Kitty Komrades Aides in Finding Felines Forever Homes

The Ohio Valley has a LOT of cats. More specifically, this area has a lot of cats in need of homes.

That’s partly what spurred Rebekah Zeigler to dream up and open Kitty Comrades, a non-profit cat rescue headquartered in Glen Dale.

She’d worked at the animal shelter and served as a veterinary technician for five years. Her educational background is in biology and animal science.

While working with the animals at both shelters and veterinary offices was rewarding, she always felt she could do more; needed to do more.

“When I saw how bad the cat population was, I knew I wanted to do more, so I got certified in November of 2018, and we started the rescue,” Zeigler said.

Every Sunday you will find Zeigler and her boyfriend working the booth inside Pet Supplies Plus in St. Clairsville, displaying usually up to 10 cats and kittens who are up for adoption.

Those are just a small portion of the number of felines in the care of Kitty Comrades, waiting for a home. The total amount ranges in the 70s and above.

Kitty Komrades doesn’t have an official brick-and-mortar location unless you count Zeigler’s home. She has nine personal cats of her own, plus upwards of 25 fosters on her property.

She and her team of volunteers all foster in-house. Additional foster families are always welcome and appreciated.

“Some of our friends and neighbors help out too, but we are always looking for more people to help,” Zeigler said.

Donations Up, Adoptions Fees Down

Kitty Komrades in a way is similar to other rescue organizations you find throughout the Ohio Valley.

One, it’s non-profit. Two, all of its “employees” are volunteers. No one is getting paid, aside from the love and attention they receive back from the cats.

The rescue subsists entirely on donations and some occasional out-of-pocket expenses from Zeigler and her fellow volunteers.

But there are two main differences. One, while a non-profit, Kitty Komrades is a 501c9 organization and not 501c3. That means while the rescue is a non-profit, it’s not eligible for government funding.

“We register as a non-profit, but we do not receive any government funding, and I kind of did it on purpose,” Zeigler admitted. “There are sometimes issues with people wanting to get paid, and when you start paying people, they do it for all of the wrong reasons.

“All of us are doing it for the cats.”

The second key difference, and the one that seems all the more unlikely given the first reason, is Kitty Comrades does not charge an adoption fee.

Do people still make monetary donations when they adopt one (or more) of the cats? Absolutely, and it’s definitely welcome.

But is it required, or expected? No. The volunteers at Kitty Komrades main concern is finding the kittens and cats loving homes. That’s the prime directive.

Sometimes potential adoptive kitty parents are initially taken aback at the lack of an adoption fee. The mantra is always “adopt, don’t shop,” but some shelters and rescue organizations can charge a hefty adoption fee.

“A lot of people are surprised by it,” Zeigler said. “We do receive a lot of donations though, and they help us to be able to do it that way.

“When I started, I paid for a lot of things out of pocket, so we originally charged a $50 adoption fee to help cover vet expenses. But with people’s donations, it’s really helped.”

Zeigler noted that people generally wish to donate upon learning of the no adoption fee policy. She always tells them to donate what they are comfortable with, but, again, it’s never expected.

The rescue puts on fundraisers and recently hooked up with Angel Kay Photography. They are running a promotion where pet owners can pay $75 to come in for a fancy pet photo shoot, and Angel Kay will donate $25 of the fee back to Kitty Komrades, along with a container of kitty liter for each photo shoot. That promotion runs through the end of August.

“Angel K’s has donated to our quarter auctions in the past, and she messaged me and asked about doing a fundraiser for us,” Zeigler said. “She’s also shot a number of pictures for our cats for us. She’s been really great.”

Kitty Komrades has held a dine and donate at Texas Roadhouse and is in the process of working out a similar setup with El Gran Patron in Moundsville.

The Adoption Process

While there is no adoption fee, the staff of Kitty Komrades does its homework to make sure the homes they are potentially adopting their cats and kittens into, are a good fit, and safe.

Potential parents are asked to fill out an online adoption form. It features a number of questions, including the current veterinary office that’s used. They do call to check sure the potential new owners keep up-to-date with their pets’ vaccines and appointments.

They also check to see what other types and number of animals currently live in the home and if it would be a good fit.

Once the staff is satisfied the potential home will work out, they make an arrangement to drop off the cat or kitten.

Still Plenty of Costs

The aforementioned donations play a vital role in Kitty Komrades’ ability to do what it does. After all, caring for animals is not cheap.

Zeigler noted that while the rescue receives donations of food and other items, they do their best to set aside the monetary donations entirely for veterinary care.

“We go through about close to $1,500 every vet visit. We have a small visit coming up Friday, with seven going,” Zeigler notated. “Normally we have about 15 per trip. Females are $100 to fix, the males $50, which doesn’t sound like a lot, but when you times that by 15 each trip, it gets expensive.”

That’s just the spay and neuter costs. There are naturally other veterinary costs that come up, from vaccines to unplanned visits for potential health issues.

In addition to fostering cats for adoption, Kitty Komrades also participates in trap and release and will consistently receive calls to perform said service. Those cats too require spaying or neutering.

When it comes to more feral cats, Zeigler noted they also closely examine the feral cat’s temperament and behavior to see if it’s a good candidate for adoption. If not, they will get them fixed, vaccinated, and then released, potentially to a barn on a local farm.

For more information on available cats and kittens, to donate, or even inquire about joining the Kitty Komrades foster network, visit the rescue on Facebook and also check out its recently created TikTok page.