Say hello to Rogue Community Cat Rescue
By Midge Raymond
The lobby of the Rogue Community Cat Rescue’s new Medford facility is warm and welcoming, with bright pillows decorating a bench below a sign with the organization’s new name and logo. Formerly Feral Cats Advocacy (FCA), the nonprofit is rebranding to better represent its range of services, says president and executive director Amanda Linnehan.
Though the mission will continue to focus largely on feral cats — through trap-neuter-return (TNR), rehabilitating and socializing adoptable cats and kittens and educating the community about spay/neuter — the new name will help the community recognize the myriad services they provide, says Linnehan, including adoptions. “People hear the word ‘feral’ and think it’s scary, and when we go to adoption events, people ask, ‘Oh, are these cats feral?’ On the one hand, it’s a really good teaching moment, but on the other hand, we lose adoptions we shouldn’t have to lose because of that word.”
Even more, “the new name encompasses all that we’re doing. It’s the Rogue Valley, it’s community — cats, people — and it’s cat rescue. It encompasses everything.”
Past the building’s lobby is the Community Food Bank, which is also a big part of Rogue Community Cat Rescue’s mission — to help people keep their cats in their homes, despite any barriers they might have, and to help those who feed community cats continue to do so. (Anyone in the community who may need help with food or litter to care for their cats can call or text 541-631-4322.) The rescue also hopes to expand on the Friends of the Animals’ efforts in providing low-cost vaccines and microchipping, as well as to work with Rogue Valley Street Dogs to help the cats of those who are unhoused or who need assistance with food, supplies and veterinary care.
Other rooms at the new facility are devoted to cats who are in quarantine and under medical care. All cats go through a two-week quarantine after intake, and there are currently 65 cats in the program, a low number compared to the rest of the year. In late December, the only resident in quarantine was Squeak, a sweet, friendly tabby who had been surrendered to the emergency vet in November with three fractures to her pelvis. Rogue Community Cat Rescue took her in to give her the four to six weeks she needed to heal, as well as to treat her with fluids for dehydration and meds for pain and an upper respiratory infection. She is now playful and energetic — and trying to abide by the vet’s instructions of “no jumping” — and will soon be on her way to adoption.
“After their quarantine, we try to get them into foster,” Linnehan says, “unless we’re watching them for something medical.” The cat areas — bright, free-roaming rooms filled with cat trees, beds and toys — currently house only a few cats, including Lady Chatterly (named for her love of conversation), who was part of a feral colony that Rogue Community Cat Rescue was trapping. The volunteers quickly realized Lady Chatterly was not feral; when they found a microchip, they were able to track down her humans and discover that she had gone missing during a move nine years earlier. Now 15 years old, Lady Chatterly’s people are unfortunately no longer able to care for her — but, during the writing of this column, Lady Chatterly was adopted into a home where she will have a warm lap and a lifelong companion.
Still awaiting their forever home are two bonded pairs, Frank and Beans, and Finn and Lily. These two pairs have been in foster together for so long they are actually a bonded foursome — but after two years of waiting for a new home, they would be happy to go home in pairs. Because they don’t adjust quickly to new situations, these four cats need patient humans; as Linnehan points out, it takes three days for cats to decompress in a new environment, three weeks to learn a new routine, and three months to start to feel at home — and it takes a special family to be willing to wait the weeks or months it can take for shy cats to adjust.
Despite the benefits of having a new clinic, “we’ve already outgrown it,” Linnehan says. Rogue Community Cat Rescue is aiming to purchase a bigger property in 2026 — one with a bit of land to accommodate ferals who can’t be returned to their colonies or adopted out. “Right now it’s all spread out,” Linnehan says. “We have two ‘cat camps,’ which are holding stations for ferals that need to be moved into the barn program. My house is ‘fungal jungle,’ but I’m trying to transition that out.”
Linnehan is referring to ringworm, which is highly contagious and challenging to treat. Having the clinic makes it far easier to care for such outbreaks. The rescue has volunteers who come in for morning and evening shifts, tackling cleaning, feeding and medical care. “We have a really good routine. The rooms get mopped every day. We keep things really, really clean.” Even people without experience can learn to administer meds to the cats, Linnehan says. “We teach people and walk them through it.”
In addition to volunteers, Rogue Community Cat Rescue is also looking for fosters and donations of both money and supplies. The Community Food Bank welcomes new bags of dry food for all stages of life (kitten, adult, senior), canned food for all life stages, treats, supplements and kitty litter. The best way to reach out is via text at 541-631-4322, or visit the website to learn how to help.
Ashland resident Midge Raymond is co-founder of Ashland Creek Press and author of the novels “Floreana” and “My Last Continent” and co-author of “Devils Island.” Email suggestions and questions for Catty Corner to her at [email protected].
