyes just a little bit brighter.
💔 Our goal: Raise $10,000 in the next 14 days to resume intake as soon as possible.
Because when we do have the resources, miracles happen. In the last couple of weeks alone, we’ve taken in 9 additional kittens and 4 dogs from that same shelter, plus 3 orphaned bottle babies from the streets. Three of those dogs — Krypto, Betty, and Queenie — were facing immediate euthanasia for space. Today, Krypto has already been adopted, and Betty and Queenie are safe and loved in foster care — proof of what’s possible when we act together.
Every dollar matters. Together, we can keep saying “yes” when it matters most.
With Gratitude,
