The Cat Help and Rescue Movement, called CHARM for short, is an agency whose goal is to save animals from the streets. Although they love and respect all animals, cats are their specialty. The agency actually started in 1990 with a project to save cats from the Phoenix, Arizona streets.
Helping Cats on the Streets
Project Street Cats has saved many cats from the cruel streets of Phoenix. These cats were picked up and taken to shelters for medical treatment. There they would be examined, spayed or neutered, vaccinated, and then implanted with a microchip that would allow the cats to be tracked. This project, which has proven successful, is ongoing today.
The microchips allow the cats to be tracked, and often if cats are found with tracking they are sent back to CHARM for treatment. Microchips are about the size of a grain of rice and are inserted beneath the skin. These chips help confirm ownership and can aid in the return of lost animals. Veterinarians can swipe the microchip and see if the animal has had vaccinations or other important facts concerning its medical records.
No Kill Shelters Help Keep Cats Alive
CHARM is a no kill animal shelter. This means that animals are only euthanized at these types of shelters if they are too sick to recover. Occasionally they will euthanize an animal that is overly aggressive or has a history of violence. Between three and four million animals are killed each year in the United States. CHARM feels that this number is too high and is trying to help by doing projects like Project Street Cats and also offering low cost spay and neuter programs for low income families. Population control can be achieved through spay and neuter programs instead of euthanization.
Because of the mild weather in Arizona, cats can have up to three litters a year. There is always an influx of kittens. Many blame the influx of cats on the massacre of bobcats which helped keep bugs and rats to a minimum. Without bobcats, domestic breeds are left the job of controlling pests. CHARM has set up one hundred feeding stations around the city. Cats are monitored at these feeding stations for disease and to ensure that cats have been fixed to keep from breeding.
How You Can Help Cats
CHARM operates only on donations. With so many cats in the Phoenix and surrounding areas, this is quite an undertaking. There are many similar agencies across America that save animals from the streets. Many are modeled after CHARM and its successes. Most will take donations for food, cleaning supplies, blankets, toys and other needed items. Of course, money is always appreciated and can really make a difference for these cats.
If you are looking for a cat to adopt, these no-kill shelters, like CHARM, have an abundance of cats available for adoption. The process is simple. You will have an interview and then fill out an adoption contract. The staff will answer any questions you may have and help you pick out an animal.