Feral Fixers 2009 Christmas Logo
Practicing and promoting Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) in DuPage County, Illinois

We're a 501c3 not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting and practicing Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) in DuPage County, Illinois. We believe that TNR is the only effective, humane and long-term solution to the problem of cat overpopulation.
The Feral Fixers e-Newsletter - Issue #14 - December  2009
In This Issue
We're now on eBay!
Message from the President
Want to Help?
Feral Fixers participates in the 2009 Bensenville Christmas Tree Program
We're taking a break...
How many cats? 1,441 !!
Ding Dong! AVON calling... for Feral Fixers!
Donate to Feral Fixers
November = 99 cats fixed!
Calendar of Upcoming Events
Shop for Feral Fixers
Visit us on the Web
What is Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR)?
Dear Friend,

Hello and welcome to the December 2009 edition of the Feral Fixers e-Newsletter.

Yes, it's the holiday season and that can mean only one thing - madness at the Mall!  To help ease your 'shopping pain', you can now do your shopping online and benefit Feral Fixers at the same time!  In this issue, you can read about how we are now a registered Charity on eBay and have our first item (a beautiful pearl necklace) up for auction.  You can also read about how our local Avon representative is donating a portion of her designated sales this season to Feral Fixers.

Our President's monthly column describes the feral cat version of "It's a Wonderful Life" and, in keeping with the holiday theme, you can read about (and see) the Feral Fixers Christmas tree at the Bensenville Towne Center.

Finally, you can read about how we're going to be taking a break from doing TNR later this month (and what we're going to be doing with this 'down time') and much, much more.

Thank you for all of your support!
 
Sincerely,
 

Feral Fixers
Feral Fixers is now a registered charity on eBay!

eBay LogoFeral Fixers is now a registered charity on eBay.  This means that we can put items up for bid and 100% of the proceeds will go to Feral Fixers.
 
Right now, we have a beautiful Pearl necklace up for auction which was donated to us by PearlParadise.com (thank you Pearl Paradise!).  This necklace has a retail value of $500.00 but our starting bid price on eBay is only $100.00.  This is an 18" necklace consisting of 6.5-7.5mm cultured freshwater pearls, white in color.  It would make a fabulous Christmas present and you won't even have to find a parking spot at the mall to acquire it!  If you're interested, just sign on to eBay and search for item # 140364087126.  You can then place your bid for this item.  Bidding for this item closes on December 10th, so don't be late!
 
In addition, you too can put items up for auction on eBay and designate a percentage (10%-100%) of the proceeds to automatically go to Feral Fixers.  So, if you have some old junk around the house which just needs to go, you can put it up for sale on eBay, make some money and benefit Feral Fixers at the same time!
 
If you're interested in doing this, please drop us a note at [email protected] and we'll walk you through the steps you need to take to designate Feral Fixers as your 'charity of choice' on eBay - thank you!
Message from the President

It's a Wonderful Life (feral cat version)
 
ScrollSometimes I feel a little like George Bailey.  People who I see on almost a daily basis have recently seen me exhausted, short-tempered, making mistakes, muttering "I hate cats" with greater frequency.  "I hate cats" is an ironic way I let off steam as I stand in my garage, surrounded by 20 or so of the little darlings, snug in their traps, while I know that each one has to be fed, or new newspapers put in, or labeled and readied for transport the next morning.  It can really be overwhelming, especially as I seem to be able to see the big picture - knowing that we've only just begun this fight and that there will be many more groups of 20 or so cats in my garage, for months and perhaps years to come.  Bailing out the Titanic with a teacup!  Our volunteers are a tremendous help at these times, even more so when they let me vent!  "I hate cats" acknowledges the stress we all feel at times.  But we are committed to this endeavor and we will persevere!!!
 
What I would love to see is our own feral cat version of It's A Wonderful Life.  To KNOW what would have happened had we not been here to take up this cause.  As Ted has said in his blog, we are waiting for those year end numbers.  But it may really take until next year's end before we can see a difference.
 
I have an unusual request:

Read more...
Want to help?

Help Wanted signInterested in helping Feral Fixers?  We are looking for a 'few good volunteers'!  Specifically, we're looking for someone to help us transport cats to and from PAWS (the Spay/Neuter clinic we use) in Chicago.  We need transport both in the morning and the afternoon.  If you're interested in helping, call us at (630) 881-FXRS (3977) or email us at [email protected].
 
Feral Fixers participates in the 2009 Bensenville Christmas Tree Program

2009 Bensenville Xmas Tree StarFor the second year in a row, Feral Fixers is participating in the Village of Bensenville's annual Christmas Tree program.  Each year, Bensenville puts up Christmas trees in the Town Center (located at the corner of Green and Center streets) and asks individuals and organizations to decorate those trees.  Feral Fixers volunteers Mary and Christina have decorated the tree for us again this year.

Feral Fixers enjoys a wonderful relationship with the Village of Bensenville and this is just one of many village-sponsored activities in which Feral Fixers has become involved.  Other activities include having a booth at their summertime Music in the Park festival and also participating in their Fourth of July Parade.

2009 Bensenville Xmas TreeThe village has a very enlightened policy regarding feral cats and Feral Fixers is proud and honored to be able to work with the village in dealing with the problem of cat over-population.

Thank you Bensenville!
 
(Click on the picture thumbnails to see a larger version - be sure to check out the ornaments - all of them have a Trap/Neuter/Return (TNR) theme - great job Mary and Christina!)
We're taking a break...

Break / Pause GraphicYes, it's true - Feral Fixers is taking a break.  From December 16th through January 31st (inclusive), we will not be bringing any cats to be spayed/neutered.
 
We need to a) recharge our batteries and b) have some free time available so that we can concentrate on planning our 2nd Annual Frosty-Claws Party and Fundraiser (January 17 - save the date!).
 
In addition, trapping cats in the winter is generally not a good idea - leaving them out in the cold inside a steel trap can be very dangerous to their health.
 
However, if you have a situation which you believe MUST be addressed in this time period, you are, of course, more than welcome to trap the cats yourself and bring them to PAWS (or the spay/neuter clinic of your choice).  Detailed instructions on how to do this will be on our website.
How many cats? - 1,441 !!

Statistics graphicFeral Fixers was founded in September of 2007.  In that first year, Feral Fixers had 86 cats spayed / neutered.  In 2008, Feral Fixers had 525 cats spayed / neutered.  And, so far in 2009, Feral Fixers has had 830 cats spayed / neutered.

This brings us to a total of 1,441 cats.  Clicking on the instructor/whiteboard in the upper right-hand corner of this article will send you to the Feral Fixers 'Statistics' page where you can see our progress, month-by-month, since we've started work.
 
Ding Dong! AVON calling for Feral Fixers!
 
Avon LogoFeral Fixers will receive 10 - 40% on orders placed with our local AVON representative, Shirley Ekblad!  This fundraiser is only for orders placed directly with Shirley, not for items purchased at her kiosk in the Yorktown Mall, so hurry and do your Holiday shopping to ensure Feral Fixers receives the donation!

Feral Fixers has a limited number of AVON books on hand.  If you want one, please call 630-881-3977 - first come, first served.

To place orders:
 
By phone - 630-834-5176

Online -  http://sekblad.avonrepresentative.com/  Use the code FSANY to receive free shipping but also email Shirley at [email protected] to tell her that you have placed an order, a two-step process so that she can look for it in the system and designate it as Feral Fixers order.

By fax - 630-834-0102.


AVON has such variety, the prices are great, you couldn't find a more convenient way to shop, AND benefit Feral Fixers at the same time!
Donate to Feral Fixers

PayPal DonationFeral Fixers offers its TNR services to all colony caretakers, without charge.  While we ask for donations from colony caretakers, we recognize that for some of them, any additional cost is just too much.  Therefore we rely on donations from other individuals to make up the difference and allow us to continue our work.  These donations allow us to spay/neuter additional cats, keep a 'bank' of traps and trap dividers we loan out for free, hold workshops and provide other educational benefits.

You can help us continue our work by clicking on the Donate button, above.  This will take you to the PayPal website where you can donate to Feral Fixers via PayPal or credit card.  Feral Fixers is a registered 501c3 charitable organization and all donations are deductible to the fullest amount allowed by law.

We greatly appreciate any amount you can afford to give - Thank You!
 
November = 99 cats fixed!

2 cats in a basketThis past month, Feral Fixers fixed 99 cats - it seems to call for a song:
 
99 feral felines on the street
99 feral felines
Get one fixed - out of the mix
98 feral felines on the street
 
98 feral felines on the street
98 feral felines...
I'm sure you get the picture...
Calendar of Upcoming Events

Calendar GraphicDecember 16, 2009 - January 31, 2010 (inclusive) - Feral Fixers will be taking a break from practicing Trap/Neuter/Return (TNR) during this period.  Feral Fixers will be using this 'down-time' to catch up on paperwork, order traps and other supplies and, of course, plan and organize the upcoming Frosty Claws fundraiser.  Beginning February 1st, 2010, we'll be hard at it again, doing our level best to reduce the number of unwanted cats and kittens.  If you want to trap cats and bring them to PAWS (or the Spay/Neuter clinic of your choice), of course we applaud the effort.  We just ask that you exercise great caution in trapping cats during the winter - they need to get out of the cold as quickly as possible.

January 17, 2010 - We will host our second annual Frosty Claws fundraiser. Everyone had a great time at our first Frosty Claws - make sure your calendars are marked for this day! More details will be posted when they are available.
 
Hooded SweatshirtShop for Feral Fixers

Want to purchase something purr-fect for your cat-lover friends and help out Feral Fixers at the same time?  Just visit our CafĂ© Press store and Buy Something! In addition to the Hooded Sweatshirt shown to the right, we have T-shirts, Messenger Bags, coffee mugs, tote-bags, pet food bowls, etc. A portion of each sale goes to help us in our TNR efforts. To visit the store, just click on the Hooded Sweatshirt or visit our website and click on the 'Buy Something' button at the top - Thank you!

WWW GraphicVisit us on the Web

Visit our website at www.feralfixers.org.  There you can donate to us (via PayPal or Credit card), visit our store, read the latest news, and learn more about Feral cats.  If this newsletter has been forwarded to you, you can also sign up to be on our mailing list so you don't miss a thing!
 
Ear tipped cat What is Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR)?

TNR is a full management plan in which stray and feral cats already living outdoors in cities, towns, and rural areas are humanely trapped, evaluated, vaccinated, and sterilized by veterinarians. When space is available, adoptable cats and kittens are transferred to sheltering organizations to be adopted into good homes. Healthy adult cats unsocialized to humans are returned to their familiar habitat under the lifelong care of their original caretakers.
 
Feral Fixers, NFP, is a certified 501c3 corporation - EIN Number 13-4364615