By the time fall comes, all of us involved with Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) and kitten rescue are exhausted. As much as we care about helping feral and stray cats, retiring from volunteer work sounds pretty tempting about now, and we seriously consider stepping down at season’s end.

Each spring we wait with eager anticipation for the kittens which we know are on their way. Nothing says spring quite like new life, even though the ones we care for are unwanted and should never be born at all.

Kitten season begins as the weather warms and continues until the temperature drops again. During this time, queens drop two to three litters of four to six kittens each. When we catch them, we put an end to their constant breeding through spay and neuter, and tame the kittens for adoption.

Kittens born on the streets are rarely healthy when they come to us. Even if they are not sick, they are all infested with fleas and other parasites. We open our homes and hearts to them, teaching what it means to be loved by humans for the few weeks they are in our care.

The healthiest are moved through our organization fast enough that they leave nothing behind but fond memories and a few photos. It’s the sick and injured ones that grab hold of our hearts and don’t let go. They are the ones that tire us out and break our spirits when we fail to heal their broken bodies and bury them on a sunny hillside instead.

Most of our volunteers specialize in different aspects of TNR and kitten rescue, for there are lots of things to do.

The trappers are crucial, as they are our first line of defense against stopping the breeding. Working in the evening and sometimes into the night, it may take days to finish a job. These people rarely touch a cat as they are dealing with ferals.

Some trappers also relocate cats that cannot be returned to their home territories for some reason following spay/neuter surgery. This involves many more hours of effort, finding suitable barns and setting up the relocation cages, then returning for the equipment two weeks later.

Kitten fosters take on the little ones. Some specialize in bottle-feeding, others in socializing older kittens. All of this is done in private homes and involves many hours of dedicated care. It is one of the most rewarding and fun parts of volunteer work.

Personally I take on the difficult cases, the sick or injured ones that need special attention. I’ve often wondered what makes me gravitate towards the kittens no one else wants to deal with. This same trait has followed me my whole life as I took on impossible projects at work.

Luckily I’ve had a pretty good success rate nursing kittens back to health, then sending them off to loving forever homes. It’s the ones I couldn’t save that haunt me, and each loss weighs heavier than the last. The survivors thank me with purrs, which is why I will be back next year.

But when will this season end?