#16catroadtrip: It's Transport Day! 16 Cats Going 1,600 Miles!

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It's transport day again. Our favorite kind of day! This weekend's fabulous road trip takes 16 lucky kitties all rescued from kill shelters all the way up to Maine!

We've got a bunch of mommas and their babies, a few babies with no mommas and one handsome black mancat named Samuel L. Catson who are all hitting the road, being driven to their new forever lives by a bunch of wonderful Cutehead drivers! Hurray!

It all started when our rescue friend, Stacey of Good Karma Pet Rescue, sent me a picture of an amazing black cat. He was a little rough looking, like he'd had bit of a hard life, but his eyes were soft and sweet and his head was enormous. I took one look at that picture and declared him Samuel L. Catson. I don't know why. I guess he looked like him.

This is the picture I got. How could we not help him?

I love big-head kitties! And black kitties! And the kitties that maybe no one would adopt! So I knew I had to help get him out. I also knew he needed to be wearing a beret and glasses like Samuel L. Jackson, so I took to the Cute's Facebook page and asked if any Cuteheads were good with Photoshop. Within minutes, we had this...

Tada! Samuel L. Catson!

I had a feeling Samuel might test FIV+, so we asked the shelter to do it, and he did. No worries! That's not a big deal. But now I knew we needed to rescue him for sure, because that might give him less of a chance to get out. I reached out to our good friends at HART of Maine (they were a Santa Paws Drive shelter last year!), because I knew they might be able to take him in and they said yes. Yeah! Samuel was going to Maine!

Then we figured, hey, since we're going up there, we might as well fill up the car... So we decided to load it up with momma cats and their kittens!

Money, Willow and Walnut - three of the "Tree" family babies! There is also brother Maple and mom Magnolia.

The Fairies! Mom Merryweather and babies Flora and Fauna.

The Bakery Bunch! Mom Poppy and babies Wonder, Melba, Raisin and Pumpernickel!

Pumpernickel up close. Because, seriously?

The Beanie Babies, Pinto and Lima!

You can follow along with their transport today and tomorrow on Your Daily Cute's Facebook page and on Twitter using the hashtag #16catroadtrip. I'll be tweeting as @YourDailyCute, of course! Help us cheer these kitties on!

We kick off at 7:30 a.m. tomorrow!

Huge thank you to all our fosters and caretakers - Maraly and Bob W., Colleen M., Kelly H., Tara R., Dawn S. and Kerri H. Huge thanks to all our drivers: Vicki O., Lisa B., Kd P., Shirley G., Melanie M., Desiree B., Sarah D., Andrea D., Keely F., Linda G., Kandr, Barbara T., Jennifer J., Danielle B., and Hannah D.! And extra special thanks to Margaret B., a wonderful volunteer at HART and Sue T., the kitten coordinator there for making this possible!

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#CaboodleCaravan: It's Transport Day - 14 Cats Headed to Happy Lives!

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There's a whole caboodle of cats heading out today for their new lives -- and Cuteheads are helping every step of the way!

For this latest transport, we're giving a ride to 10 kittens and 4 adults cats. It's a whole carload, I tell you. Seven carriers in total! (If you see someone driving down the road with a car full of cat carriers, honk and wave hi... It's probably a Cutehead transporter!)

As usual, I have a favorite in this transport. I swear, I'd probably keep one from every group if I didn't have a pet limit at my condo. Good thing I do!

Me and Lestat. Look at his awesome cross-eyes and tongue!

Lestat is the coolest cat. He is a huge boy with the tiniest chirp of a meow. He is also incredibly timid and sweet, and just an all-around great catch. Someone is going to be very lucky to adopt him!

Lestat was surrendered at Broward Animal Control in Pompano with his three sisters. Apparently some guy's wife left him and the country, so he dumped their cats. The sweetest cats!

One got adopted right away, but his other two sisters, Callie and Smokey, we scooped up and rescued! Our amazing friends at Forever Home Feline Ranch said they'd take them in and find them real forever homes. Hurray!

Pretty Callie!

Then, the Ranch told us that they didn't have any adoptable kittens. No kittens?! We could fix that! So we asked our good friend, Wendy K., who we knew had just rescued some kittens from Miami Dade Animal Services if she had homes for them yet. She said no, so all of the sudden, all five of them had a place to go. Put on your cowboy hats, kitties, you're headed to the Ranch!

And then two adorable kittens popped up at animal control here. Can you guess what happened? They got their ticket to the Ranch, too!

Whiskers and Barry, sitting still for a rare second. 

And then... (yup, there's more!)... We got word of three tiny black kittens at Gaston County Animal Shelter in North Carolina. They are a gas chamber shelter (booooo!) and so these tiny babies needed rescue fast.

Forever Home Feline Ranch to the rescue! We gave those babies their walking papers, got them all vetted and they are hopping in the car with us, too! They are being transported to Chattanoooga, TN today and will head out with the rest of the transport on Sunday.

One of the Easter kittens. I can't wait to see out-of-the-shelter pictures!

We named them Peep, Cadbury and Jellybean since it's almost Easter. How cute is that?

UPDATE: We got this picture of the Easter kittens busted out of the shelter this morning. How precious!

Speaking of Chattanooga, Cutehead Emily B. is hosting a sleepover for ALL of these cats tonight. Can you imagine how much fun that will be? The Florida cats will all end up at her house tonight and the North Carolina kittens will be there, too, and then she'll give them love and luxury tonight, and then pack them up and get them started on the rest of their journey first thing Sunday morning!

We've got an amazing team of drivers helping these lucky kitties this weekend, and we've had tons of help getting them ready to go before this, too.

We'll be using the Twitter hashtag #CaboodleCaravan to follow these kitties on their travels and sharing on Your Daily Cute's Facebook page as well, of course. Cheer on the kitties with us!

Huge thanks to our partner in rescue, Good Karma Pet Rescue, our amazing rescue vet, Dr. Seskus (he goes above and beyond!), our fosters and condo kitty caretakers, Maraly and Bob W. and Colleen F., condo donater, Nancy M., and all our drivers -- Karen A., Cheryl L., Sara M., Wendy K. (who also fostered!), Lisa B., Morgen P., Dana K., Shannon and Dixie, Laura N., Tia and Helen, Emily B. (kitty sleepover!), Laura and Cindy and Brenda B., who is also president of Forever Home Feline Ranch. Also, big thanks to Cheryl J, who is the Ranch's adoption coordinator and helps us save these babies! If I forgot someone, know I love you too!

P.S. We already know where we're going on our next transport -- up I-95 from Florida to Maine! If you can help drive, please volunteer by filling out our form here!

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Cute Crusade: 10 More Cats SAFE and Heading Home!

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You like being a part of something special? Well, you're in the right place! Cuteheads are making amazing things happen again!

Right now there are 10 cats tucked away in all different foster houses and condos down here in South Florida, just waiting for their rides to their new forever homes. Black cats, big cats, tiny kittens and delicate tabbies and a pretty Siamese... We have a beautiful herd of rescue kitties, all saved from animal control!

This time, our fabulous friends at Forever Home Feline Ranch in Illinois have stepped up and offered to take in seven cats, all of which will find their forever homes very quickly up there! We are so excited! That's seven cats saved from that sad shelter... who are going to be off to the most wonderful lives ever! Hurray!

All the kitties heading to Forever Home Feline Ranch!

Then there is Pookie. Pookie was surrendered at the shelter and spent hours in this position when she got there, so sad and distraught.

No way we could let her stay like that, poor baby! Luckily, Cutehead Mary C. saw this and just knew Pookie was meant to be part of her family. She quickly left a message saying she'd love to have her... and we quickly made the move to bust Pookie out of the shelter the next day! Mary is in Illinois, too, so Pookie will be in the car with the seven up there! She's now in a wonderful foster home with Cutehead Carie P. (who fostered senior sisters Sera and Chloe!) and she is doing fantastic! Pookie is getting spayed today, so send good thoughts her way.

Turns out Pookie has a beautiful face!

Continuing our story of amazing friends, meet Puck. Puck was also surrendered at the shelter and his sweet, timid, loving face immediately caught my eye. I shared his picture, and then found out that Puck had some issues that would probably make it even harder for him to get adopted. He has some polyps in his ear that require surgery. I can't find the picture of them, but it is pretty icky looking.

Puck. This is the face we all fell in love with.

Luckily, though, we have great friends! Cutehead Tristin B. saw Puck's sweet face on our Facebook page, and set a miracle in motion... She said she would love to adopt him and asked how soon we could get him out! How soon? As soon as possible! So with the help of our good rescue friend, Nicole D., Puck was busted out of the shelter and off to see a vet. (He does need the surgery and Tristin's vet is going to talk to the vet that Puck saw to decide who does it. Hopefully it is not too expensive, but Tristin is wonderful and we will make sure Puck gets everything he needs!)

Puck loving on his litter box. Such a happy boy.

Puck is going to St. Pete, Florida to live, which is pretty close to me! We'll work out his transport after he gets his vetting all settled.

And last but not least, adorable little fuzzball Eugene. Eugene was at Miami Dade Animal Services (our first Miami rescue kitty!) with his two brothers. Both of them were rescued, but Eugene was left behind. Being a black kitten in a bad place like that was not going to work in his favor... but it turns out we have even more great friends! Cutehead Leigh G. (who adopted Zoro, Garfield, Count Blackula and Midnight!) saw tiny Eugene and couldn't let the inevitable happen to him. So she sent me a message saying she'd like to add him to her crew! Whooo hooo! Eugene will be heading to Alabama.

Oh hai. Fiercely cute Eugene here!

As of yesterday morning, Eugene has officially left the MDAS building and is safe and in foster care with another fabulous rescue friend of ours, Maribel M.! I have to tell you, Eugene's name kills me. Kills me! Is it not the cutest thing? So un-cat like, but so perfect!

Eugene right after he was busted out!

As always, huge enormous thanks to Cute's fabulous partner in rescue, Stacey at Good Karma Pet Rescue of South Florida. She handles all the kitties getting out and vetting and lots of the fostering coordination and tons more that I'm not thinking of. We couldn't do this without her!

Whew! Now on to the fun part. These cats all need rides! The maps of their routes are below. If you are along the way and would like to help out, please fill out this form so I have your contact info and what city you live in. The more volunteers we have, the more kitties we can help! (And if you've already filled out the form, I have your info. If you're along the route, I will probably be giving you a call! Thank you, everyone!)

NINE CATS TO ILLINOIS - 6 carriers max, so they fit in any car. Trust me! (Fill out the Cute Transport Volunteer form here.)

Kitties going from Fort Lauderdale, FL to Springfield, IL. Click to biggify the map!

LITTLE EUGENE TO ALABAMA (Fill out the Cute Transport Volunteer form here.)

Eugene is headed to Alabama! His mom will meet the transport in Pensacola. (Click to biggify the map.)

We're looking at the weekend of February 9-10 for the Illinois transport. No set date for Eugene yet. Please volunteer if you can help! Thanks, everyone! We are doing such amazing things.

This makes 28 cats we've helped so far this year!

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Cat Conducts a Musical Symphony

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Cats meow and sing a lot, but did you know they can also be talented orchestra conductors? Well, they can with a little help, anyway.

Who hasn't done this with their kitty? I know I have!


NOTE FROM CUTE: The 3-cat transport and the 15-cat transport should both be finishing up today, Mother Nature permitting. We're keeping an eye on the bad weather in Illinois and Wisconsin and the fires in Florida. Both might mean extra sleepover nights for the kitties if it isn't safe to drive. Safety first!

I hope they can both go on! Follow along on just like we have been on Your Daily Cute's Facebook page and on Twitter using the hashtags #3catroadtrip and #15catroadtrip.

The kitties are almost home!

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Cute Crusade: Senior Sera and Her Sister Chloe Need Our Help!

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Happy Two Cats Tuesday, Cuteheads! Today we have something very important to do. We're on a mission to get two sweet sisters the best holiday present ever -- a real forever home!

Sera and Chloe are two sweet girls who were dumped at Pompano Animal Control, the kill shelter near me. They were part of 20 cats that someone surrendered (20!), and are the lucky ones who are still there looking for a home. (We're not talking about what happened to the others.)

This is the picture I first saw of Sera. What is it about it?

When I first saw Sera's picture, she really touched me for some reason. I share cats all the time, and hope for the best, but this one... I honestly thought that one more cat wouldn't be that bad and really, really thought about running down there to bust her out of that cage.

But then I thought for another minute, and knew that wasn't right (I'm already over my cat limit), so I shared her on Facebook. A fabulous friend of Cute immediately had the same reaction I did. What is it about this sweet 12-year-old cat's face that tugs at heartstrings so much?

She went a step farther than me, and decided she would adopt her. She truly didn't need another cat, but that face...

Chloe's nose looks like a little heart, doesn't it?

We were excited for a couple hours, until we learned Sera wasn't alone. Her sister, Chloe, was also sadly sitting at the shelter, and we couldn't just leave her there to meet what would certainly be her fate. But our friend couldn't take two.

What to do? Cuteheads, I'm telling you I really thought hard about this one. I have never done this before, but I just couldn't pull Sera out of that place and leave her sister there. Surely there is someone out there who can adopt them both! And if we didn't at least try... I know I'd really regret it. And I know if anyone can make this miracle happen, it's us!

So begged and pleaded and we found a place that Sera and Chloe could stay safe for a little bit without even having a definite home to go to -- but it is only for two weeks. They can't stay there, and I refuse to let them go back to the shelter.

What these two gorgeous girls need is someone who can give them a real forever home, forever.


They've both seen the vet. Sera is about 12 years old (a sweet, sweet old lady who deserves to live her golden years in a warm home) and Chloe is about 8 year old (a gorgeous, regal Maine Coon is really is friendly, but is just scared and out of her element right now).

Can we do this? Can we find them a home? Can one of you maybe open your heart and your home to these to girls?

Sera soaking up some love and Chloe wishing she had a home.

I have no idea who in the world could surrender cats this age after having them so long, but it happened, and now we need to show Sera and Chloe that there are wonderful people out there who truly want the best for them.

Will you help? Please share this post far and wide. We don't have much time.

If anyone is interested in Sera and Chloe, please email me at dorian (at) yourdailycute (dot) com. We can transport anywhere in the U.S.! I know we Cuteheads can work out their ride, all we need is a home for them to go to.

Is it yours?

P.S. Pimp and Moo took the day off to let Sera and Chloe be Two Cats Tuesday today. They'll be back next week, but they thought this was really important to. :)

Moe Needs a Ride to Michigan and a Jamie Update and Pics!

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UPDATE 12/5/12: Moe has a ride to his forever home! He is flying on Saturday, December 8 with fellow Cutehead Wendy K., who rearranged her travel plans so she could bring him along. Yay, Moe!

Whew! We have a lot to cover today!

First, Moe the kitten from Pompano Animal Control down here is officially SAFE! Fellow Cutehead, Paul G., has stepped up to give him a fabulous forever home!

Now we just need to do what we Cuteheads do best... Get Moe to his new home!

This is going to be our biggest transport mission yet. Moe is going to need to travel from Fort Lauderdale to Lachine, Michigan -- 1,570 miles! -- and I know we can pull it off!

Here is a video of Moe, just before he was rescued from the shelter. He is now safe in boarding, but he can't stay there for long -- he needs to get to his new daddy!


Isn't he adorable?! Moe say get MEOWt of Florida and up to Michigan!

Moe was an animal control for over a month, which is a miracle for a black kitty. Somehow he kept making the cut every week (black cats don't have much luck there, unfortunately) and managed not to get sick. I am so happy Paul G. stepped up to adopt him when he did. Moe was super urgent!

Here are some of the major cities along the way... Do you live in any of them (or in between or near any?) and have a few hours to help give Moe a ride?

Port St. Lucie, Orlando, Ocala, Gainesville, Valdosta, Macon, Atlanta, Chattanooga, Nashville, Louisville, Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Lexington, Cincinnati, Dayton, Toledo...

Moe is safe and he wants to ride in your car!

If you can help transport Moe, please fill out this form. It is only for me and that way I know what city you live in, how far you'd be willing to go and contact info.

If you can't drive or you're not along his route, would you please share? The more people who see, the more people who might be able to help!

Let's get Michigan Moe to Michigan ASAP! I know we can do this. We always find a way to come through for these wonderful kitties.

And THANK YOU to Paul G. for adopting Moe and wanting to make him part of his family!

Here is the link to the form again. http://bit.ly/cutetransport Thanks, everyone!

JAMIE UPDATE

Remember Jamie, the kitten we helped transport from Greenville, SC to Hollywood, FL last weekend? Well he is happy and great and adjusting purrfectly!

Here are some pictures from his new mommy. I'm so glad we could help him get to her!

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It's Transport Day Again: 4 More Cats Rescued and Going to Home!

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Oh, today is one of my favorite kind of days ever. It's transport day! That means a bunch of Cuteheads are joining forces to drive some cats to their new forever home!

The lucky kitties are Zoro, Midnight, Garfield and Count Blackula -- all less-adoptable cats that my friend Stephanie and I went to take professional pictures of during Petfinder's "Adopt a Less Adoptable Pet Week" last month. And can you believe it... one amazing woman has stepped up to adopt all four of them!

Zoro is a big, big boy who was adopted from Pompano Animal Control once... and then returned. He is super sweet and a gentle giant who's looking forward to his real forever home!

Midnight is the only girl of the bunch and will no doubt make her Queen status known right away. She is a petite girl with the most amazing, striking green eyes.

Garfield was an owner surrender at Pompano Animal Control and is bigger than his new brother, Zoro. But for such a big cat, he has the tiniest "meep" of a meow. It's ridiculously cute!

Count Blackula has been waiting patiently at Noah's Ark in Pompano for his forever home to find him, but hasn't had any luck -- until now! He is a shy, timid boy who likes to be petted, but isn't sure about being held yet. I bet he comes around when he has a real home!

All of them are older cats and half of them are black (you know how much I love black cats). And ALL of the are absolutely perfect.

I know I say it all the time, but I can't express how much I love this community we've built here and how many wonderful things we're able to do when we come together. None of this could have happened without the help of everyone sharing these kitties' pictures, stepping up to drive, supporting along the way... and adopting! Cuteheads are the BEST!

I'm driving the first leg of the journey out of Fort Lauderdale and they'll be travelling all day (six of us will take turns chaffeuring them!) until they finally get to their forever home near Pensacola, Florida -- 682 miles away!

I'll be posting pictures and updates on Your Daily Cute's Facebook page all day and tweeting the same from @YourDailyCute on Twitter. Follow along to see their progress and help welcome them home!

P.S. Huge thank you to Cuteheads Lisa B., Morgan P., Dulcia M. and especially Leigh G. for adopting these kitties!

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Cute Crusade: It's Transport Day - Two Black Kittens SAFE!

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Today is my favorite kind of day. It's transport day! Two adorable black kittens are safe, thanks to a fellow Cutehead who is adopting them -- all the way near Cleveland, Ohio!

Here's the story:

I shared this picture of beautiful Venus, who was at Broward Animal Control in Pompano, FL, on the Cute's Facebook page and one of our fabulous community members, Michelle W., said she'd love to give her a home. Yay!

Venus is getting a home!

But wait, it get's better!

Michelle was talking to my friend, Stacey ( who runs Good Karma Pet Rescue and who we work with all the time to save these kitties), and Stacey told her she had Venus's twin almost who also needed a home -- a beautiful black kitten named Dahlia. She said she could adopt her, too, if she wanted for no extra adoption fee.

Two gorgeous black babies for the price of one?! Michelle said yes! Double yay!

Dahlia is getting a home, too!

Of course, Michelle lives nowhere near where Venus and Dahlia are, but that's no big deal for us... we make things happen around here!

Me and the girls. Venus left, Dahlia right.

I posted a call for help with transport and so many people offered to help. We got out the map and figured out the best route and, starting today, six fellow Cuteheads (seven if you count their new mom, Michelle!) are going to be driving them to their new home -- almost 1,300 miles away!

They're starting their journey about 10 a.m. ET today and will be traveling through late tonight, then staying in Charlotte, NC for a week, and then picking up their journey again next weekend.

Follow along today on Your Daily Cute's Facebook page where I'll be posting pictures and updates of how their trip is going!

Have I mentioned how much I love everyone who is part of our little group here? Love! People are amazing. Let's cheer these kitties on and wish them safe travels.

THANK YOU MICHELLE and all the kitty's drivers!

Want to help transport next time?

Would you like to help out transporting kitties for future Cute Crusades like this? The more volunteers we have, the more cats we can help!

If you'd like to volunteer to drive one day please fill out this form I made so that I have your information like where you live and how far you'd be willing to go. That way, when other kitties need help, I know where our helpers are and can just email or call you and ask! Thank you, everyone!

(The info on the form is only for me and only I see it. It's just so that we can have all the volunteers in one place.)