Thank you to all who attended the Ohio Community Cat Summit on November 5th! It was another successful event.

One of the most important pieces of business from the summit was the announcement of the 2022 Community Cat Champion. We are pleased to restate that the winner is Dr. Megan Kramer of Ohio Alleycat Resource in Cincinnati.

Please take a moment to read a little bit about Dr. Kramer’s work:Dr. Megan Kramer has worked at Ohio Alleycat Resource since 2015. She provides veterinary care for the OAR community cats’ area and adoption center. Already a great vet when she arrived, Dr. Kramer has made it her mission to learn everything possible to provide the best care for the cats who come to OAR, which runs a Shelter-Neuter-Return (SNR) program for several area shelters. The community cats entering these programs frequently have injuries or illnesses that need to be addressed before they can be returned to their original location, placed in a barn cat program, or put up for adoption. Dr. Kramer gives each cat, feral or not, the best care possible.

She has led the medical and cat care teams in creating cage environments that allow treatment but also keep the cats comfortable and as unstressed as possible. She frequently spends time at home researching illnesses and has developed protocols for treating various common conditions such as upper respiratory infection. She is always looking at cat care to see how it can be improved. When needed, she does spay/neuter surgeries as well.

When staff members were asked for an example of Dr. Kramer’s work, several mentioned Anthony, a community cat who lived in a colony at a hardware store. Anthony had an injured eye and a chronic upper respiratory infection. When he came to OAR, Dr. Kramer found that he also had a cleft palate, likely the cause of his URIs. Euthanasia was discussed but Dr. Kramer instead studied how to do the cleft palate surgery and repaired his palate, neutered him and did an enucleation. There were some bumps in his recovery, so there was concern about putting him back outside, therefore Anthony was diverted to the OAR adoption program. He went to a loving home shortly afterward. This case illustrates Dr. Kramer’s skills, caring, and willingness to learn.

Except for cats just at OAR for spay/neuter, every one of the almost 2000 cats that come to the facility each year go through the Wellness Assessment Center (WAC) that Dr. Kramer runs. She has accomplished miraculous saves and endured heartbreaking losses. Through it all, her calm, positive demeanor and mad veterinary skills shine.

It is clear that the community cats of Greater Cincinnati are very fortunate to have Dr. Kramer in their corner, as is everyone at OAR.