Athletic Administrative Assistant Debbie Dornfeld prayed for a dog for seven years. At the age of 11, her prayers came true. 

“A dog wandered up to our yard, and we advertised him. We put it on the radio, but no one came and claimed him, so he stayed for 13 years,” Dornfeld said.

Dornfeld is a dog lover who’s currently trapped in cat purgatory.

“About 20 years ago, I started feeding cats that lived in my neighborhood, ” Dornfeld said. “At the same time, [I] learned what’s called TNR, trap, neuter return.” 

The program goal is not to trap cats and put them in homes but to trap them, fix them, vaccinate them, and then return them outside. 

“So [I] started doing, [and] I had 23 cats, three raccoons, and two possums I was regularly feeding,” Dornfeld said.

Throughout trapping, neutering, and returning, Dornfeld found some cats that had already been someone’s pet. 

“I found them a home,” Dornfeld said. “Then I had one mama cat I could not trap to get fixed. Over about 10 years, [I] trapped many of her kittens and found homes for them.”

Twelve years later, Dornfeld had a cat with a serious neck injury that the vet asked her not to put back outside until it had healed. 

“He was perfect inside, used the litter box, loved to be petted, and at that point, I was down to only three cats outside,” Dornfeld said. “I moved him in, and then I adopted him. He’s lived outside now for nine and 12 years.”

Dornfeld promised not to adopt more indoor cats but lost her resolve in 2018. 

“I always lose my resolve in January when it’s really cold outside and I see cats. I started feeding again,” Dornfeld said. “I moved four back in, and two of them are boys. They’re just super lovey-dovey. The girls will be in the same room with me but are not interested in being petted.”

Dornfeld is glad she does not have to worry about outdoor cats anymore. 

“They use the litter box, and the cats love their siblings, and that’s all I care about. It’s like ‘Survivor.’ I’m not here to make friends; I just need [them] to be safe,” Dornfeld said.

Once again, Dornfeld decided to open her doors for another two years.  

“This past January, when I saw two cats outside quite a bit, I planned on trapping her and moving inside anyway. She started looking a little preggers[pregnant] about a month ago and had five kittens. She’s young and didn’t know what to do with them,” Dornfeld said. 

Dornfeld has been feeding kittens formula every couple of hours since their birth.

“I have a friend who’s helping,” Dornfeld said. “That’s where they are during the day when I’m at work[friend’s house].” 

Dornfeld believes the hard part of raising the kittens is not knowing what is wrong with them and not knowing how to treat them. 

“We had diarrhea last week, now we’re all constipated, and we’re fighting a respiratory problem that is very common in newborn kittens. But it’s a little unnerving sometimes when somebody who weighs half a pound relies on you to keep them healthy,” Dornfeld said.

Newborn kitten formula is about $6 a can.

“I asked friends on Facebook if they would be willing to contribute towards formula,” Dornfeld said. “And have had a lot of people donate formula and or cash to buy formula. So that’s been helpful.” 

Feeding the newborn kittens presented another challenge. When they first arrived, they were required to feed every two to three hours, increasing the cost of kitten formula and demanding significant time and emotional energy. Tragically, despite Dornfeld’s dedication, one of the kittens passed away at a very young age, adding emotional weight to the already demanding experience.

“Right now, they’re eating about every four hours. Last night, they ate at 8:30 p.m. I was in bed by 9:30 p.m. and fed them between 1 a.m. and 2:30 a.m.,” Dornfeld said. 

Dornfeld woke up at 7 a.m. and fed everybody before dropping them off at her friend’s house.

On weekends, things are a little different. 

“The first weekend, they were only a week old and still eating every three hours,” Dornfeld said. “So I took a lot of naps on those days when they were sleeping.”  

Dornfeld says the cats easily adjust from house to house as they’re in separate containers. So they don’t see much change. 

When the cats get a little older, they’ll be in a big playpen with a covered top so they can’t escape. They’ve escaped before, so they’ve all lost their stuffed animal privileges. 

She named all five of them. The little girl who died was Gracie, and one is Truman, after our new GAP director, and then Dornfeld named Daniel Lion after the show. 

“He looks exactly like Daniel Lion from Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood. The three orange ones have white faces and feet,” Dornfeld said.  “There’s a folk singer from way back named Gordon Lightfoot, so I named him Gordon Whitefoot and called him Gordy.” 

Dornfeld thinks the most rewarding part of raising them is seeing them grow. 

“The first week, they look kind of like little rats. And now they’re just fluffy, and their eyes are really big, and their ears, their ears canals are starting to open,” Dornfeld said. 

She believes that noise and light bug them.

“Now, if I turn on a light when they’re sleeping, they’re covered because I don’t want to wake everybody up,” Dornfeld said. “But once their ear canals open up and they can hear, it’s gonna get rowdy, and they’ll wake each other up.”

The cats were picked up for adoption on the week of Dec. 8. 

“They were born on Oct. 20 and 21, so they should be ready for adoption in a month and a half. They’ll be eight weeks [by then],” Dornfeld said. 

Dornfeld thinks the most surprising thing about raising kittens is how much they sleep. 

“I mean, they’re either awake to eat or sound asleep,” Dornfeld said. “There’s not a lot of play going on right now. They just want to be in a pile to sleep for security and comfort.”