Published: June 05, 2009 03:06 pm      

Spay it forward

Chelsea L. McGowan

cmcgowan@weatherforddemocrat.com

Ro Williams has had a schedule for the last four years. Every other day she made the rounds, setting out food for feral cats in the Willow Park and Aledo areas.

One day, much like any other, Ro discovered she had an ally in her crusade for kitties.

“I noticed the food in the kitty bowls at one of the spots was a different brand,” she said. “I thought, ‘Wow, could I get this lucky? Could someone else care about these homeless kitties as much as I?’”

Ro went home and created a brightly colored sign to put near the food bowls, asking whoever was feeding the kittens to give her a call. That’s how she met Kari Breen.

“She was a local gal, and more than a decade younger than I,” Ro said. “We talked for what seemed hours sharing our love for all animals and especially the homeless cats — the ones behind restaurants, in alleyways and even sewer drains.”

Ro and Kari set up a schedule that allowed them to rotate feeding duties, alleviating some of the financial burden as well as the time spent on the project. Both also approached business owners who had feral cats on or near their property.

“We told them if they didn’t mind the kitties living there, we would spay and neuter them and give them food and shelter,” Ro said.

Every business owner they approached has taken the organization, now called Cattailz, on as a partner to reduce over-population and aid in the crowded conditions at the Weatherford/Parker County animal shelter.

“Now we are known as the cat ladies,” Ro said. “Cats can live anywhere and be an asset to most businesses. As Kari and I became more active in live trapping, neutering and releasing, we took on a new volunteer. But we’re still only using personal funds for this project.”

Cattailz is now a 501c non-profit organization that works with three Parker County veterinarians to spay and neuter wild cats. The organization is still in need of donated food, pet carriers, bedding and mostly volunteers.

“We just want to get the word out,” Kari said. “We truly love these babies and what we’re able to do for them.”