Apologies for the delay in posting, notwithstanding my "just moved house" and "work full time" excuses, I'm prostrating myself on your wonderful tolerant natures.
Thank you Paula, yes Easyfundraising is vitally important, many folk don't realise you can get massive bonuses for us simply by going in to Easyfundraising before you book your holidays with Expedia, and of course all the major online retailers like Zooplus and Amazon, e-bay and John Lewis participate, so as Christmas is a-coming please do register and choose Waltham Forest Cats Protection if you don't already have a chosen charity.
Well, updates would take me all day, so I'll free some statistics out. So far from January we've rescued 382 cats and kittens. That figure doesn't include the dozens we've supplied free neutering vouchers to, so preventing hundreds of unwanted births and the associated suffering.
This amount is almost twice what we budgeted for, our committed volunteers really have stepped to every single referral, no one has been left without help or support, we are incredibly proud and incredibly knackered!
To continue working at this pace would be madness, our people need rest and our coffers need replenishment so as there's usually a little lull before the dreadful Christmas giveaway (Can't find a Catsitter over Christmas so the cat has to go...) we are turning our attention to getting our paperwork and books in order, ramping up the fundraising and recruiting for next year.
On that level, one or two of you may receive private messages from me, there are little gaps in our admin, media and fundraising processes that need attention and these don't need to be addressed here in the Borough, so I'll be offering some teeny volunteer roles to my virtual and real Purrs pals to consider. It will bring you right into the heart of Cats Protection and all the benefits and information resources that offers, and you get a t-shirt if you want one.
One significant update you will all be pleased to note, we've cemented our relationship with the lovely Welsh and now have a fully operational Feral exchange programme! Cats that cannot be rehomed here because they're too sensitive or naturally people averse often struggle to survive in Cities, where we come across these groups or individuals we try to relocate them into small holdings, stables or farms where they will be supported and cared for in an environment that suits their natural behaviours. In return we can rehome friendly cats that may have been born in these environments but simply don't fit the criteria for outdoor life. Most of these outlets are in the countryside and our friends in Wales have this week officially joined the Beanch as volunteers, which means we can now offer vet support and expenses to those lovely participants and ensure any cats travelling are in optimum health at both ends of their journey.
Last week we moved 7 cats and kittens out to Wales and received 5 back, all of whom are now either successfully placed and in happier circumstances or lined up ready to go to their new, appropriate homes thanks to this programme!
All this costs money but you can see how, if we time these things wisely, we can help 12 cats with one transport run. With this programme in place it also unblocks our foster network which is already groaning under the strain. Donations to the branch help to fund these extra vet visits and fuel costs to ensure these "different" cats get the lives they deserve and the care they need.
So, heart wrenches of the week. Belle was abandoned by a callous family who moved out and left their four cats outside the house without food shelter or water on Halloween. By 2nd November neighbours were getting panicky as the fireworks that never seem to cease around here were cranking up for the dreaded bonfire night. We took them in, of course. Belle was found to be heavily pregnant so came into our midwife where happily she gave birth to two bouncing babies, Armani and Versace. She stoked and seemed to be doing well but after three days it became apparent that all was not well, so she and her family were taken to the emergency vets where they discovered a deformed dead kitten was still inside her and needed immediate surgery to remove the body and to save her life. After a very anxious night, three of us sat upbwaiting for news, gathering ourselves for the prospect of hand rearing Armani and Versace and possibly losing beautiful Belle the news finally came that she was ok and could potentially carry on feeding her kittens herself. You can imagine that yesterday was a little tearful and thanks were given to the small gods for saving this little family, tinged with sadness for the poor soul whose life we could not save and to whom we gave the name Nicholas in the hopes that Sandy Paws will find him at the Bridge.
I'll post this now, as the tears continue to fall for little Nicholas, but I'll see if Purrs will allow me to put a picture of Belle and her babies when they returned home last night. (Pic courtesy of Rockjelly Creations, aka Emma our beautiful and multitalented fosterer, midwife and Branch photographer)
Enjoy this holiday season, my friends, and if you can do please spare a quid or a packet of biscuits for your local Rescue.
Sheila
