Thank You For Donating!

Letters of thanks from recipients of the food you so generously donated .
Please scroll down to see pictures of those you're helping!

Sue,
My Grandmother and her significant other take care of 8 cats of their own and 27 feral cats. They have spayed and neutered all of them. They have spent numerous days and much of their time trying to catch and fix the feral animals so that they do not reproduce. They also go to the location everyday and feed them. (Click on pictures for a closer look.)

This is a very expensive endeavor and they always find ways to make it work. They take care of these animals even though they are afraid and scared to come to them. I believe that they would not survive without the love and care of my grandparents. I feel that they are remarkable people for doing this. These two put forth the effort, time, energy, and money to make the cats lives possible. They are both very strong and caring individuals and seem to take the responsibility head on. Here are a couple pictures of just a few of the cats eating.
(This is written by Heather, the Granddaughter of Don and Lana.)

Sue,
What an incredibly wonderful caring and surprising relationship-- bikers and cats. I am so delighted to see the gentle, caring side of Harley kind of guys toward these abandoned cats that so many fashionable people ignore, reject and just want to do away with. I want to thank you for your generosity and kindness.

It was in the middle of winter just two years ago that my "adventure" with feral cats started.
I saw them day after day climbing into trash cans in my ally and my heart ached for them. That's when I started putting out food and water by my back door.

When spring came I realized that this colony had to be spayed and neutered. That was not an easy task, but I finally trapped 20 plus cats and took them to the spay/neuter clinics, where they received tender loving care. Then I brought them all back home and released them after they recovered from surgery. Some of the cats have become quite tame and enjoy being cuddled. Others run away from any and all people.

I devote a quite a bit of time making sure they have a warm, dry shelter with soft bedding and I enjoy watching them come running when the cat food is pouring into their bowls.
I'm happy when I know they are eating good nutritious food from Kirkland and are staying healthy and happy.
Thank you so much for bringing relief to so many innocent creatures.

Ingrid

Ingrid feeds a colony of more than 20 cats. It's the perfect property for cats to hide and play and sun themselves. As I visited her place, I snapped pictures of cats hiding and peering out and watching my every move. It was very enjoyable. Ingrid takes great care of these beautiful cats. I wish I could have seen them all. I'll take more photos on my next visit. Sue Davis
Please click on pictures for a closer look!

Sue,
When I moved from Boise out to my 10 acres in Eagle 10 years ago, I brought with me one house cat. Today, I have between 40 and 50 cats, give or take a dozen. You ask me how that happened? I ask MYSELF how that happened!

I grew up on a farm, which included a bunch of barn cats -not 40 or 50, but some--so when I got my own place, I knew barn cats were in order, and one house cat wasn't going to do the trick. So, I got 3 kittens from the same litter from one of my employees that had kittens and had to get rid of them. So I brought them home and promptly got them 'fixed' and all was well.

Then, soon, somebody else had kittens they needed to find homes for, and I'd take a couplebring them home, and promptly get them fixed. Or a friend from Boise was moving, or a friend of the friend had a stray cat that they couldn't keep, and could I take it out at 'the farm'? Well, yeah, I could handle another cat, as long as it was 'fixed', was it?? Oh, yes, it's fixed....okay..... And, all was still well.

Somewhere along the way, either consciously or unconsciously, there was a batch of kittens (growing up, we always had kittens. We had one momma that would have the babies out under the bush in the front yard while us kids watched! Was that cool, or what?? And I LOVE kittens!) So now it was my turn to give kittens away. Which I did, then had the rest of them 'fixed' and the equilibrium was kept, and all was well.

Well, I know you know where this story is going.......
Somewhere along the way, not all of them got 'fixed', or an unfixed one wandered in, or got dropped off, or SOMEHOW ended up at my place. Consequently, there was a batch of kittens. But, not to worry, cuz I LOVE kittens, so I gave some away, and got some fixed, and all was pretty okay.

Then there were more kittens. Then there were cats that I didn't recognize. Then there were little half grown kittens that I'd never seen before. Then there were batches of kittens EVERY where, and little mewlings coming from every little possible nesting place, and little half-grown kittens having kittens and not knowing how to take care of them, and more daddy cats that I didn't have a clue where THEY came from, and all of a sudden ALL WAS NOT WELL anymore!!

I'd take the most promiscuous and best-producing momma cats and get them fixed, which was so expensive it was outrageous. So I started asking family and friends to help fund my "Get 'em Fixed" program, which they did, and which helped, but even concentrating on just spaying the females, I still couldn't get back on top of the population boom. Plus by that time, having so many cats, alot of them were getting colds and sneezes and sniffles, and whatever else cats pass around amongst themselves, and it became just too big of a problem and project to get a handle on.

Finally, with all the sick cats, and kittens dying and not being born healthy, I had to do something for the sake of the cats. Because I love kittens and cats, and couldn't stand to see them all like that. So I started taking the sick ones to Dr Katie Wright at the Eagle Animal Clinic, and in the course of trying to doctor them, told her the dilemma I was up against and that I needed some help getting on top of the cat explosion. She referred me to the Idaho Humane Society, and told me of the clinics they have each week where the local veterinarians go out to IHS and have a Spay and Neuter Clinic and spay and neuter at a greatly reduced rate.

I started out taking just the female cats and kittens that I could catch. Then Vangie (who works with the Humane Society to help get the cat population under control) told me about Lou Ann, and the feral cat program through SNIP, because by this time, I had more cats than I knew. And rarely saw a lot of them, let alone catch them and pet them. Lou Ann lined me up with 10 cat traps, and I went to work trapping feral cats. I filled those 10 cat traps up three weeks in a row, and took them to the clinics to get all the cats fixed.

Then I started re-catching cats that had already been spayed or neutered, so it got to be a little harder to catch the un-fixed ones. But I could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, and could finally kind of get a count on how many more un-fixed ones I had. And at that point, every time I caught an un-fixed one and could make another tic mark and add one to the 'fixed' column it was so rewarding I was ecstatic. It got to be a game of wits between me and the cats, because they caught on to the traps; all the ones that had been caught send out messages to all the others, and even canned cat food wasn't enough enticement.

At one point I had to board up my barn, make sure the target cat(s) were in the barn, then catch all the cats and turn the ones with notched ears loose outside the barn. (When they spay or neuter feral cats the vets notch one of the cat's ears so you can tell if they've been done or not.) One cat was the only cat in the barn, and it took him at least a week or more to finally get in the trap to eat. THEN, I saw that his ear was notched--I'd been zeroing in on the wrong cat that whole time!!! (Even though the ear is notched, it's sometimes hard to see the notch, because the cats don't exactly sit still and let you peer at them for very long.)

Finally, through perseverance, and the help of many folks that care about animals, I THINK (fingers are crossed) my cat population is under control. At last count, I think I was up to about 38 cats/kittens that I took to the Idaho Humane Society to have neutered and spayed. That's not counting the ones that I had done previously (yes, I HAD done some --just not enough!) And I sort of lost count because there were a few trips that I ended up taking notched-ear ones that had already been done; but 38 is fairly accurate.

And the rest of the best part of the story is a phone call I got from Lou Ann, asking if I could use some cat food. Uuh, yeeaahhh! with 50 cats to feed, I certainly COULD use some extra cat food!! And a phone call to Sue at Boise Cycle got me not only a couple bags of cat food and some cans of food for the little kittens, but some dog food too! Oh, I haven't mentioned the dogs, have I?

Well, when I first moved out to the farm 10 years ago, I had two dogs-a Dalmatian, that was getting up in years, and a Australian shepherd to help me 'work' the cows I was going to have. (I do have cows, but that dog was no help with them. He kept getting kicked in the head by a horse, and is now a little goofy and has to stay in the yard). Same story with the dogs as with the cats--people kept finding strays, or couldn't keep their dog any more and needed a place for it. I have too big of a heart, and can't say no. Luckily, all the dogs ARE fixed, and I never had puppies. So I only ended up with 4 dogs. But they eat about as much as 50 cats, so the dog food Sue gave me was a God-send too.

You folks that donate the food that helps me feed all my critters are the best people in the world!! People like you, who are willing to share and each do a little bit, helps the animals more than you will ever know. Without help from you folks, there would be a lot of animals out in the cold suffering and not making it through the winter. Sue tells me of people that are taking care of feral cats that have to build shelters for them, and go to all kinds of trouble to keep them warm and out of the weather; at least I don't have that to deal with that-- I have a hay barn that a bunch of them live in, where they can find little cracks and crevices in the hay stack and all pile in together and keep warm, and a regular barn with all sorts of beds and old blankets for them to pile up on. So the food you donate is greatly, greatly appreciated by me and all the others that take in animals.

Thank you very, very much to ALL the people who have helped me, and continue to help take care of the animals in the world. It IS greatly appreciated.
Janine

Sue,
To Thank all the donors who donated money for cat and dog food. I would like to take the time to Thank You for the donation I received from Boise Cycle. My name is Sharonet Tablit and two years ago I started seeing a need in treasure valley and in my own neighbor hood for feral cats and dogs. I didn't know too much but I see a need. One cat standing frozen on Fairview and hungry and neglected dogs without shelter.

I contacted an organization and I was put in contact with 'snip' who does some wonderful work to help the cats in our community to stabilize the population. What I found out after researching is that when cats are hungry and not neutered or spayed they fight a lot and they produce every 6 months new kittens and the population grows. And we find our shelters filled with unwanted kittens and cats euthanized because owners leave their cats behind and the feral cats keep producing. Trap, neuter and return, we are able to provide care for these cats and do our part in society to do what is humane.

I'm feral caretaker for 25 cats. I provide shelter for them and food and water. It does get expensive. That is why I appreciate the donations of cat and dog food. At this time I'm helping a lady in my neighborhood who just got laid off and has her black lab of 10 yrs and blind cat named boo boo. So this food has really helped Buster and boo boo to keep their home and for her to keep her long time friends. There is a puppy, mini pin that had no shelter or food. I gave him a kennel and bag of food and check on him everyday and try to educate his owners on caring for Doug the puppy. He also has been sharing his little home with two feral kittens and he is protective over them. How amazing. There is also a senior citizen and veteran who was left with her husbands pit bulls after he passed away. She cares for them but she is on fixed income and this food really helps her and she has expressed her Thanks for all the help.

Helping these animals is not a chore, its our part in our community and society to care for them. The cats and dogs in my neighborhood Thank You for the generous donations and also Thank Carl and Sue for organizing this food drive.
Sincerely Sharonet Tablit Feral Care Taker

Ms. Sue,

THANK YOU. You have helped a family stay together. Some people just don't understand that the "family pet" can be very crucial to happiness and healing. Duke and Dixie (pictured below) are much more to our family than a "pet". They are an integral part of our life. Times are difficult and each family has a story. Your kindness in donating food for our 4 legged family members has helped more than you could ever know! I definitely know that others have it far worse than my family does but I would like to let you know how the past 16 months have affected us. The story begins:

Ciara (pictured with sister Halle below ) was born on 7-14-06. After several months she was diagnosed with asthma. Tying to get an infant to use an inhaler is tricky at best. On 6-2-08 about 7:30pm my wife and I had given our daughter her nightly treatment with an inhaler. I got up to put the inhaler away and heard I crash come from the front room. I ran around the corner and there sat my precious angle covered in blood and yelling as loud as she could. Ciara had pulled over a 20 gallon fish tank that had sand, sea shells from our wedding, and a tiny bear in a lounge chair over on her and it broke. As I approached Ciara I saw her face cut severely.

Her left nostril had been severed completely, part of her upper lip cut off, her right eye cut and many other cuts. I yelled to my wife to get our other daughter and get to the car. We had a hospital less than 2 miles away. I had my wife drive as I held my baby who would not stop bleeding. I tried to hold her to comfort her but she was in tremendous pain. As we got to Mercy Hospital I literally kicked the door in and started yelling for help. The nurses and doctors help me clean her up. Ciara had swallowed a lot of blood and she started to vomit from it. I told the nurses not to let my wife in. I had to take care of Ciara. It was my job. All Ciara wanted was daddy to hold her.

So I asked the hospital staff to give her some Tylenol and leave us alone until the plastic surgeon arrived. The plastic surgeon was on call and it seemed to take an eternity to arrive. I started singing to my daughter (a song I sing to her now every day). The song is “that’s my cupcake”. It soothed her and she calmed down instantly. The hospital staff was amazed at how fast she relaxed when I sang to her. I had sung it to her on the day she was born and she seemed to like it and it has been something we sing to each other daily. The plastic surgeon arrived and started to work. He asked “what are your expectations?” My reply was “make my baby beautiful again. Just make her beautiful again.” The doctor took a picture after my daughter was sedated. When he was finished I asked what he thought the outcome would be. He told me “we will just have to wait. She has the worst case of facial lacerations I have seen. How did this happen again?” No one knows for sure but he estimated between 50-70 stitches…all in the face of a 23 month old.

A month later I was let go from a fortune 42 company that has 4 retail locations in the valley. I had been an Area Loss Prevention and Safety Manager for them for 6 years. Sixteen weeks later we lost our home because we could not afford the mortgage, loosing an 80K job is devastating. We moved to Meridian on 11-22-08. Things went from bad to worse over the next ten months. There were many times that I thought "milk and food for the girls or dog food". I am not quite sure how we managed but we scraped by. In July of this year I hurt my back and I have been in non-stop pain since. Since that time I have had more doctor appts than I care to remember. Two weeks ago I was referred to a pain management doctor. During a visit with an orthopedic surgeon I was informed that I may have Ehlers-Danlos syndrome type 3. EDS is a group of connective tissue disorders, caused by a defect in the synthesis of collagen (a protein in connective tissue).

The collagen in connective tissue helps tissues to resist deformation (increases its elasticity). In the skin, muscles, ligaments, blood vessels, and visceral organs collagen plays a very significant role and with reduced elasticity, secondary to abnormal collagen, pathology results. Depending on the individual mutation, the severity of the syndrome can vary from mild to life-threatening. There is no cure and treatment is supportive, including close monitoring of cardiovascular system. I have had 7 shoulder surgeries since 2001. Each surgery last about a year then my tendons and labrum tear causing pain. I have to have a genetic screen done to confirm and I need to have it done so we can take the steps necessary to ensure our kids do not suffer.

We are not sure how we are going to handle the future but we know that we can and will. We know this because of kind people such as you who are generous. Dixie (7 year old mini-beagle) and Duke (2 year old harlequin Great Dane) have made the last year better for our entire family. We are blessed to be in a community that cares. We are blessed that our family was placed in contact with kind people such as yourself. My entire family thanks you!

I have attached a couple of pictures of the pups and the girls that you have helped.
Kirt Schweigert

Sue,
I do what I do primarily because I like cats: Their social, intelligent, valuable, mysterious, and a bit misunderstood animals. Secondly, I feel it's our duty as citizens of this great state to have compassion for those less fortunate than we are, whether man or animal.
With a little combined effort, we can control the population of cat colonies in our city by adoption, spay, and neutering. Food donated to Boise Cycle is used to feed these animals while other agencies, like SNIP, catch, treat, foster, and adopt.
While many of the cats are feral, a large number are orphaned and simply left to fend for themselves, some of which perish. We can stop this by donating food and/or time to care for these wonderful creatures. It is a myth that these animals cannot be cared into society. I have first hand experience with cats that would run in fear at the sight of a human, now sitting on the laps of caring owners.
(The orange tabby pictured is one of the many cats in the colony that John feeds.) And it starts by concerned caring people helping to feed them. Donated food allows me to feed several colonies daily, and is the most important step in their survival. It also allows me to gain their trust.

Help us to help them. I can see the thanks in their eyes.

John

We have found that the need for pet food goes on all year, so we'll continue to help people in need.  If you can help anytime this year by purchasing an extra bag of pet food for cats or dogs, it would be greatly appreciated.

 Click on the “Thank you for donating” box and read some of the thank-you letters with pictures from grateful people, and get your name, business, or group listed on our website along with so many other generous people who have donated. Let’s keep it going all year!

PLEASE BRING BAGS OF CAT OR DOG FOOD TO BOISE CYCLE
Boise Cycle is at 9621 Ustick Road in Boise, ID 83704.  

IF YOU WOULD RATHER DONATE MONEY,
WE WOULD BE GLAD TO PURCHASE THE FOOD IN YOUR NAME 
We are in close contact with those in need of pet food through local animal rescue groups.  We hand the food directly to those who need it.

Phone 208-375-9431.                                         Email:   boisecycle@aol.com
Hours:  Tuesday thru Friday 9:30 to 6:30   Saturday 10 to 4.   Closed Sunday and Monday

Thank You for Caring!

....Would You Consider?

These little brothers are between 4 & 5 months old, with distinctive personalities and very sweet! Chancy is the tabby and "big brother" to Samson. Chancys a little shy, but purrs the minute he's picked up.

Samson is grey and white, petite, very outgoing and full of curiosity!
They both love to be held and sit in your lap.
They are neutered, fully vaccinated for 1 year, wormed, tested negative for FeLV/FIV and micro-chipped.

They would love to be adopted together, but would consider being separated. GOOD, HAPPY, LOVING HOMES ARE WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT.

For our adoption fee we're asking that a donation of $30.00 each be made to
“RIDER’S NEEDY CAT FUND” at The Cat Doctor.
If you would like to see them with adoption in mind, please call Sue @ 208-866-2716

What makes Boise Cycle stand out- We CARE about your Harley.