Grrrr! Cat rescues!

valk_scot

My two rescue cats both came from a small independant rescue. I got turned down by all the main rescues when I was looking for an indoor cat (busy main road, lost our two previous cats to it) but the charming lady who interviewed me at the local rescue thought it wasn't a problem, they had lots of cats that just needed a safe and loving home and who were suitable for inside living. Too many cats, not enough homes, they were prepared to compromise on the indoor/outdoor bit if all the other boxes were ticked. So I ended up with the big hairy lump who is currently sprawled all over my desk and we went back there straight away when we decided to get another cat. (Which makes three now, that's enough.) So yes, look for the local rescues, they're far more flexible than the national ones.

duchy

Cat Protection refused us at home check because my son has Aspergers.

Stupid thing was they then later contacted me asking if I'd be interested in fostering as one of their most active volunteers had recommended me after I'd ended up looking after one of her cats for a while when the cat decided to leave home and move into mine (really weird story as the cat was born in my house -left home and moved in with her owner as a very young cat-and nearly nineteen years later tried to reverse the process).

gettingready

Look at Purrs in Our Hearts site/forum. Lots of poor cats there.

Buddyhollic

paulineb wrote: »

My cats are indoor cats, Im on a main road and its not safe to let them out.
I was refused by cats protection to give a cat a foster home (that was back in the day when I didnt have as many cats), because the cat would be an indoor cat.

When I went to the SPCA they ask if you have other cats, they dont ask if you have a cat that will be indoors or outdoors.

Personally I dont think animals should be on sites such as freecycle or gumtree but its a shame when people need to go to those lengths to get a pet.

To the best of my knowledge Freecycle, or Freegle as our local is now know, do not allow advertisements of any living creature


I adopted my wussy !!!!! from Bleakholt in Ramsbottom, had a home visit, very down to earth woman, did not have a holier that thou complex. Had to re-name mogs, couldn't be doing with a George, late father in laws name, so started calling him Coppa as soon as we got him in the car. He was 14 months old and its almost 2 yrs to the day we got him. Some of our local animal charities do a senior kittizen thing where if you give a forever home to 1 you can get assistant with all age related illness.

springer211

I'm very pleased to say that not all cat rescue charities are the same!
Today we went to Cats Protection's national adoption centre in East Sussex and it was a wonderful experience.
Everybody there was fantastic, all the people we spoke to, managers, staff and volunteers, very friendly.
I was also pleased to hear that the don't automatically exclude homes near busy roads, they would still visit and assess their situation.
We are now waiting for a home visit.

I would highly recommend them, they are a national centre but I'm not sure about their catchment areas, it's worth speaking to them.

(I would also recommend adopting a black or black & white cat, they are the most difficult to rehome, and can spend ages in their little pen before they are rehomed...:) )

taliwillow

We have tried a few rescue places and seem to be having problems finding a cat that can go to a household with children under 10. Fortunately we then found https://www.rushdenpersianrescue.co.uk (fortunately they now rehome more than just persians as my husband doesn't like persians at all) and am now waiting for a very beautiful cat who has had kittens so we need to wait for them to be old enough to be separated. They were very helpful and much more professional than some others we have been to.

Iain_L

Couple of things to add here. Firstly CPL (Cats Protection League) doesn't exist, and hasn't existed since the name was changed in 1998 - since then it has been Cats Protection.

Secondly, for all those who are so quick to criticise the organisation, remember that each branch is manned by volunteers, who have to make what they consider the best decisions for the cats that they have in care at the time of your request. Not all cats are suitable for all environments. If you feel you can do a better job for the local cats then get involved and give up some of your time. Lets not hear all the "I'm too busy" comments; if you think things need to change get out there and offer to help. There will be a branch near you that'll bite your hand off if you offered a few hours a week.

Iain

birduk

It was actually Cats Protection that didn't have a suitable cat but were very nice on the phone- so I hope that clears that up, I wasn't criticising them! I described my needs fully to them and they could have just given me any cat, but they chose not to as they would not fit in with my girl and boy, which is my biggest concern. Hence why they directed me to other local rescues.

Also Iain if you type Cats Protection League into Google (as I did), Cats Protection is the first name that comes up, I didn't even notice the name change. Is it important?

Yes I have volunteered in the past for cat socialising and dog walking when I couldn't have one of my own, but now I am in a position to give them their forever homes I will. Oh and since I can't have a dog, we do sponsor two! I think I might be signing my own crazy cat lady certificate soon!

Iain_L

Hi birdie,

I guess it was the title that got me to respond , but I wasn't accusing you of directly criticising CP. I just find that when people start complaining about treatment from rescue centres it tends to be the national ones who get the bad press. I know for a fact that some people have started expecting volunteers to be available at all hours of the day and night to answer queries, and tend to be quite vocal on here if they don't get the response they want.

I'm glad that your CP branch were helpful to you; we in our branch find it important to match the cats to the potential new home. It is particularly heartbreaking when the wrong match up occurs (as it will sometimes) and a cat has to come back in.

I guess that the marketing people in CP HQ probably feel that the name change is important; personally I'm not that bothered what people call it, but I do know some volunteers who get quite upset about someone being critical about the organisation, and not even having the correct name.

Sounds like you already have enough on your plate; my response wasn't an attack on you, just a general comment. Good luck with your new cat when you get one, hope all goes well.

Iain

Ruth_honey

clarabelle41 wrote: »

Have you tried the 'find a shelter' pages on https://www.catchat.org? We live on busy, but semi rural road. We have fields & a wood around our garden but we were turned down by CPL based on a google search of our address. We found a small rescue which only uses fosterers through Facebook but think all their cats are in Essex, don't know if it helps, their called Goldie's Oldies Senior Cat Rescue, but don't be put off as they rehome younger cats too, ours were 1 & 2 yrs old. They actually came to HC us rather than go by address.

Lauren at Golden Oldies was a huge help to us when we found some kittens and their mum in a church basement. She came and tried to rescue them, but was refused access to the basement :mad: so not a lot she could do. My mum & I managed to sweet talk our way into there a few days later and rescued the mum & 3 kittens. Lauren came to collect them a few hours later and had accommodation sorted out for them already. She was such a lovely woman and also helped out another friend of mine with a stray and kittens a few months afterwards. It seems crazy that there are so many good homes out there and they're being turned down for silly reasons.

Just wanted to add that the smaller/local cat rescue places would probably love donations if you have anything to spare. I guess people tend to think of the big national charities when donating money, but the smaller places could really use the help too. We happily sent a cheque to Golden Oldies after all the help they gave us.