DEWITT, Mich. — Sigmund Freud had a saying, “time spent with cats is never wasted.” This week's Good Neighbor agrees with that. She's been saving cats for the last year.
But they're not just cats, they're special needs cats and they're making a difference in her life.
DeWitt resident Lexi Powers has rescued more than 40 cats. She and her mom Sarah have a dedicated room in their house where they rehabilitate the rescued kittens and cats.
The duo is part of the non-profit Saved by Zade, which helps to stop cat overpopulation through spay and neuter programs.
Sarah says they love to be able to help kittens and cats in need.
“We help the blind kitties; we help kitties that have broken or fractured jaws. We've had a couple of kitties that are called Manx kitties," said Powers. "Most of us know that refers to kitties as having a little nub or a bit of a tail. There are some with absolutely no tail at all. Without having a tail, they are missing part of their spine. You can kind of liken it to Spina Bifida in humans.”
Jodi Schrader started the non-profit Saved by Zade several years ago. She says she has 60 to 70 active foster families, like Lexi and Sarah, that help take care of cats.
Schrader says the name of her non-profit, Saved by Zade, doesn’t mean anything other than it’s catchy. She also says the need to spay, neuter, and take care of sick cats is great and the numbers increased last year in the middle of COVID.
“There was one week in December we had over 70 kitties fixed just in one week. Those numbers we are usually pulling in maybe August," said Schrader.
Lexi and Sarah say that it can be costly to care for all the kitties, but the shelter supports fosters who are in need of food and litter. The vet bills and medications are also taken care of by the organization.
Sarah is currently taking care of a two-month-old kitten named Pinky who wasn’t doing so well.
“I picked her up from surgery on Saturday night, “Sarah said. “She had a rectal prolapse which is not super uncommon in Kitty's mode. Unfortunately, it was her second one, which makes it just more difficult to treat. She's an absolute doll and we want her to get better, so we spend lots of time with her. She has special food that she must eat. We must make sure that she gets enough water.”
Lexi says helping the sick cats makes her feel like she’s giving back and making a difference.
“Watching them grow and helping them heal and just seeing their resilience come into fruition is amazing to me because I see them start out is so sick and unable to care for themselves. I give them the care they need and then they grow into these amazing cats, and they develop their personalities. You develop relationships with them and it's just amazing to watch how they improve. That's what I love!”
We want to say thank you to Lexi and Sarah Powers and all the volunteers who are part of Saved by Zade. You are this week’s Good Neighbors.
If you would like more information on the cat and kitten rehabilitation program Saved By Zade you can visit their website at www.savedbyzade.com.
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