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27
Jul
‘We’re on our knees’ – a Harrogate cat charity’s plea for volunteers
A Harrogate cat rescue charity has issued a plea for volunteers amid ongoing financial struggles.
Volunteers at Harrogate Cat Rescue find themselves housing 10 or more cats due to an increase in strays.
With vet bills and other expenses rising rapidly, the charity is struggling to keep up.
The Stray Ferret recently visited Stephanie Saville, a trustee at the charity, at her Pateley Bridge home. There, she houses 10 cats – five of her own and five fosters.
She told us how much the business is struggling:
Massively. It’s a complete catastrophe. There are too many cats coming in and not enough funds. We don’t have the space, the resources, and the vets are struggling to keep up.
Our vets' bills are around £3000 per week. We’re a charity with limited funding, and we’re just on our knees. Fosterers, volunteers, and trustees are all having to put in their own money to prop things up, and it’s not sustainable long-term. We’re daily having the conversation of whether we have to close our doors.
Two rescue cats being fostered by Stephanie Saville, a trustee at the charity.
The charity provides shelter and medical support to stray cats in need of rescue – but its future hangs in the balance.
Founded in 2020 by Celia Dakin, the charity has no office. Instead, it uses the homes of its 76 volunteers across North Yorkshire to shelter almost 200 cats.
Ms Saville houses 10 cats.
‘If we weren’t there, more cats would be dying on the streets’
Ms Saville said the problem stems from cat overpopulation. She added that Harrogate’s abundance of green space means the town has a particular problem with wild colonies.
Milder weather in recent years means cats have more litters. The fosterer added that, since 2020, people have had less money and resources to get them neutered.
Such an increase in cats means the charity is struggling to keep up.
She said:
There are pregnant queens out there having litters that would ultimately be dying. There are a lot of unneutered males out there that have abscesses and other illnesses. Daily, we are seeing cats coming in with a terrible bill of health.
We have cats that are being abused by members of the public, living in grim conditions and need someone to go in and rescue them. If we weren’t there to help them, there would be a lot more cats dying on the streets.
Cats without many issues are given short-term care from the charity – their health will be assessed, and fosterers will make sure they are ready to be adopted.
But people can be reluctant to adopt cats with extensive medical problems because vet bills are expensive, and it’s hard to get insurance.
As a result, these cats are allocated long-term foster care from charity volunteers – staying under their care until death, further stretching the charity’s resources.
Appeal for help
So, what can be done to help?
The charity has around 6,800 followers on Facebook, and stages regular fundraisers. But they only bring in a limited amount of money and can be time-consuming.
One of Ms Saville's cats with a familiar face.
Ms Saville said more volunteers are crucial:
Our volunteers are on their knees because they’re having to work three or four times as hard. Fundraising brings in £200-300, but that doesn’t cover a £3000 vet bill.
We want to raise awareness and get volunteers who can help with fundraising, setting up events, and admin, so that they can free up the rest of us to concentrate on the cats.
Ms Saville has dedicated a room in her house to the foster cats.
Volunteers to foster cats are welcome, too, but it can be a big commitment. Ms Saville said each fosterer must dedicate a room in their house to the animals.
If you would like to volunteer to help at the rescue or donate to a fundraiser, visit the charity’s Facebook page or website, or email Harrogatecatrescue@gmail.com.
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