Newsletters

2011-10-30T03:05:00.000-07:00

These are our current Catwel newsletters.At the end of the newsletter you will find the latest fund raising events timetable.To return to the Home Page, click on the link below.

Catwel Newsletter 29 - September 2011

2011-10-30T03:01:00.000-07:00

And so they kept coming!

The 2011 ‘kitten season’ started early – but that was not a problem, because we already had a waiting list of good prospective homes. So as soon as the kittens were ready, homes were available. For about a week our fosterers sat back and had a rest, but sadly, no-one told us that this year we would have not just one ‘kitten season’ but many! There was the black bag full of kittens dumped in a garden in Rumney…a ‘mum’ with five kittens taken to a vet after the father of their owner threatened to drown them all…a ‘mum’ with five kittens found in a car park…a ‘mum’ and kittens left behind when their owner moved house…and so it went on… and on! People often complain that cat rescue groups take a while to respond to their calls, and is it any wonder? The situation is overwhelming and we are the ones who ‘pick up the pieces’. Something must be done, urgently, to stop irresponsible owners breeding cats to sell via the Gum Tree web site or pet shops, etc. Surely it is time that cats were given some kind of legal status, and protection from exploitation?

CATWEL, Queen of Shops!

It was when we were preparing for ITV’s Auction Party that Liz and my daughter Teresa became closely associated, as it was they who did all the hard ‘up-cycling’ work which had been recommended by the production team. The seven days prior to the programme being recorded at the Angel Hotel were frantically busy for them, and for Helen and Christine, who decorated the display room. But out of all that effort and hard work came the idea of a CATWEL charity shop! Members of the CATWEL ‘group’ were very enthusiastic about the idea, and no time was wasted in finding suitable premises (17, Whitchurch Road, Cardiff). It was agreed that Teresa and Liz would jointly manage the project, and the design and décor was decided and lots of work carried out. The result is that we now have a wonderful shop which – we hope – will generate enough funds to enable CATWEL to not only carry out its present work, but also to expand in the future. The response from our supporters has been wonderful, and they have donated lots of lovely clothes and goods for us to sell, many cadged from friends and neighbours. Many thanks to you all, and keep it coming – we can never have too much! Thanks, too, to Mrs Mallory Armstrong, who negotiated with the agents for the hire of our premises – and to Mr Bryn Phillips who assisted her.
We are very grateful to them both.
When we decided to have the shop we knew costs would be incurred, and appealed to a number of charitable trusts. Sadly, however, there was only one positive response - from the Hodge Foundation, who generously gave us £1,000 to help with our rescue work. We are very grateful to them. (Photos of our lovely shop on page 4!)

Marilyn Oram has resigned as a CATWEL trustee, for health reasons. She remains a committed supporter, and editor of the CATWEL newsletter.

People! Some of them make me despair. They see a cute little kitten on a web-site or in a pet shop, or perhaps an irresponsible neighbour has allowed their cat to have kittens. Whatever the reasons, they have to have one – or even two. But these kittens grow up, and as soon as they need money spent on them (for neutering, etc) they become surplus to requirements and are thrown out. If the kitten, now about seven months old, is female she may already be pregnant, and desperately trying find somewhere safe and warm to have her kittens. But they often end up being born under a hedge, near their original home. If they are among the lucky ones, welfare groups like CATWEL step in. But after all our hard work over many, many years, the situation just doesn’t seem to be improving. Why can’t these people accept that a cat is a lifelong responsibility? Unless they can commit to that, they shouldn’t have one.

ANNUAL SOCIAL & PRIZE DRAW:

As in previous years, the ticket attached to this newsletter should be sent back to me at the address above, with your name and phone number on the back and with a donation of your choice. The draw will take place at our Annual Social on Sunday, December 11th, which will be held at our shop (2pm – 4pm). When you return the ticket, please indicate with a tick if you hope to be there. We are very grateful for your continued financial support of our annual draw. If you make monthly donations to CATWEL, you will automatically be included in the draw, in which case please phone me – 029 20753475 – if you plan to attend! There will be free refreshments and, of course, the shop will be closed to the general public – so you’ll have an opportunity to view our excellent facilities! Come along and enjoy an afternoon as our guests, we will look forward to seeing you all.

And another date for your diary! There will be an Autumn Fayre on Saturday, November 12th, at the ‘Coach House Inn’, Riverside Terrace. 1pm-4pm, free entry.

Aristocat!
A rare pedigree Japanese Bobtail cat had turned up in a lady’s garden about four days before she sought our help. It was micro-chipped, but the contact number was somewhere in England. Obviously the owner had moved, but hadn’t amended the chip details! The lady wanted us to take it into care immediately, but I suggested it might be better to first make local enquiries, and I gave her several useful phone numbers. Early next morning she left me a message to say that our vet knew who the owners were – it was such a rare breed – and they lived just around the corner from her!

OUR WISH LIST!
As our shop has sufficient space, we can accept larger items to sell, such as small pieces of furniture – coffee tables, piano stools, chairs, etc. We also need books, bedding, curtains, wool, buttons, cottons, silks, haberdashery, clothes, bags, bric-a-brac, craft items, records, CDs, DVDs ( but no videos/tapes, please).

We’d like foreign coins, too, and medals, along with scrap silver and gold – and anything ‘retro’ (clothing, bags, household items, etc) would be very welcome indeed. And goods can be taken to the shop or my home. If you can donate it, we can sell it!

‘tis the season to be careful! Remember to keep cats indoors on ‘Bonfire Night’, November 5th, and as winter approaches make sure they don’t come into contact with anti-freeze, which is highly poisonous. Some Christmas plants, like poinsettia and mistletoe, are also poisonous, and turkey bones can be very dangerous too.

THE HOTEL CAT
A late night message on my phone informed me of a friendly – but apparently starving – cat, living in the grounds of a local hotel. One of our supporters visited the site and confirmed that there was indeed a cat living in the hotel grounds. A member of staff explained that it had no proper shelter, and was not given regular meals, but that until we could take it into care he would ensure that it was at least properly fed. We took it into care about a week later – and almost immediately received a call from a very irate lady, demanding its return. She informed me that the cat had lived at the hotel for eight years! However, our vet checked it over and estimated its age as about three. It had fleas, and probably worms, but was not starving. It was treated, and also given an injection to alleviate the irritation, then returned to the hotel – on the strict understanding that it was allowed to live in the boiler-room (we provided a basket and blanket) and given regular meals, not just scraps. We would be making a ‘follow up’ visit in a few months! The staff had genuinely missed the cat, and now know it must be properly cared for.

The law is the law, and that’s that!

The cat had lived in the gentleman’s garden since Christmas. He thought it might be a Persian, but it was very dirty and smelly. I suggested that he take it to a vet to be scanned for a micro-chip, but he didn’t do this. He did, however, make enquiries in the local shop, and was told that no-one had been enquiring about a missing cat. He phoned me again about a week later to tell me that the cat had given birth to five kittens in his shed (he had not allowed it into his house because of his own old cat).

When we visited we found that one of the kittens had already died. We took the ‘mum’ and remaining kittens to our re-homing centre, where Helen had great difficulty getting them to suckle. The mother’s fur was a tangled mess and her teats almost inaccessible. She was very hungry, too. She had been having a lot of difficulty eating, because of the knotted fur around her neck which prevented her from bending her head properly. She also had problems walking, again because of her terrible coat. A second kitten died the next day. Slowly Helen managed to remove the most restricting knots, but we knew we could not have her shaved until her kittens were weaned, when it was our intention to have her neutered at the same time. She wasn’t micro-chipped and no-one had attempted to find her. No notices had been put up, no ‘lost’ adverts put in the local papers, and no telephone enquiries had been received. ‘Princess’ and her kittens were in our care for six weeks – and then the owner turned up, alerted by someone’s chance remark. Princess was indeed a pedigree Persian, and had been bought with another cat (a male) for breeding purposes. She had gone missing in the bitterly cold weather at the end of 2010. When the owner was asked why she had made no attempt whatsoever to find her cat, she said she thought it had been stolen. She then demanded that we hand-over Princess and her kittens. We sought advice, but were legally obliged to give her back, even though we knew that she would almost certainly face a life of producing litter after litter for sale.

Cats have no protection under the law.

There are responsible breeders, of course - but unscrupulous ones, too, who can sell kittens to anyone, with no home checks and no questions asked. Only the money matters. We often think about poor little Princess, wishing we could have had her neutered and re-homed her and her kittens with new, caring owners. Ironically, she spent those bitterly cold months as a hungry stray just around the corner from her owner’s home.

Log on for CATWEL!

I am pleased to tell you that we have been accepted to participate in the National Westminster Community Project. Helen and Sheila have submitted a video showing our operations. It would be appreciated if anyone with access to a computer could log onto NatWest CommunityForce, follow the on-screen prompts, and vote for CATWEL. Any money received will be used exclusively for neutering.

2011-04-30T07:44:00.000-07:00

Catwel Newsletter Number 27

2010-12-26T01:48:00.000-08:00

Trustees: M. Harris (Chair); H. Powell; S. Davies; L. Palfrey; M. Oram

Dear Friends – welcome to CATWEL newsletter number 27.
Dear Friends – newsletter time again, it seems to come around so quickly! I always enjoy being able to tell you all the CATWEL news. However, as I am writing this I must admit to feeling pretty frustrated! I have just had three requests from young people who have bought cats via either the website ‘Gum Tree’ or the ‘Free Ads’ newspaper. All requests were the same – they bought kittens from people via these two sources and now, a week or so later, find they can’t keep them. One has an allergy, one has a parrot, one has landlord trouble! They want us to take-in the now unwanted kittens as the sellers won’t take them back. Like most cat welfare charities, we have a policy of taking back any cats/kittens we have homed, if ever the owner is unable to continue caring for them. We recently took one back after five years! So why is it that these prospective owners never seem to have heard of us when they want a cat, but find us very easily when they need someone to solve their problems?
PRIZE DRAW TIME AGAIN! Your ticket is attached, just return it with your name and contact details on the back and a donation of your choice. Regular donors are automatically included in the draw, which will take place at our ‘social’ on Saturday, December 4th.
GOOD LUCK!

DANGER!! As we head towards winter – and Christmas! – please remember that anti-freeze is lethal to cats. Poinsettia and mistletoe, too - and cats can also be at risk from turkey bones, and some Christmas decorations. Also, if you have a dog, don’t forget that he or she could be poisoned by chocolate intended for humans. SO TAKE CARE - and have a happy and SAFE festive season.

A sad tale – I know you don’t like sad stories, but unfortunately cat rescue work is not all happy endings and we have to make some difficult decisions. I received a call from a young man asking if we took blind cats into care. I said we didn’t. An old cat that has lost its sight, but lives an indoor life with its original owners, can be perfectly content. But I dread the thought of a blind cat confined in an unfamiliar rescue pen, with unfamiliar sounds and smells around it – and dread even more the thought of it living in a new home and being unable to see danger. However, I asked for full details of the problem. It seems that two twelve-month old cats had been taken to the vet for neutering. One was returned in full health, but sadly the other had suffered oxygen deprivation, which had resulted in brain damage. I offered the owner the opportunity to visit our vet for a consultation, which he gladly accepted. However, the prognosis was not good. The poor little cat was not only blind, but had suffered a stroke and was not properly mobile. The owners were very caring and extremely upset. They said the cat was living under the bed, terrified of its surroundings. The outcome was obvious; no-one would subject an animal to a lifetime of terror. So he was held in the familiar arms of the owner he loved, and gently ‘put to sleep’. Such a sad end for a beautiful and much loved little ginger lad, but sometimes there is just no alternative.

A very special ‘thank-you’ to the pupils of Millbank Primary School in Ely, for their kind donation – the first we have received from a school! And many thanks, too, to Towns Women’s Guild, Lakeside, for theirs.

More thanks – to Andrew Cleverly, who ran a half-marathon and will be giving CATWEL his sponsorship money; and to Susan Kidd who has already donated her sponsorship money.

Now, here’s a happy tale for you! A sweet young cat appeared in the lady’s garden, showing signs of an injury to her hip which had probably been caused by a knock from a car. Unfortunately, we were not able to immediately take the cat into care, so the lady agreed to ‘foster’ her until a pen became available. Meanwhile, we would cover the cost of any treatment she needed, at our vet’s. A few weeks later I was contacted again. It seems the most probable cause of the little cat’s injury was not a bump from a car, but a kick from a human! There was good news, though – in spite of having two cats already, the lady had decided to keep her. She had settled well with the others, and an Aunt had offered to cover the cost of the vet’s bill, for which we were very grateful. So, a happy ending – for a lovely little cat, and for CATWEL!

Am I becoming cynical? I received an amazing number of calls in the summer, from people who had been feeding ‘strays’ but could no longer do so because they were going on holiday…Why hadn’t they taken the cat to a vet to check for a micro-chip? Or advertised it as ‘found’ in the South Wales Echo, which is free? Or even phoned us to check our ‘missing’ list? Too much trouble, I suppose, and easier to assume that we would have a place for it when their holiday drew near. Sadly, healthy adult cats have been at the bottom of our waiting list for acceptance into care, because we have been overwhelmed with pregnant cats, and ‘mums and kittens’. A cat and her newborn litter can occupy a pen for twelve weeks or more, until all the little family is homed.

Our food donation boxes, located at various Cardiff stores, are very important to us. We have them at Asda, Morrisons and Tesco stores, and at Pughs in Radyr and Sainsbury’s in Thornhill. However, not all retail companies are helpful, and Pets At Home won’t let us place boxes in their stores, although they are located in Cardiff and we rescue in their area! If you want to donate food but don’t shop at any of the above, I am happy to receive donated food in other ways, just phone me to make arrangements. Or maybe you can think of other places where our food donation boxes might be welcome? Again, phone me, I’d be delighted to hear from you!

His opening line was ‘My wife is allergic to the cat, will you take it in?’ I suggested that she try antihistamine tablets, but this was dismissed as he said she had already tried them without success. As you’ll know from previous newsletters, cats which already have homes are not our priority, but I offered to put it on our waiting list. At that point, one cat became two, one of which was ten years old! Allergy? Hmm…

Jack aka Teddy aka Snowball…In our last newsletter I told you that we’d been asked to take-in two cats from Splott market. Well, we took them into care shortly afterwards. One was a pure white male, the other a black & white female. They seemed devoted to each other. When our vet examined them, he discovered that the male (by this time known as Snowball) had a severe infection in his lower jaw, and treatment entailed the removal of a portion of the area. Happily, he made a complete recovery, and he and his partner were
quickly homed with a lovely lady. He was re-named Teddy. Once out of pain, living in comfort and receiving regular meals, Teddy became a bit of a warrior, defending ‘his’ garden against trespass by local toms. However, he wasn’t a good fighter, and always lost – needing a lot of visits to the vet! Also, it turned out that the ‘loving couple’ weren’t that loving at all. In fact, they positively hated each other! So Teddy came back into care. Happily, however, a new home and a new name came along very soon, and Jack – which I think suits him best of all – has settled well.
My fingers are crossed that there are no trespassers in this garden!

Some more thanks – to the kind people who sent me donations for CATWEL on the occasion of my eightieth birthday. They amounted to over £300! Thanks, too, for all the cards - and to those who broke my ‘no presents’ rule! Naughty but nice!

In Memoriam: Sincere thanks to Mr Plant and family, who have donated money in memory of his dear wife, a CATWEL supporter for many years; and to Val Lloyd, for a donation in memory of Leslie Lee, and to Mrs Lewis for the donation in memory of her cat ‘Puss Puss’. It is so kind of you to remember us at times of great sadness.

For Sebastian, only a castle was good enough! He is a big, beautiful, good natured pure white male. When he came into CATWEL’s care and we learned his history, it seemed very complicated. When he was about three years old he was rescued from a bad home, which he shared with numerous dogs and other cats, and he needed treatment for a severe flea infestation. He was re-homed with a lady who owned two Siamese, and she had him micro-chipped. But he didn’t get along with the Siamese and had to be moved on again. This time he was apparently passed to a rescue centre in the St. Mellons area, which charged £80 to take him. Eventually, he came to CATWEL after being found in the home of a deceased elderly lady in Rhiwbina. Her friend had taken him to her fourth floor apartment in Cardiff Bay, but he wouldn’t settle and kept trying to escape through the windows. Obviously, Sebastian needed a very special home – and he certainly found one! Re-named Gwyn, he is now living at St. Fagans Castle, in the Flour Miller’s house, where he is settled and much loved.

Jet is another lucky CATWEL cat! Abandoned in a Cardiff flat and brought to us, he now has a lovely home in a leafy London suburb, with woodlands close by, where he is the adored companion of a little boy.

WE HAVE SO MANY CATS NEEDING HOMES! Most are lovely, sweet natured young adults, who were probably thrown out because of the recession. However, a few are going to need special outdoor homes - a stable or smallholding, perhaps. All our cats are neutered and healthy, and ready to be adopted and loved! How wonderful if we could find good homes for them all by Christmas.
CAN YOU HELP?

Some people are so sneaky… It was two days before our summer ‘fayre’ in May. I opened my front door and in my porch found a plastic blanket box. More donated goods to sell, I thought – but how wrong I was! Inside the box was a young, very frightened, tabby and white female cat. The container was sealed, there were no air-holes punched in the lid, and it was a hot, sunny day. The little cat was a darling, and a visit to the vet told us that she had recently given birth and still had milk. I dread to think what became of her kittens. This was early in the ‘kitten season’ and it made me wonder how many other distressing things were ahead for us.
We were sad, but so glad we could help him. A lady rang me, sounding really desperate. An old, sick cat had appeared in her garden, and was too weak to climb the fence and get out. She had tried several of the larger charities, which could not help, so she phoned me – as a last resort! Iris went the next day and was easily able to put the cat in a carrier and take it to our vet. The prognosis was very bad indeed. The old cat had a large tumour in its chest, and was already suffering a great deal, so he had to be ‘put to sleep’. The vet told us that if we had not been able to provide help he would have had a dreadful, painful death.

We really love letters like these! ‘Whisky is such a lovely cat’ writes Beryl Williams, ‘he loves company and is always on our laps purring his head off! He is such a good boy…I can’t imagine our home without him now…Thank you CATWEL for your fantastic work.’ How lovely to receive this good news about a middle-aged cat who had come to us after being mistreated by his former owners. Cats of this age can bring just as much joy as kittens!

NB! We have applied to hold a street collection day in Cardiff, next spring: watch this space!

Sometimes cats can make fibbers of us! A very rare request was left on my phone a while back, from a gentleman who wanted a feral cat. When I spoke to him, he told me about a feral cat he’d had twelve years ago, and which he tamed. It had died, and he wanted to do the same thing again. I told him about two semi-feral cats we had in care. They were both timid and ‘hissy spitty’, not sweet natured at all! One was a black and white male, and the other a tortoiseshell female. He opted for the female, as his other cat had been tortoiseshell too - although tortie ferals are notoriously difficult to tame. After neutering, she was taken to the gentleman’s home. She got out of the carrier, hid for a couple of minutes, then jumped onto the sofa alongside her new owner. She let him stroke her, and was obviously feeling very much at home. He gladly kept her, though I think he was a bit disappointed that not much taming would be required! As for the cat, I think she wanted to tell us that tortie ferals just get a bad press…

Teddy and Sally, an update: in our last newsletter I gave Teddy and Sally a special mention, as they had been in our care much longer than most of our residents. So I am very pleased to tell you that, shortly afterwards, Teddy was adopted by a lovely lady whose elderly cat had just died. He settled quickly and is much loved. Sally was a bit more problematic and took longer to home – we had taken her into care in October 2009 and no-one gave her a second glance until July 2010. But at last the ideal home turned up! No other cats, no children, just a loving ‘Mum and Dad’. She settled in immediately and we were all delighted.

And now, looking ahead! Here is our programme of future events –

Friday, February 25th 2011…….Auction - venue as above, viewing at
6.15pm, bidding at 7.15pm.
Saturday, April 2nd, 2011………Spring Fayre – venue as above, begins
at 2pm.
Saturday, June 4th, 2011………..Summer Fayre - venue as above, begins
at 2pm.

Thank you for reading our 27th newsletter, have a happy festive season! And apologies in advance, I’ll be sending very few Christmas cards this year – instead, I’ll be making a donation to CATWEL. Best wishes to all – Margaret.

Newsletter May 2010

2010-06-17T23:44:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends – welcome to CATWEL newsletter number 26.

As I set pen to paper in January 2010, with the Christmas and New Year celebrations well and truly over, I’m hoping we can enjoy a few months of relative peace before the next rush of kittens! By the time you read this newsletter I expect the ‘kitten season’ will be upon us, but meanwhile I’d like to reflect on 2009, and thank everyone who did such a lot to support us throughout that year. Forgive me if I seem to repeat myself in every issue, but we owe so much to so many people that I’m always anxious that someone may have gone unmentioned. I really do want everyone to know how greatly they are appreciated! The Prize Draw for 2009 raised the astronomic figure of £1,400 – the generosity of those who participated in this is truly remarkable. I am thankful too for all the Christmas cards and notes I received, containing donations, from people not participating in the draw. I try to acknowledge all of these personally, but sometimes they don’t include an address, so I would like to assure you that they are all received with gratitude – likewise, the goods donated for us to sell, the donations of cat food in our supermarket boxes, regular monthly donations, and sponsorship of our permanent residents. The kindness and thoughtfulness of our supporters never ceases to amaze and delight me. The cats of Cardiff are so lucky to have you all!

THE 2009 PRIZE DRAW WINNERS WERE: Molly Hughes; Mr & Mrs Davies; Shirley Bevan; M. Watts; R. Edwards; Mrs Catford; Jean Evans; Mrs Watts; S. Bligh; and Jean Culliford.

COINCIDENTALLY…The message was left on my phone at 8.30am. A lady had found two stray kittens on her driveway. She couldn’t keep them, so could we collect? Due to pressure of work I was unable to return her call until the following evening – when she was pleased to tell me the problem had already been resolved. She had phoned her sister, who lived in a rural area, asking if she would like the kittens. Yes, her sister said, because her own two kittens were missing! I’m sure you’ll have guessed by now - the little pair had stowed away in one sister’s car, and hopped out onto the other sister’s driveway!

Sad News. It is with great sadness that I report the recent deaths of two people who were very important to CATWEL: Trustee Jan Jauregui and longstanding supporter Christine Richardson. Their friends and families have our deepest sympathy.

Why was no-one searching for him? During that bitterly cold spell at the end of November, I received a call to tell me that a black and white cat had taken up residence in a lady’s shed. She had started to feed him regularly and, because of the weather, was now letting him into her home. As soon as we had a free place we took him into care – and a veterinary examination revealed that he was about thirteen, and suffering from a thyroid condition. After treatment and surgery, he came to me to be fostered. I named him Billy, and he was soon endearing himself to us. He was affectionate, but didn’t pester, and was very clean. He quickly located the sunniest spots in our garden – and my bedroom – and just as quickly it became obvious that he had found himself a permanent home! My husband and the rest of my family love him, and so, of course, do I. My husband and I are ‘getting on’ and would never have considered adopting a young cat after our lovely old Ginger died – but Billy soon realised that we had a vacancy for a handsome older gentleman like himself! I still wonder where he came from, and why no-one was looking for him. Despite advertising in the South Wales Echo, nobody came forward – yet he is so affectionate and well behaved that I’m sure he must once have had a good home. Another little mystery that will never be solved!

A PERFECT HOMING! ‘My sons would like a little kitten to join our family’ the lady said. ‘We would like a small 8 week old kitten so that it will grow up with us, and we would prefer a fluffy one.’ I explained that the only young kittens in care at the moment were just 3 weeks old, although we also had a lovely natured black and white kitten aged 6 or 7 months. He was called Dylan, and was very friendly. When I met the family next day I was told they would like to see Dylan, and this was arranged for the following week. When the day arrived, Ben (who had been the most anxious for a kitten) only wanted to see Dylan. He went straight into Dylan’s pen, popped him into a carrier, and off they went! That evening I had a call to say how delighted they all were with their new family member – and a week later heard that while cuddling Dylan, Ben had announced ‘My life is now complete’. What better encouragement to continue with our cat rescue work than to take in a kitten found running up and down Westgate Street, then place him in the loving arms of young Ben!

A sadder tale, but still heart-warming…A colleague of one of our supporters had taken in a stray cat, which seemed to be a little unwell. They loved it already and would definitely keep it, but could we help with the cost of neutering? Of course, I said, and we will also pay for a full veterinary check and any necessary treatment. An appointment was made with our vet, and by this time the cat had taken a particular ‘shine’ to the man of the house, and enjoyed sitting on his lap. But sadly, before the day of the appointment came round, the cat was found curled up in ‘Dad’s’ chair one morning – he had died in his sleep. A sad story; but so good to know that after being a stray, he at least ended his life in the comfort of a very loving home.

In Memoriam: We are especially grateful when our charity is remembered at times of great personal sadness, and would like to thank the following people who have made donations in memory of human, and feline, loved ones – Elaine Blight for her cat Chubby; Joan Clatworthy for her neighbour Gwen Leigh; for Mike & Sandra Clee, for their cat Woodstock; Jim Wilmot for his cat Tiger; and Jenny McKinlay for her friend’s mother Doreen Williams.

Other gratefully received donations have been given by Dawn Tagg’s grandmother who has settled happily in Scotland with CATWEL cat, Alfie; by Anne of the New House Country Hotel, who gave it instead of sending cards last Christmas; and Bob Boothby, who gave us the funds that remained when the target shooting club he had founded was ‘wound up’. There may be others which I’ve left out, in which case apologies – and heartfelt thanks to you all!

And still on the subject of donations! I had a lovely surprise one morning when I opened an envelope and a cheque for £70 dropped out! The surprise was pleasanter still when I read the accompanying letter. It was from a lady in Cheshire who has a monthly coffee morning and donates the proceeds to various charities. Ours was selected via our website (thanks, Graham and Sheena!) and the donation was even Gift Aided. How marvellous that someone in Cheshire should select our little charity in Cardiff. Are there any Cardiff ladies reading this who could try a small coffee morning to raise funds for us? It would be much appreciated, and might even be good fun!

Where had she been, and why? We took a stray cat into care from a lady in St. Mellons. A very plump little cat, so we suspected kittens on the way! But a visit to the vet established that she wasn’t pregnant – and that she was micro-chipped. The chip produced an address in Barry, and Stella was returned to her owners after being missing for two and a half years.

Did you know? Scientists have established that owning a cat can reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes by a third! It seems our feline companions help to relieve stress and anxiety. We always knew they were good for us!

SUMMER IS ALMOST HERE AND GARDENS ARE BECKONING! PLEASE REMEMBER THAT GARDEN CHEMICALS CAN POISON CATS. SLUG PELLETS, FOR EXAMPLE. PLEASE BUY, STORE AND USE WITH GREAT CARE. LILIES ARE DANGEROUS TOO.

‘Twas the day before Christmas and the phone rang, and rang, and rang! Here are some examples of the calls…………………………………………………………………………………..

‘On the 1^st of January I am leaving the country . I have one female cat and three six-month old kittens, all un-neutered. Can you have them?’

‘I am a medical student and my ex-partner has left her five-year old cat with me. I am leaving for London for six days. I can’t take the cat with me on the coach, so can you arrange for someone to look after it while I am away. I can’t afford to pay.’

‘I have two twelve-month old cats. I will soon be moving, so can you take them.’

‘I have a young un-neutered tom cat I’ve been feeding for six months. I don’t want a pet and have been getting the run-around!’ (This ‘young’ cat turned out to be about thirteen years old, with serious health problems.)

‘I inherited a cat when I moved into this house three years ago. He sprays and needs to be found a good home.’

‘Two cats are being fed twice daily at Splott Market, and they will starve over Christmas and New Year when no-one goes there.’

‘I have found a young starving distressed kitten and none of the charities will help.’

‘I have been feeding a cat for about six weeks but I’m leaving on January 6^th, and anyway I’m doing my PhD so I can’t take it to the vet to get it neutered.’

‘There’s a young stray cat that is desperately trying to get into our house to find shelter, it’s even trying to get into the car. We can’t take it in because we have dogs.’

‘My daughter has two cats. She is moving to new accommodation and can’t take them, so can you collect them?’

All these messages were left on my phone during the twenty-four hours immediately before Christmas. With limited space and a list of cats waiting to come in, we had to decide who would get priority – a very difficult and distressing task!

It seems to get earlier every year! On the 23^rd of February it was bitterly cold, and there were snow flurries – and I had a call asking me to take three 7-week old kittens into care! The kitten season had begun.

Appointment of new Trustees: I am pleased to inform you that two long-standing and hard-working members of the CATWEL group have agreed to become Trustees of the charity: they are Liz Palfrey and Marilyn Oram.

Thankfully, not everyone who finds a stray cat expects instant help. Charlotte, a lovely young lady, who is living in Cardiff and studying at the university, phoned to enquire whether a tabby cat had been reported missing. We did not know of one and, as all our accommodation was full, we put it on our waiting list. Just before Christmas Charlotte phoned to say that she was going home to Bath, and would take the cat with her and call again when she returned. She did so – to tell me that she had ‘fallen in love’ with the cat and would be keeping it, as long as her landlord didn’t object. If he did, her mother would be prepared to give it a home! Lucky cat! I must say that during my 19 years of cat rescue work I have always found the majority students to be a very caring when it comes to animals, particularly cats. Students can get a lot of criticism from older citizens, when maybe a lot of them deserve more credit!

Around the middle of November 2009 I was feeling particularly exhausted. We had hoped we were almost at the end of the kitten season, despite having just taken an 8 week old kitten into care, also a mum with three 2 week old kittens! But still the phone rarely stopped, though now it was mostly people wanting to get rid of adult cats. It was so bad that for the first time ever I was tempted not to reply to the calls, because all our pens were full and we don’t have elastic walls! We keep a waiting list and try to ensure that cats come in strictly according to it. Nevertheless, some cats do have to jump the queue if they are living in threatening circumstances. But the calls that really annoy me are those from owners who want to get rid of their cat because they are moving to accommodation where pets are not allowed. There seem to be far more properties for rent these days, with landlords desperate for tenants to cover their mortgages. I feel sure that some of my callers, if they really ‘shopped around’, could find an animal-friendly landlord. Yet they go ahead and make arrangements, then expect animal charities to solve the ‘problem’ of their now unwanted pet. If I couldn’t take my cat, I simply wouldn’t move, and I feel sure all CATWEL supporters feel the same way.

Homes needed! We always have cats in need of homes, but some are with us for a long time and deserve a special mention. For example, Sally and Teddy, who have been overlooked by prospective owners because they seem a little timid when first ‘introduced’. Sally is a beautiful fluffy black and white cat, aged just 18 months. She has a lovely temperament with humans, but hates other cats! Teddy is a huge tabby and white boy, aged about 3 years. He is placid, with not an ounce of aggression. We all think Teddy is a real sweetheart, and although he might seem nervous at first he would make a wonderful, gentle and loving pet. Can you help? They’d love to meet you!

Cat rescue can be a tricky business! Primarily, CATWEL was set up to help stray and homeless cats. We do try to assist people who need to re-home their pets, but these cats are not our priority as they do have owners who are responsible for their welfare. The problem is, how should we define the terms ‘stray’ and ‘homeless’? ‘I have been feeding this cat for three or four weeks’ – ‘it is living and sleeping under a bush in my garden’ – ‘it visits my house every day, crying and starving’ – etc, etc. On the surface, a cat rescue group would consider it safe to take a cat into care after it had been begging people for food. Normal procedure for CATWEL is to first check for a microchip. Next we check our ‘lost and found’ register, to find out if it has been reported missing. Finally, when we’ve ascertained from neighbours that it hasn’t been left behind by people who have moved away, we advertise it as ‘found’ in the South Wales Echo. Then it is given a thorough check-up by our vet, receives any necessary treatment, and is neutered if this hasn’t already been done. The cat is then ready for re-homing! But even with all these precautions, there can still be problems. Recently, we had an incident where three people reported a cat that was straying in the car-park of a supermarket. One lady who rang had been feeding the cat every day for weeks, and had placed ‘found’ notices around the area. So the cat was taken into care according to the usual procedure. She was lovely, but very distressed, so we were delighted when she was quickly homed. She had hated being in a pen. However, two days later her owners turned up, and demanded she be returned. Fortunately, although her new owners were very upset they agreed to let her go, and accepted a lovely little kitten as a replacement. The original owners said they had an 8 year old child grieving for the cat. The reason they hadn’t been searching for her was that they had four cats, who all spent a lot of time outdoors, and it was ten days before they noticed she was missing! We really do need to be very careful – but then, so do owners!

FUTURE EVENTS, 2010

June 19^th, Saturday – participating in Roath Park table-top sale. All day.

July 10^th, Saturday – participating in Llanishen Leisure Centre table-top sale. All day.

Sept 17^th, Friday – Autumn Auction, Christ Church Hall, Lake Road North. Viewing 6pm, bidding 7pm.

Oct 16^th, Saturday – Autumn Fayre, venue as above, starts 2pm.

Dec 4^th, Saturday – Annual Social Event, venue as above, starts 2pm.

AND AN EXTRA SPECIAL DATE FOR YOUR DIARY! On Friday August 20^th at 7pm, there will be a CATWEL summer quiz night at the Cardiff Bus Sports & Social Club, Tudor Street. The tickets are just £3 each, and there will be a free buffet, provided by CATWEL group members. If you don’t have transport, we will try to arrange lifts. For tickets/more details phone Sheena (02920 498935) or Jan (02920 712543). PLEASE HELP SUPPORT THIS SPECIAL EVENT!

The following page contains an article which is to be printed on coloured paper and enclosed with newsletter 26.

My dreams for the future of CATWEL (Cardiff).

As most of you know, CATWEL acquired the property which is our re-homing centre with the very generous legacy left to the charity by the late Mrs Mary Williams. In fact, the re-homing centre has been named ‘Ty Mair’ in her memory. She stipulated in her will that her legacy was to be used to provide a cat sanctuary located in Cardiff. It was very difficult to find suitable premises with the amount of money available, because of the high price of property and the lack of large garden plots in Cardiff. However, luck was with us, and we managed to find a place in Radyr which suited our purpose.

‘Ty Mair’ has now been open for five years and we have turned it into a centre to be proud of, due largely to the efforts of our Trustee/Manager Helen Powell. Helen designed all the facilities, and ensures that our feline residents are cared for to the very highest standards. Secondly, CATWEL has a group of dedicated helpers, who work hard to raise the money that enables CATWEL to pay its bills. They also carry out home-checks, and transport cats being brought into care or taken to the vet. We also have a member who writes ‘begging letters’, and she has succeeded in getting substantial grants from various charitable trusts. These have enabled us to pay for a lot of the work which has been carried out at the centre, including the refurbishment of our office and toilet facilities. We have also received several generous legacies; and I now feel it is safe to say that CATWEL (Cardiff) is no longer a small charity which may not keep going. Indeed, I feel certain that if the goodwill and support we are currently receiving continues, CATWEL is most definitely here to stay!

So now to my dream for the future of the charity, which no doubt I will not live to see.

I would like our existing re-homing centre to be maintained and to retain its present function, but hope that we can extend our boundaries by purchasing a second property, one with land in a rural area. There, permanent residents who cannot be re-homed (elderly cats, feral cats, FIV cats and those with special needs) could wander freely, and live out their lives safely and in comfort. This rural sanctuary is, of course, just a dream – but who knows? One day it may become a reality. A large city like Cardiff really should have its own cat sanctuary, so please help to make this one dream that comes true!

Margaret