First, I would like to apologize for not having my year end review done in December as I usually do. I had my knees replaced this year, with the last one being done December 13th, and have not had the time to write my report until I felt well enough to function. 2023 is a new year and bionic knees have a long shelf life! Thank you for all of your patience, it is greatly appreciated.
2022 did not disappoint the CGMFF. We helped twenty-five high risk fosters with significant medical conditions as well as gifting funds to several cats in the community that needed assistance.
Currently we have four FOSPICE (Foster-hospice) cats in the foundation that will receive medical care generously supported by you until it’s time to let them go with dignity. Unfortunately, three of our cats had some medical conditions that, despite intervention, passed during our care either postoperatively due to significant complications or from their disease.
We also had some incredible medical cases that we were successfully able to cure and provide a life instead of euthanasia.
- Noggin, our red Abyssinian, had his scalp licked off by an overzealous mother right after birth and, through the use of Manuka honey, a polyhexanide gel and Microlyte Vet, we were able to regrow his entire scalp in eight weeks. Despite the care he received, he did lose his left eye due to an orbital fracture and the eye itself having a chronic infection.
- 9 Volt, a naughty tabby, who decided electrical cords were delicious and suffered the consequences from a severe electrical burn. While our veterinarians were able to remove the affected tissue, he did lose his bottom portion of his mandible that included his bottom canine teeth and incisors. However, such an injury never stopped this special cat. He bounced back as if nothing ever happened and won the hearts of everyone in person and online and brought more awareness to the dangers of electrical cord safety around pets.
We even had our regular cases of esophagitis, spina bifida, hind end paralysis kittens, and cerebellar hypoplasia join the program.
One of our proudest moments is the adoption of Nintendo! While she was adopted seven years ago and returned to us with significant redirected aggression issues, we managed to work with her and give her the time needed to trust people again. She ultimately went home with one of the clinic’s employees with her buddy 9 Volt. Cats that come back to us broken need time, patience and the willingness to want to understand their complicated language to rehabilitate them. We could not be happier to see her finally be in a home that allows her to be herself again.
The foundation also received a generous gift from a past client who entrusted us with her Siamese cat, Fala, after she passed. She asked us to help rehome him after she passed away and we did exactly as we promised two years ago. However, we did not expect to receive a gift of this magnitude. Instead of putting it directly into savings or checking for immediate use, we are keeping it in the trust they set up for future use for the cats in need that come into our program.
We also hosted our annual Giving Tuesday fundraiser. While we asked to match two thousand dollars, we exceeded our goal and received $4,307 instead! The foundation also launched a new fundraiser. We worked with Purrsonified, a small business that creates unique, high quality cat toys. We created 100 five-toy packs that represented our foundation and some of the cats everyone knows and loves. We still have our T-shirt shop open https://cgmff.threadless.com/ where you can snag some of our signature swag!
Thanksgiving brought the foundation all the way to Otavalo, Ecuador where Ellen assisted in surgery with anesthesia on over 200 animals for spay/neuter and other medical needs with other veterinary personnel from Caring Hands charity CHASE. This was an amazing event that brought many people together to provide free medical care over a few days for the community pets and street animals. It was an incredible experience and we plan to go back for future events.
On Christmas Eve, Ellen received a call about a cat that was found frozen to the ground. While the clinics around the person who found the cat were closed for the holiday, Ellen walked the rescuer through a safe method of rewarming the cat and addressing hypoglycemia. Not only did this cat suffer from hypothermia he also had a severe head injury with his left ear torn off. We worked with a clinic in southern MD as the cat is feral and needs to be worked with carefully for him to be TNR’d for re release in the spring. He is currently enjoying his safe space in his foster home until he can go back outside safely.
We could not continue this work without the support of you! Through Ellen’s Instagram account, THE CAT LVT, and our Facebook page (The Chris Griffey Memorial Feline Foundation) and our website, Criticalkittens.org, we are able to provide significant outreach on education about the cases we receive and the complementary resources for other veterinarians with cases they do not get to routinely see, but we have positive experience with.
And of course, many thanks to our veterinarians and the staff who see our cats for medical care. We are incredibly grateful for their dedication to our mission. We cannot do this without your expertise and willingness to indulge our needs for our special cats.
Our financial statement is accompanied with this year end report. Please note, our board members are voluntary and receive no monetary payments for their position.
Thank you all again for the support of Team Scratch N’ Dent cats! The CGMFF would be nothing without you cheering these cats on. On a final note, we still have a cat, Chamomile, who would love a home all of his own! He is the last of our 2022 babies that needs placement.
2023 brings us a new year, more cats and new stories to share with you all.
Kindly,Ellen M. Carozza LVT, VTS (CP-Feline)