A Calgary animal rescue organization is appealing to the public for help after it took in dozens of animals from a property in northern Alberta following the death of their owner.
R.J. Bailot, executive director and co-founder of Canadian Animal Task Force (CATF), says his organization received a call from a family member on Monday, asking for support to care for the many animals living on their loved one’s property.
Bailot explains the family knew their relative took in lots of animals, but wasn’t sure exactly how many.
When volunteers arrived at the rural property around five and a half hours northeast of Calgary on Monday, they rounded up 46 cats and two senior dogs.
“Needless to say, when we went out there yesterday to pick them up, the animals were very, very excited because they were quite hungry and just craving human affection,” Bailot said. “He was someone in the community who loved animals but was overwhelmed with the numbers.
“What happens often in these cases when there’s people in the community that care, especially for cats, then people often dump off their cats at these people’s homes because they know they will take care of them. So his numbers were just so high and sadly, there was no plan in place in the event that something happened to him.”
While the organization is happy to help, its founder says this large of an intake is a challenge. CATF is volunteer-run and funded largely by donors.
Thankfully, most of the animals are in good health, according to Bailot, but they still need care and attention, which costs money.
A Calgary animal rescue organization is appealing to the public for help after in took in dozens of animals from a property in northern Alberta following the death of their owner.
“It’s a huge cost,” he said. “Each animal is going to have to be spayed or neutered, vaccinated and treated for parasites, at minimum.”
Some of the animals are facing other health issues, including respiratory, dental, and eye issues, that will also need to be dealt with.
After the cats and dogs have been examined by a vet and have their health concerns addressed, Bailot says CATF will work with its partner rescues to get the animals adopted out to new homes.
The organization is always in need of more volunteers and financial support, according to Bailot.
More information can be found at cataskforce.org