About Riska Biskit

 

  • A little black cat with a bald bum eats her breakfast from a saucer on the couch while watching television.

  • A small black cat is head down in the kitchen sink, learning that tea leaves are not food.

  • A little black cat looks up at you from a tattered cardboard box, her eyes suggesting she is about to do something suddenly.

Serious Cat Talk

Riska was born to a feral mother on a rural property, probably in 2014. She beat the odds and was the 1 kitten out of 4 on average who is born outside and survives to grow up. Starting from when she was about 6 months old (and basically still a kitten herself) she had 2 or 3 litters of kittens a year, all of them with the same bad odds of survival. She had to hunt for food, feed her babies, protect them from predators, and keep them warm all by herself. It's not a nice life for a cat.

In late 2017 she turned up at a feral cat feeding station maintained by TinyKittens Society, a non-profit feral cat rescue and advocacy society that manages a feral cat colony they call the Happy Forest. Half of her tail had been bitten off by a predator, her tummy was bloated with parasites, and she was mostly bald. Riska was captured for TNR (Trap-Neuter-Return) and veterinary care. And then something magical happened. Riska discovered she LOVED people.

Not all feral cats want to live with humans. They might have lots of life experience that tells them humans can't be trusted. If a feral cat with no interest in living inside can be returned safely to live out their lives outside, that's where they should go. It's not a failure: it's doing right by the cat. TNR programs prevent kittens being born outside, and that's the best solution to reducing the number of cats living outside. It can be tough to accept, but animal rescue is a tough gig.

Teeny-tiny Riska bloomed inside. She played with toys. She zoomed around recklessly. She chirped at everybody. She quivered with excitement just at the thought of getting pets. She was interested in everybody and everything. Her food allergy was resolved and her fur grew back in. She was free of fear, free of the relentless pressure to reproduce, free of sickness. Riska was adopted into her forever home with us.

Our goal here at Riska Biskit is to play like Riska plays, to make good memories every day, and be excited about stuff without worrying. Have you played today? Riska Biskit thinks you should. 

Meow!

  • Riska Biskit Cat Stuff

    PO Box 78516 RPO University

    Vancouver, BC, Canada V6T0C4