Students foster cat from non-profit.
The soft meows from the house grew louder as Lauren Opdyke ’19 approached the front door to her off-campus house. Behind the door, a cat with brown striped fur and green eyes waited, ready to reward her with affection.
After a long day of classes, Opdyke and her housemates Sarah Dattilo ’19, Ali Kloiber ’19, Marlaina Hahn ’19, Kennedy Sanders ’19, Emily Cento ’19 and Abby Hegarty ’19 come home to Ivy the cat.
“Animals are definitely a de-stressor,” Opdyke said. “Going home after an exam and having her be there is nice.”
At the beginning of the fall 2017 semester, the women decided to foster a cat in their off-campus house to ward off mice they’d been warned about. They went to the Philadelphia-based nonprofit charity, Spay and Save and found Treasure, whom they later named Ivy.
“She was rescued from the streets of Philadelphia,” Opdyke said. “She was involved in a building collapse very shortly after she was hit by a car right after giving birth to her kittens.”
Spay and Save, which was founded by Peg Banes in the late 70s, helps cats and dogs like Ivy find homes and caretakers.
Spay and Save President Christine Daniels said generally the organization asks people to foster cats, but they do have a small dog division too. The nonprofit provides all supplies and veterinary care to people who foster their animals.
“Our founder was very much against charging for animals, but we do accept donations of any amount,” Daniels said. “She would rescue a lot of strays that were near the school she taught in. Eventually she and a few friends were rescuing so many that they decided to start a nonprofit organization.”
Spay and Save has nine adoption sites in the area and partners with Petco, Pet Valu, Perk Valley Pet Eatery and Pet Supplies Plus.
“We’re very proud of our organization and the fact that we still are all-volunteer,” Daniels said.
The nonprofit says they need more people to foster and adopt cats and dogs. Generally, Spay and Save does not get a lot of college students willing to foster, Daniels said.
“We would like more college students to get involved,” Daniels said.
Ivy was about nine months old when Opdyke and her housemates got her.
“She would just run and hide under our couch,” Opdyke said. “People scared her and there was seven people living in my house.”
After several months, Ivy eventually adjusted to the large household.
“She went from hiding under anything she could get under to being at your feet,” Opdyke said. “She’s funny. She’ll jump on the couch and sit next to you until you pet her.”
The process of taking care of Ivy and making her feel comfortable was a difficult adjustment for the household.
“Half of the house had pets growing up and the other half didn’t,” Opdyke said. “So, it was weird having our roommates teach us how take care of a pet. It was definitely an adjustment to get used to, but a cool one.”
When their foster contract came to an end, Sarah Dattilo ’19 and her housemates set up appointments for other people to foster Ivy.
“It was definitely weird fostering because at one point we had a couple come meet her and it was a strange feeling to think that she may not be in our house any longer,” Dattilo said in an email.
Shortly after, Dattilo reached out to the nonprofit and requested the adoption information for Ivy.
“I have three cats at home,” Dattilo said in an email. “Adopting her was like adding another one to the family.”
