Come Help With Cats This Weekend

Volunteering With the Cats
A Manly Thing to Do

Last month on Mother's Day, we paid homage to LDCRF moms - feline mothers, and the foster mothers who work very hard nurture them and their baby kitten families. This week, we salute the men involved with LDCRF's cat rescue effort. All six of us. (And that counts the guys who also volunteer with the dogs, unless no one's looking...)

For it seems that caring about cats isn't thought of as a mainly thing to do - or else, there would be no market for this shirt:

Nor for this one:

Or certainly not this one:

Nor would the New York Times find "Man Bites Dog" to be equally newsworthy with "Man Has Cat", the entire article a (lukewarm) endorsement that it's alright for men to live with cats:

"Straight men with cats seem to be really secure and stable. They don't need to be running around the park and proving their masculinity like the dog guys."

NY Times Article

Clearly there's an image problem with the guy/cat thing, here. Cats are clearly thought of as a woman's pet, a woman's department. The "crazy cat lady" is always a lady, never a man.

Definitely an image problem - and then there's the bad image that male cats carry around. "Tomcatting around" is hardly a compliment. One observer has analogized cats and dogs to automobiles, saying that cats are to dogs as a Cabriolet is to an Explorer. Full disclosure time - I'm not qualified to form an unbiased opinion here, since I both own a Cabriolet and have six cats... but trust me, the stereotypes here are unjustified, and are preventing a few guys from having a rewarding rescue experience.

Well, LDCRF cat guys, you know the truth. And now, we finally have a manly spokesperson - seriously, would you argue with this guy ?

"Cat Daddy" Jackson Galaxy, Host of The Cat From Hell

Jackson knows, and is spreading the word, volunteering with the cats is just as rewarding as walking a dog on a leash around PetSmart. The love returned from a cat who relaxes in your arms, knowing that he's finally safe after months on the street is incomparable. Those folks who are reluctant to volunteer with cats are missing out on a great time. And so today, Father's Day, rise up and band together to call our brothers to the cat cause! We will work with cats! We will hold them in our arms at events, unafraid to be seen by big guys with tattoos. We will tirelessly work to find good homes for unwanted felines, and we will be sure to declare our affection for cats until we're rewarded with our own Crazy Cat Guy Doll! Ok, maybe not that one. But we will spread the word that real men do work with cats, and they're not afraid to enjoy it.

Butch, a grizzled old tomcat adopted out by LDCRF last year, one of the friendliest, nicest cats to come through the rescue.

Amazon Link

Support LDCRF just by shopping! Click the banner below to start your shopping at Amazon (from the pet supplies page you can navigate anywhere) and LDCRF receives a portion of every purchase dollar you spend!

The Week's Events

This weekend we have FIVE cat events. If you volunteer for our Leesburg or Reston events, you will be contacted by the Reston or Leesburg Coordinators if there is a need to schedule you for a different time.

Please respond by the deadline below; it's important to know how many volunteers we will have at each event in order to know how many cats to bring.

The events this weekend:

Fair Lakes - Friday, June 24, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.

7-Corners - Saturday, June 25, 12:00 - 3:00 p.m.

Leesburg - Sunday, June 26, 1:00 - 4 p.m.

Reston - Sunday, June 26, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Alexandria - Sunday, June 26, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Details and directions to the events can be found here:
Events Calendar