If you shop at Unleashed's North Raleigh location in Stonehenge Market, you might recognize this next rescue group from the "Cat Shack," where the Mia's Mafia's adoptable kitties often come to spend the week! Mia's Mafia is a small group of animal lovers who are working together to help facilitate Trap Neuter Release (TNR), medical care, and adoption for animals in need. Mia's Mafia has been a regular Spring Fling attendee since they formed, and we are thrilled to have them back again this year.
Mia's Mafia began with a rescue cat, affectionately known as “Murderous Mia,” who came to her mom as a hospice foster with many medical issues. Her foster and the people around her fell in love and decided that they wanted to make a difference for cats in need like Mia. The way they chose to do that is through Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) which is a process to spay and neuter feral cats and return them to the area where they were trapped (as often as possible). Community cats like these often have dedicated caretakers and are very much loved. Just because a cat doesn't want human interaction, doesn't mean they don't deserve to live their life as happy and healthy as possible!
Mia's Mission
"We focus on keeping things positive and supporting each other so that we can be at our best to do the most good for the animals. We strive to collaborate with others and encourage our team to come up with new and better ideas of ways to help and to run with those ideas."
True feral cats are very happy out in their environment. They can always use a little help though, in the form of someone to provide regular meals and bring them to a vet for medical care when they need it. Being spayed or neutered is also a huge help for these cats. Intact cats are more likely to get into fights during the breeding season and often sustain injuries or contract FIV. Additionally, feral cats are the main contributors of unwanted kittens that flood shelters and rescues during "kitten season" every year. Unlike their adult counterparts, kittens have a hard time surviving outside with predators, cars, inclement weather, and the people who view them as a nuisance.
While the TNR program is a huge part of the Mia's Mafia mission, they often come across cats who are not actually feral. These cats are usually former pets who were dumped or abandoned and left to fend for themselves. It's easy to spot these guys, even the ones who are too scared to be friendly. Where their true feral friends are well-kept and have good body conditions, pet cats who have been abandoned don't have the skills to survive without human help. They are often dirty and thin since they are not able to hunt well, and they aren't accustomed to caring for themselves outside. As much as possible, Mia's Mafia takes these cats in and puts them up for adoption after taking care of their medical needs
Adoptable Cats!
(as of 4/2/25)
Keep an eye out for the Mia's Mafia kitties at Unleashed's North Raleigh location on Creedmoor Rd. in Stonehenge Market! Their adoptable cats and kittens who are looking for a forever home come to stay in the store frequently!
Also be sure to stop by the Mia's Mafia booth at Spring Fling and see how you can help!
You can check out all of their adoptable cats on their website and make sure to follow their social media channels, Facebook and Instagram, to keep up with their activities and projects!
Visit Mia's Mafia at
Unleashed's 12th Annual Spring Fling Dog & Cat Fundraiser
Sunday, April 13, 2025
12-6 pm
Koka Booth Amphitheatre
Stay up to date on all things Spring Fling 2025:
2025 FB event page: https://www.facebook.com/share/1TntG29de2/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/k9springfling
