Catwel's newsletter 38

Catwel Cardiff registered Charity no 1086255 - Newsletter 38 – 2016

Catwel is a Cardiff based Registered Charity, dedicated to the care and welfare of cats and kittens – 83 Rhydypennau Road, Cyncoed, Cardiff CF23 6PZ, 02920753475

I have decided to put pen to paper on the last day of the 2015.
The recipients of this newsletter will not be reading the contents until the middle of 2016. However, I felt it important to relate the hard work which took place within Catwel during 2015, and how this charity reached the position it presently holds.
When I first set out to start a small Cat Rescue Group in Cardiff about 20 years ago, all that was in my mind was trying to cope with each problem, as and when it occurred.
Our aims were simple, try to accept into care, within the limited space available, as many stray, tame cats as possible and endeavour to re home them with caring responsible people.
Raising funds was difficult but gradually, helpers and supporters arrived , extending Catwel beyond me, my daughters Helen and one or two others.
We all worked extremely hard and always managed to raise enough money by holding fayres, auctions sales, beetle drives and coach trips. We never pressured people into donating money. We just worked to ensure we could always pay our bills.
Despite the fact that we were a small charity, a number of people put their trust in us, and started to give us regular monthly, or annual donations, which were gratefully received.
One of our founder trustees left Catwel a substantial legacy, which contained a proviso that it be used to establish a cat shelter in Cardiff. This wish was adhered to.
One of the Founder Trustees Miss Helen Powell, designed and managed the homing centre from the time we acquired the property. She has never taken a holiday for nine years, and has been ably assisted by her partner
Mr Simon Evans. Helen, with the help of two volunteers attends to the needs of the cats, whilst Simon answers all incoming calls, trapping, collecting cats and transporting them to the vets. He also runs our websites and liaises with the home check volunteers.
2015 has been a particularly busy as on average Helen has been caring for 60 cats/kittens at any one time, with several needing constant medical attention.  I have never ever heard a single word of complaint about the workload from either Helen or Simon.
A chance get together with another of our trustees Mrs Elizabeth Palfrey and one of Catwel's founders, Mrs Teresa Pattillo, led to the decision to set up the Catwel Cardiff Charity Shop – 17 Whitchurch Road, Cardiff which is jointly managed by both ladies, and manned by a large number of devoted volunteers.
The money raised enables us to pay for all our cats and kittens which are homed by Catwel to be neutered and micro chipped at no cost to the owner. We do not sell any of our cats or kittens. If people give us a donation to help cover our costs, we are grateful, but our aim is to find permanent loving homes for the cats we have taken into to our care. We are, indeed a lucky charity to have such hard working and devoted people as part of our team, and I am truly grateful to every one of them for their commitment. Not forgetting, of course, our wonderful supporters who have helped the charity to achieve our success.

Billy

One of our supporters noticed a very timid thin cat sitting in her garden. She tried to get him to come into her house but unfortunately, he was not accepted by her own cat, and was frightened by the barking of a dog she was minding just for one day. Consequently, she could never again get him to come close. He did however, appear regularly for his food each day. He certainly started to look better, but my friend felt that he deserved a better quality of life than he had. A neighbour also took an interest in this lovely white and ginger cat but, despite Billy showing signs of wanting to come indoors, the gentleman was adamant he did not want him. When Catwel trapped him and took him into care he needed to be neutered etc. He stayed in my pens for several weeks and made no attempt to leave the safety of being indoors and well fed. He did not like to be nursed or fussed too much, was not litter trained and kept himself quite aloof. However, he was not aggressive or feral.
A Friend of mine who lives just outside Cambridge offered to accommodate Billy in his own Summer House with a carpet, arm chair and a heater, located in her garden. Her house is out in the country. Billy has been micro chipped in case he takes a walk, though he gave no indication whilst with me that walks were on his mind. So dear Billy has been homed in a beautiful place, away from the dangers of cars and will be loved and well fed. Thank you Kathy for offering Billy a suitable sanctuary. I am sure over the years you will be rewarded.

Lulu

We had a call from a landlord who rented a property in Aberdare asking if we could help. The tenants that had been living there had not paid the rent and had just up and left. When she realised this some 2 weeks later she visited her property and when opening the bathroom door she could not believe that the tenants had left a cat behind. This poor girl had been left locked in the bathroom with bowls of food but no water.  She called us at Catwel to see if we could help. We indeed could help and arranged to take the poor cat in. When Catwel took the cat to the vets she was micro-chipped so we enquired with Pet log and to our amazement she was registered to an owner in Bournemouth. We rang the number and the lady explained she had to give the cat up some years ago and someone she found on the internet had come forward and offered Lulu a home. She was terribly upset to think that the person/people she had given the cat to had done this. The good news is that we have re homed this beautiful cat so its a happy ending. How some humans can be so cruel.

Volunteers required

 When the shop was first opened it was manned entirely by members of the Catwel (Cardiff) group. Since then, a number of new helpers have come along and added to our original team.
However, the very success and popularity of the shop has meant that the work involved has considerably increased. Particularly in the sorting area.
Consequently, we are appealing to any of our supporters who may have a spare day or even half a day, to come and add their name to our list of helpers. Please contact us if you would like to volunteer in the shop. You can either email us at catwelcardiff@hotmail.co.uk or ring me Margaret on 02920 753475.

In Memorium

Once again I must express my deepest sympathy to the family and friends of two of Catwel's long term supporters.
Aileen Catford and Sian Pryce. Both these ladies have supported this charity for many years and in both cases also provided loving homes for our little cats.
We have lost two wonderful friends who will be sadly missed.

Other News

 Sad news for us at Catwel. Our very much loved resident cat Gypsy has passed away. Gypsy visited our re homing centre when Catwel purchased the property over 10 years ago. He walked into the garden and never left. We always said that he came with the house! He had a fantastic life here roaming around the grounds, and was affectionately known as our guard cat or office cat. He always loved to visit all the cat pens to say hello to all the cats/kittens that were here to be re homed. He also loved to say hello to the people who visited Ty Mair to choose/collect their new pussy cat. You could never sit down without him trying to get on your lap. Rest in peace sweet Gypsy you will be missed our old friend

Smudges 3rd Charity Pet show

 Zoe and Smudge have been raising money for Catwel by holding an online pet show. Smudges Charity Pet show which has been held on facebook has once  a gain been a resounding success.  Zoe and Smudge raised an astonishing £1835. Zoe said “The ladies (Margaret and Helen) were so pleased and it really made me so happy with what we have achieved. Over 3 shows which in 13 months we all managed to help raise in total £4475 . Thank you all so much for all your support. I really wish I could meet you all in person to thank you personally x x"
Catwel think Zoe and Smudge are superstars. We would like to say a thank you to all the people who supported, donated, sponsored and judged Smudges's Charity Pet Show. Please view  the video of the cheque being handed over on our Catwel-Cardiff-Cat-Charity facebook page.


Catwel would like to say a massive thank you to Georgia Walby - This wonderful lady went out of her way to raise money for us via MyDonate. The amount she raised was an amazing £456.25.  Thank you so much to Georgia and everyone who contributed. x x

Some of our gorgeous cats in need of homes

Lilly and Poppy the tortie twins are in need of a loving home. These sweet sisters have been neutered, micro chipped and de flea and wormed. They are loving young cats that would benefit from being homed together.

                                                                                         
This is the little girl Hope who was living in a box outside a home in Llanrumney. She needed to be totally shaved due to the appalling condition of her fur. She loves her cuddles and fuss. She eats like a horse but to be fair she has a lot of catching up to do. Hope is neutered micro chipped, de flea and wormed.

 Jessie is a beautiful white and tabby female who came into Catwel after being left outside a vets. Her and two others were left in a cat carrier with food and their bowls. Jessie is a sweet girl who is very affectionate and loves her fuss and cuddles. She is approx 4 years old and is neutered, micro chipped and de flea and wormed.

This is Petal another sweet girl that was left outside a vets. She has a fantastic nature. She is a grey and white and has been neutered, micro chipped and de flea and wormed. She is a delightful, sweet and cuddly pussy cat.

This is Chico he is a handsome male. He has been neutered, micro chipped and de flea and wormed. He can be a little shy to begin with, but once he trusts you he is gorgeous. We think he is about 4 years old and like Jessie and Petal he too was left outside a vets. He has the most beautiful light green eyes.

  Special appeal for Tiger and Bob
  

This is Tiger and Bob. These brothers came in to Catwel after being rescued from Grangetown. Poor little Bob was missing his tail ( it looks like it was bitten off) and had a ulcerated eye. After a long time of treatment it looks so much better but eye problems can take an awful long time to heal. Because of this he has been overlooked so many times. Tiger is the confident one where as Bob is a little more reserved. They are both lovely boys who have been neutered, micro chipped and de flea and wormed. He and his brother are inseparable and we would truly love to home them together. Due to Bob having to have eye treatment everyday he is a little nervous of being approached initially. He would benefit from a quiet household with no children or other pets. If you have a place in your family for these two please contact us.



Another big Thank you

We at Catwel would like to say a big thank you to Pets at Home/ Support Adoption for Pets for the huge donation of Cat food, cat beds, scratch posts and toys. This was all on a pallet that we collected  from their Cardiff Bay store. The cats and kittens will be extremely grateful. It only just fitted in the car. Thanks to the staff at the store for the help loading.

As you can clearly see the car was loaded right up to the roof. Just enough room for the driver.




Thank you to all you lovely supporters who contribute in any way they can. Either by way of volunteering with their time, donating goods or money or buying from our wonderful charity shop 17 Whitchurch Road - Cardiff. We could not survive without each and everyone of you. A special thank you must also go to Michael and Ann at The Cardiff Cat Clinic – They have always accommodated us at short notice whenever needed and we are extremely grateful.