Daily Inspiration: Meet Ryan Clevenger

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ryan Clevenger.

Ryan, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My husband and I started fostering kittens for local rescues. We were often given kittens that needed medical attention – from simple upper respiratory infections, to kittens that needed both eyes removed. It was so rewarding to see these gross little things come in, and then blossom into the sweetest little things. We had always talked about starting our own rescue one day, it was really difficult to put so much love and time into these creatures and then never meet their adopter or get update photos. And then Covid happened! We spent a lot of time in the house planning and preparing. We decided to use my stimulus checks during covid to file paperwork, and purchase supplies to do it ourselves! We are constantly learning new things and meeting wonderful people. It has been quite an adventure.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Oh my no. We have experienced a lot of losses. We specifically focus on kittens that are abandoned, sick, or injured. We are not miracle workers or magicians, but we know every baby that comes into our care is loved and given everything we have. We are also battling the fundraising hurdles as they come. Its easy to underestimate how much money goes into getting a kitten from a bottle to a home, and non profits are not exempt from rising costs of care and supplies. We have seen donations drop in more recent months and have to be careful how many cats come into our care that may require extensive vet treatment. I’ve been fortunate to work with several small and new rescues in the area and I am learning so much from them. We have created a great network of support, we all have skills to share, and opportunities to help each other grow.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
We specialize in injured, abandoned neonatal, and sick kittens. We have a dedicated group of volunteers that sacrifices sleep and time (and sanity!) to bottle feed babies every 2 hours, just to see them grow up into little balls of adorable. I am most proud of how many kittens we have been able to home. Every year we are seeing more than double the amount of kittens get adopted than the year before!

Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
SPAY AND NEUTER YOUR PETS PLEASE 🙂
Female cats can have 3 litters a year, and usually 4-6 kittens in a litter. There are not enough homes, resources, or safe spaces to put them all.

Pricing:

• $100 Kittens under 1 year
• $75 cats over 1 year
• $0 – feral barn cats (spayed/neutered and rabies)
• discounts for multiple cats!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://419okc.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/419orphankittenclub
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/419okc