After a week in Mexico I was pleasantly surprised to find summer is still here in Chicago. The leaves are turning colors, but the feral flowers are in full bloom.

The cats in my yard were regularly fed while we were away, but I think they noticed we were gone. The garden path was littered with feline gifts of rats and a pigeon. Bouncy Bear and Funny Face ran around us in protest when I discovered these gifts, and we disposed of them. The colony cats rarely hunt, so I wondered if these gifts were their way of missing us. Who knows…

But it got me thinking about how the garden is a tiny patch of nature here in a city setting, on a standard Chicago lot.

The zinnias have truly taken over. When you sit in the corner catio, it’s like you’re hiding behind a secret wall of zinnias.

Zillions of zinnias.

They even took over one of the paths.

With the zinnias, came the insects. We have TONS of butterflies. This particular monarch was tagged from Monarch Watch, a group based in Lawrence, Kansas. The grasshoppers and bees really like the Green Envy zinnias, which were kind of like camouflage for them. My friend across the alley has a bee hive, and the bees were all over the flowers all summer.  

And then of course, there are the cats. Who basically hang out wherever they want.

On the garden path.

And the walkway.

In the shade.

And in the sun.

On the Feral Villa.

And on the fence.

On the deck.

And on the catio.

Except when I’m there. They won’t sit with me. I didn’t even see Jim take these photos. This is my favorite place to blog.

Our resort does not have a lot of cats, but the one that I did see was not ear tipped. Although he’s still a kitten. We suggested doing TNR like their sister resort we stayed at earlier this year.

He’s obviously cared for, though, and knows how to work the dining room. 

There are a lot of coati here, especially in the morning, foraging in the jungle.

And the resort cares for a variety of birds, including cormorants, black and white swans.

And flamingoes.

Earlier this year we went on vacation to Cozumel, Mexico. The all-inclusive resort we stayed at was filled with cats.

But these cats were ear tipped. Every. Single. One.

A quick Google search revealed that the Iberostar hotel chain participates in TNR with local rescue groups. Once the cats are TNR’d, their staff continues to feed them at Cat Cafes.

Apparently “all-inclusive” also includes the cats.

It made a great vacation even better to know that these cats, who of course still came around for food because they’re no dummies, were cared for. These cats were fixed, fed, and were living in heaven. They looked healthy, and were fairly acclimated to humans, but clearly enjoyed their outdoor life. They wanted a bit of food, not pets.

Here’s the view when we flew in. Heaven!

Our resort was like a sanctuary for a variety of animals, including Mr. Iberostar the Iguana.

Iguanas in my yard.

And peacocks.

Peacocks in my yard.

Lots of peacocks.

Peacocks that followed us around.

And followed the cats around.

But really, the cats and the peacocks pretty much ignored each other.

This Cozumel Cat Colony consisted of about a dozen cats, and they lounged all through the resort.

They greeted you as soon as you checked in. And took your seat.  These tabby siblings were everywhere. On the walkways.

In the shade.

On the grass.

And outside of our room.

How do I know those tabbies weren’t the same cat? Check them out.

Gorgeous.

And of course they were in the dining room.

Who could resist “the look”?

I’m going to stay at another Iberostar location in Mexico and I hope the cats are TNR’d there as well.

Last month I came across a sick cat and tried to trap it for a few days. The kids living on this block were really excited to meet me, and so I basically gave a TNR workshop on-site for them.

Unfortunately I have not seen this cat since, but I gave the family my contact info in case they see the cat or another one again.

Last night I got a text from one of the little girls. She’s about 10 years old.

Stay in school, kids!

Relocation for feral cats is very difficult and should be used as a last resort. I’ve managed to avoid it in my area so far by networking with neighbors to find other people to feed the cats when a feeder is no longer able to do so. I’ve written about The Rockstar Colony before, a colony that lost their home, and a new feeder on the same block stepped up to care for them, providing food and shelter, and even adopted one of the cats.

The Eleanor Rigby Colony is another example, as they are on their THIRD home since 2009, also all on the same block. Their previous feeders died, but each time another neighbor stepped up to care for them. People care about the cats much more than you may think. You just have to talk to them and network.

Ingrid H contacted me two weeks ago from Everyblock for advice on finding another colony or another feeder for her TNR’d feral cat, named Veda. She’s been feeding this cat for almost a decade. I was very excited to hear from another person here who did TNR that long ago! I asked to share her story, and she kindly obliged, even providing me with photos.

Ingrid is moving at the end of this month to another state, and she knew she was the only person that fed Veda. She let Veda into her basement during the winter. Veda is pretty feral and not suited to be a full-time indoor cat, though, and Ingrid was worried about what would happen to her when she left. Ingrid initially thought that Veda would have to be relocated elsewhere.

This is Veda.

Veda initially came to Ingrid’s apartment building looking for food. Ingrid fed her, and before long Veda showed up with her kittens.

One of the kittens, Ratso, was adopted out by PAWS Chicago.

Ingrid ended up keeping two of the other kittens.

This is Malvina. And this is Andy. He’s still a scaredy cat that only allows Ingrid to pet him when she’s laying down next to him.

Obviously Ingrid is going to take these indoor cats with her to her new home, but she was worried about what was going to happen to Veda.

Once Ingrid started talking to her neighbors face to face, she found people willing to help. A neighbor across the street from her said that not only would she continue feeding Veda, she would do it in the same spot Veda was used to! No relocation necessary at all.

Ingrid also just bought a Feral Villa hoping that Veda will use that this winter. I suggested sprinkling some cat nip around it to entire her. Do you have any other suggestions? I love a happy ending.

All week I’ve been distributing the huge bales of straw that I picked up as a donation earlier this summer.

This straw will be used as insulation in outdoor cat houses to help keep the cats warm.

One of my straw pit stops was with Georgie of Chicago TNR. You can learn more about her TNR work here. And here.

Of course I made a Feral Flowers bouquet for her. And of course Mooha helped me.

I should deliver flowers more often. It made my catty wagon so pretty!

While I was there Billy from Chicago TNR’s feral cat colony came out to see what was going on. 

I also met one of her current foster kittens named Trey, rescued from the streets in Englewood.

Trey will be available for adoption soon when he’s old enough and fully vetted. He is friendly and really liked George.

I couldn’t resist holding him as well.

I love visiting with my animal rescue friends because their support rejuvenates me and keeps me keeping on.

At this point the straw is almost all gone, but it’s almost that time of year where you can find it everywhere, even in the city. Once October hits, bales of straw are sold as Halloween decorations in pumpkin lots, Home Depots, and various grocery stores.

This summer I became a Flower Farmer.

I’ve been cutting the flowers in my garden and transporting them to Forget Me Knodt for purchase since July. This project has been a great success so far, and there are still more flowers available.

This was the first experimental bouquet I made. It also features an ear tipped cat sculpture that my friend Julia made. These sculptures are also available for purchase.

I sent this photo to Janessa, my friend who owns the shop, and she loved it. It was time to start cutting!

The flower buckets filled up quickly.

Mooha, as always, supervised.

Jim let me borrow his truck for transport.

Once at Forget Me Knodt the flowers are processed – the low leaves and stems are cut.

Janessa arranged the blooms in a gorgeous shop display that’s been there ever since. There’s signage explaining what the flowers are for, including the eartipped cat sculpture, and even a portrait my dad drew of me and the cats.

I especially love this part of the table because it incorporates EVERYTHING about this project, especially the Forget Me Nots. They have done remarkably well as cutting flowers!

Janessa’s dog Madz is great at sales. She loves cats, even though they don’t necessarily love her back.

As always, zillions of zinnias. They seem to be my specialty.

Even this little cat got her own zinnia.

Janessa’s shop is just as inviting outside as it is inside. Check out her enticing summer window display.

So far the flowers have been a great success. I especially love it when people send me photos of their Feral Flowers Bouquets in their homes.