Interview with Kevin O'Hare

Edited for clarity

Kaitlin Whitman: I’m sitting here with Kevin O’Hare and we have three kittens climbing all over us. We’re here to talk about Kevin’s generous donation to BDAR to upgrade Kitty City with brand new cat condos that now live across from the suites we recently had built.

So, Kevin, how are you today?

Kevin: Pretty good. I’m a lot happier with the kittens here.

KW: Tell us how you got started with rescue work.

Kevin: Well, I didn’t grow up with animals. None of my friends or relatives had dogs or cats. I didn’t really like dogs till I was about 30. The first dog I ever liked was a mini schnauzer and he died an untimely death. He was my girlfriend’s dog and that was the first time I ever made a donation. Then, a few years later, I fostered some kittens and then I fostered a cat who ended up being my first cat ever.

KW: You foster failed that cat? Or you fostered it and it was the first adult cat you ever lived with?

Kevin standing next to a commemorative plaque for his contribution to Kitty City, in honor of his kitties, Bessie, Milton, and Bailey

Kevin: It was back in California and - my a lot of chaos going on *kittens going wild around us* - I took Bessie to probably 30 or 40 adoption events and she just didn’t look happy. The lady at the rescue kept saying “oh you gotta adopt her” and I said “no no no no” because I didn’t want to. She was in my house for probably 15 months. I finally gave up on her and transferred her to a sanctuary in a swap for a bunch of kittens. But she wasn’t happy there so I went back a month later and brought her home.

KW: Amazing. It was meant to be. So, you weren’t really a dog person or cat person growing up. I think of you as a cat person so I wanted to know are you a cat person? And if so, why? My interactions with you are always related to cat transports, Kitty City donations, and I know you have had cats. 

Kevin: Well, I think cats are pretty awesome and I’ve never even had a dog. The most time I’ve ever spent with a dog is probably a couple hours at a friend’s house. I think I like dogs more but I’m so [pause] maybe neurotic is too strong of a word, about my cats, I think that I would be overwhelmed with a dog. I think dogs are better than cats but I’d have to get a really mellow older dog.

KW: Cover your ears *says to kitten while covering their ears*

Kevin: Haha, so, I think I do like dogs more but cats are also pretty awesome.

KW: Alright, fair enough. I personally agree with that sentiment. 

Kevin: Maybe I need a fospice [hospice foster] dog.

KW: Yeah, definitely. Do you have a memorable rescue story? Something that really sticks with you when you’re doing this work?

Kevin: I post all of my stories on Facebook. My 10th Anniversary was last August. I didn’t really keep track of the first four years but I’ve been tallying my numbers at the end of the year now. It’s been over 300,000 miles, over 2,000 animals, and 19 species. There’s so many memories. Every couple days Facebook reminds me of one. 

A photo of Sweetpea taken by Kevin during their road trip to North Carolina

The majority of them are animals coming from an at-risk shelter into a rescue. The worst kind are the surrenders - I’ve only done maybe 20 of those because people are sad and crying more often than not. The best kind are adoptions but I’ve done a few reunions too. One of the best ones was Sweetpea and she was a 50lb bulldog. Her mom was in NW Montana - a lot of time I don’t get the full story but I guess the mom went to the North Carolina coast to be with family for some reason and I guess she was there for a long time and wasn't coming back to MT anytime soon so I helped Sweetpea get there.

I remember it was a nice spring day, it took us three days to get to NC and I got to bring Sweetpea to her mom and a little girl (the mom’s daughter). That was pretty cool because she was an awesome dog and the family reunion was very nice. One of my best photos is of Sweetpea sniffing the flowers.

KW: Okay, so your 10th Anniversary of transporting just passed. How are things different now from when you started 10 years ago and what do you hope to see 10 years into the future?

Kevin: I haven’t thought too much about my personal goals for the future. 20 years ago I did a lot of road trips before I even thought about transporting. And I’d visit shelters here and there and give them little donations. I’ve made so many connections on transports. I tell people all the time that things are getting better everywhere. Transports are booming, I see more people helping, I see TNR programs being embraced even in small towns. I’ve been telling beginner volunteers that things are getting better. You know, there are so many casual commenters that say how horrible things are but I think it’ll be a long time before the bad stories disappear. And there are so many more good stories happening in the last 10 years since I’ve been part of the transport pipeline. Personally, I’ve been slowing down on my transports. I’ve lost a couple cats in the last few years so I think I might do more fostering. Maybe even hospice - I feel more capable of dealing with sick animals. I have a whole house and it's just me and a cat right now. I don’t know how much need there is for it.

KW:  Every once in a while we’ll get a dog or cat at BDAR that would be a hospice foster. There’s still a need for it.

Kevin: Especially as I’m getting more used to medicating and cleaning up after cats. I think I’d like to stay home more and be with them cause it’s a lot more fun. Because as many animals as I see on the road, I hardly get to interact with them. I might get to walk a dog a couple times on a two day trip but I hardly get to cuddle anything.

KW: So this is a treat here, all these kittens climbing on our laps.

Kevin: Yeah, I haven’t held a kitten for more than 30 seconds in over a year. So, it’s definitely fun.

KW: Do you have any advice for anyone interested in getting involved in rescue work?

Kevin: There's so many opportunities. I think a lot of people -- with any volunteer work -- you don’t know where you’ll end up. You might think you want to do this or that. I had no idea transporting was a thing and that ended up being my niche because I like to drive. I think people think of fostering as the most visible thing but there's so many things you can do - even if you help with animal care and cleaning. After the cleaning you can spend time with the animals. I guess my advice is to know that you might not end up where you start.

Kevin with a kitten in front of the new cat condos BDAR purchased with his donation.

KW: Got it. Keep an open mind and check out different opportunities. To wrap up, obviously you’re involved with a lot of different groups across the region. What makes BDAR special to you?

Kevin: I guess it’s the only organization I’ve seen almost from the very beginning. I met Britney when she was pregnant at Superday and I think BDAR had been around maybe 6 months by then. I’ve been involved with a lot of groups in the region and I’ve seen them grow but BDAR is the only one I’ve seen almost from the very beginning. I was involved with the board briefly. Effectiveness is always one thing I like to see -- I like to see the annual reports and see the numbers grow. BDAR certainly has it. Plus, I like the new facilities.

KW: Yes, the building is definitely looking very nice and obviously we have you to thank for parts of that. We are very grateful! Thanks for chatting with me today, Kevin!