05/08/2026
Tonight, three cats arrived at The Cat Shelter from Poplar Bluff, Missouri.
They were transported here by volunteers from an area where animal services are extremely limited — and where cats can suffer for a long time before help comes.
When they arrived, they were covered in fleas. Not a few live fleas. Not a little flea dirt. Covered.
Each cat needed a full flea treatment, including a bath and a careful comb-out over their entire body. Swipe after swipe, the comb came away filled with fleas.
This is what rescue looks like before the clean blankets, before the vet visit, before the adoption photos.
It starts with the urgent, hands-on work that is not frequently seen: removing the fleas, checking their bodies, providing food, water and soft bedding, helping them settle, and figuring out what each cat will need next.
In a few days, these three will receive dewormer. On Monday, they’ll see our vet for thorough exams. Because they are unaltered, we’ll also schedule their spay/neuter surgeries and provide whatever else they need.
They are not unusual. Cats like this are always coming.
As the warm months approach, fleas, ticks, worms, infections, and disease become even harder on cats already trying to survive outside or in communities without enough resources.
GiveSTL Day is about being ready for them.
Ready when the call comes.
Ready when volunteers drive them across the state.
Ready when they arrive covered in fleas and needing care right now.
From 9–10 tonight, donations can help us even more during the GiveSTL Day Power Hour.
We are trying to raise $40,000 this GiveSTL Day so we can stay ready for cats like these — cats who arrive needing immediate care before we even know the full extent of what they’ll need.
Right now, gifts are also being matched up to $15,000, which means your donation can go twice as far.
Please give tonight and help us keep saying yes.
Donate here:
www.givestlday.org/organization/thecatshelter
