By Anita Weier
Northside News
Coyla Rankin has been fostering cats and matching them with potential human friends for seven years. A Cherokee resident, she is retired and volunteers with Underdog Pet Rescue.
She began by fostering dogs but stopped when one of her cats had a problem with dogs. Then she started fostering cats. After her own two cats aged out, she no longer owns cats but has continued fostering.
“I like to travel when that is possible, and they get lonely when their person is not around,” explained Rankin. “It’s not fair to a permanent cat.”
Those who foster for Underdog Pet Rescue put photos and information about the animals on Facebook, where questions can be asked and answered.
There is an application process, so potential pet owners understand what is expected of them. “We have a Meet and Greet, where people used to come to the home, but now we meet in dog parks so we can be socially distanced,” Rankin explained. Other options include Zoom or Facetime meetings.
A potential adopter fills out a contract, which is sent and returned by email. “It is all no touch. Dogs must be on a leash and small animals in a carrier. The administrator of Underdog has come up with suggested procedures to keep everybody safe,” she added.
Foster parents range from college students to retired people, and the number of foster parents has increased during the pandemic, Rankin said. “Those of us who have fostered for a while act as mentors. Once people have done two or three, they are pretty confident,” she said.
One potential problem for those who foster cats and dogs is they tend to adopt the ones they really like. “A foster fail is when the foster person adopts,” Rankin said. “That happens quite a bit.”
She has definite rules, such as not placing kittens under 6 months old with children under 6 years of age. “I want to keep the child and the animal safe,” she explained. “We require that cats and kittens be indoors and not declawed,” which is regarded as an amputation that changes the cat’s gait and causes pain and hip problems. Rankin noted that “soft paw” devices can be placed on claws to prevent scratching of furniture.
Underdog brings many animals to the Midwest from the South, where fewer animals are spayed and neutered. Underdog placed more than 100 animals a month in 2020, primarily dogs and cats. “A lot of people now have time to get a pet acclimated to their home since they are home most of the time during the pandemic,” she said.
Underdog’s adult cat adoption fee is $75, which covers spaying or neutering, rabies and distemper shots, a few other tests or preventatives, and microchipping.
Rankin began fostering after she met a friend who was socializing a dog at a street party on Atwood Avenue. The friend was a foster parent who worked with Underdog Pet Rescue and served as Rankin’s reference with the organization. Rankin was also extensively interviewed.
“The shortest time I have had an animal was two days and the longest was a couple of months,” she said. She will not take in litters of kittens of more than four. “Though kittens require more care than cats, it is rewarding to watch them grow and begin to trust and love people.”
Rankin fostered only one cat that was returned. Puppies are returned more frequently because people don’t realize how much work they will be, as they have to be trained and taken outside to eliminate waste.
“Between the questionnaire, talking to people and the Meet and Greet, we generally find the right home,” she added.
Love at first sight
By Anita Weier
Northside News
Diane Samdahl knew Coyla Rankin fostered cats for adoption, so she stopped in to see her. “She had this cute little black cat, and I know they are hard to place. The cat jumped from the table to my shoulder and purred into my ear, and I knew she was the cat for me,” Samdahl recalled.
“She was named Midnight, but I renamed her Liza, like the song, Liza Jane. I wanted two cats, so I got another about the same age from another fosterer,” she said. “The two kittens got along well with my Springer spaniel, who recently passed. They would often sleep with him.”
Liza is all black except for a dozen white hairs on her chest. She is a domestic short hair and small at 8 pounds. April is a Tuxedo cat and weighs 10 pounds. They often curl up together or chase each other around the house. The pals are now about two and a half years old.
“Liza has a sweet personality,” Samdahl said. “She comes to check on me as soon as I start waking up in the morning. She spends a lot of time watching birds out the front window. She’ll scoot into the garage whenever I’m too slow to stop her, where she makes paw prints on my windshield.”
Samdahl, who moved here from Georgia three years ago, is retired and lives in Whitetail Ridge. She started fostering cats herself about six months ago.
