Alexander the cat crossed state lines before being found by local rescue team Angie DelVecchio and Jessica Hallberg.
DelVecchio and Hallberg, founders of Oxford Catty Shack, spotted Alexander limping on raw and bloodied paws in Oxford before trapping him and taking him back to their facility. While visiting the vet, they discovered that Alexander was microchipped and registered in Indiana. He had escaped his home there two years ago and walked all the way to Oxford.
Since the Catty Shack’s inception in July, they have trapped and helped over 200 cats, but DelVecchio and Hallberg’s mission to help save felines is nothing new.
“So obviously we’re both cat lovers,” DelVecchio said. “I started dragging cats home when I was a little kid, and me and my kids have done it forever.”
The Oxford Catty Shack, a small barn just outside of Uptown Oxford, is full of toys, medicine, food and cats that are being treated and waiting for adoption. This week, their residents consisted of playful kittens ready to find homes, cats recovering from surgery and a pregnant mother waiting to give birth.
Both DelVecchio and Hallberg work full-time jobs, while also working full-time at the rescue.
They are able to fund the project due to donations from the community and grants from local organizations including the City of Oxford, the Oxford Community Foundation, Butler Rural Electric Company Connection, Butler Aerie 407 Fraternal Order of Eagles and the Holiday Auto Theatre. They are also assisted by lead volunteer Cindi Byrge.
DelVecchio and Hallberg were neighbors for more than a decade, during which time the pair earned a reputation for rescuing cats. People in the community knew to call the duo if they needed help.
Last summer, a local vet asked DelVecchio to trap cats for their clinic. She arrived to find a colony of nearly 100 cats.
Later that day, DelVechhio called Hallberg to see what was going on in her barn. She arrived to find 17 cats that DelVecchio had taken home to try and save.
From there, they began their cat rescue, the Oxford Catty Shack.
“My moment that I was like ‘we’re doing this’ is when I texted Angie about a cat and she said let’s go get it,” Hallberg said. “Nobody else says that.”
Feral cats are a common problem throughout the country.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that there are anywhere between 30 and 80 million “free-ranging cats” in the U.S.
“The reality is we’re all looking for someone to blame but it’s not really anyone’s fault,” Hallberg said. “Having more access to low cost spay and neuter and vaccines is the only way to solve this problem.”
Alexander is now thriving at the Oxford Catty Shack and ready for adoption. After his long journey here, he is waiting for a new forever home.
