National Pet Day is April 11th, but your pets aren’t the only animals that deserve to be recognized and loved. If you want to help animals outside of your house, there are plenty of ways!
Bring a cat in for a night.
Minnesota winters are brutal, and there are unfortunately far too many stray cats around. If you happen to come across a cat on a cold winter night, here’s the best way to take care of them.
The cat will likely be nervous, so crouch down and let it approach you. Getting it into your house or apartment can be tricky, but the second time I rescued a cat for a night I coaxed her inside with a can of tuna. It took a while, but it worked.
Once the cat is inside, take a picture and post to any animal/lost and found/pet Facebook pages in your area. Someone may recognize it as being someone’s pet.
If you have a can of tuna, that will work for food. Otherwise run to the dollar store and pick up a can of cat food along with a bag of litter and an oil pan. These quick, cheap items will work in an emergency. To reduce the risk of the cat having an accident, fill the oil pan with litter and bring the cat to it. Take one of the cat’s paws and rub it in the litter so that it knows what and where it is.
If no one responds to the Facebook posts, call Animal Control the next morning. They will come pick the cat up, bring it to the vet to check for a microchip, and once there is an opening at a Humane Society, the cat will be brought there. Below are the two cats I brought in for a night.
Become a vegetarian or cut back on meat.
One of the biggest ways to help animals is to become a vegetarian. Though some people believe that one person doesn’t make a difference, you definitely can. I’m not sure how accurate vegetariancalculator.com is, but it says that in my 2 years and 7 months of being a vegetarian, I have saved 522 animals. People think it’s a lot harder than it is, but in reality there are so many alternatives that, at least in my opinion, taste almost exactly like the real thing. MorningStar Farms is a good brand to check out if you’re interested in alternatives. If going full-on vegetarian is too big of a step for you, even just cutting back on the amount of meat you eat can make a difference. The animals will thank you!
Visit cats at the Humane Society.
Visiting all of the cats at the Humane Society is a good option if you aren’t able to have a cat at this point in your life. Not only do you get to spend time getting some cat stress relief, but the cats will be super happy to get some love while they are at the Humane Society awaiting their forever homes. And who knows . . . maybe someday you’ll end up adopting one of them!
Be sure to show your pet some extra love on April 11th, but don’t forget about all of the other precious animals out there!