Dear Friends,
We are well into the year and although it is non-stop, we are heartened that so many people are still coming to choose cats so we are able to help even more and keep our waiting list down.
We have had a lot of 'found' cats this year, many wearing collars but not many are claimed, which is sad.  Poppy, a pretty fluffy tabby, was found wearing a red collar, but no one came forward.  Rosie, a young tabby with a silver collar, appeared in Bidford, and Tabitha who had probably had kittens recently, was found in a Stratford garden.  Both have now been chosen by new owners.  Cats with microchips of course are generally easy to re-unite with others.  We have a scanner and most vets will check stray cats free of charge. We had a grey cat, Thomas, brought in from Quinton in February who had been missing since last July.  He had somehow travelled from Solihull, but had not been checked till he came to us. His owners were thrilled to find him.  We even had the sweetest black and white kitten found in a shed. He had a touch of flu but is recovering well.  Snowy, a beautiful fluffy torti travelled from Kings Heath to Mappleborough Green.  When her chip was scanned and owners contacted, they had got another cat and didn't want her back. (See cats for homing).  Other sad cats like Mollie, were left behind when owners died or moved away like Oscar's.  Oscar, a big fluffy ginger cat lived outside his empty house all winter and took 3 weeks to begin to trust people again but now he is happily settled in a new home. 
We have taken on some problem cats too.  Minn is 12 and thought to have a growth on her spine.  She could barely walk but since being put on steroids she taken on a new lease of life and is very happy.  Thumper is 4 months old and has a spinal injury, which makes her incontinent.  The option was to put her to sleep or take her on.  Now she lives with some feline friends and bounces round the garden when it is sunny.
We still meet so many lovely new owners.  The most amazing this year is the couple that chose 'Marmite' - our FIV cat. They saw him on Catchat and travelled from Buckinghamshire to see him.  They reserved him and prepared their house and then returned to collect him.  Last time we heard, he was settling well.

Finally - fund-raising.  The sun shone on our Easter Bazaar and we raised a fantastic £2,500.  What a pleasure it was to have lots of help, lots of supporters and great weather.  Thanks everyone.  We hope all out other outdoor events will be as lucky.  (See Dates for your Diary)
We look forward to seeing you at one of them.

Rosemary Spicer                                                  Margaret Goode

Cats for Homing
SAUSAGE  A pretty grey 11 year old female whose owner died
MOLLIE  An 8 year old black and white female, timid but sweet
SNOWY  A beautiful fluffy 10 year old torti.  Doesn't like other cats
CHARLIE  A ginger and white 8 year old male who is very nervous
TILLY & SUZIE Torti and black females who are 8 and 9 respectively.  Both very nervous

Avon Cat Rescue, the Barn House, Chapel Street, Welford-on-Avon CV37 8PX
01789 750235    email:- enquiries@avoncatrescue.org
website   www.avoncatrescue.org


From Helen Hall, 24, Hanson Avenue, Shipston-on-Stour  CV36 4HL
email:- enquiries@avoncatrescue.org

Avon Cat Rescue needs YOUR HELP!
Last year our outgoings exceeded our income by over £9,000 and but for legacies, we would be in real financial difficulties.  I need your help to try to bridge the gap so that by the end of 2010 that gap has at least been reduced.
There is no easy way of doing this but one way is that if everyone who receives the newsletter were to make a donation of £18 over and above what they already give, this would produce the £9,000 needed.  I know this is unlikely to happen but nonetheless I would love to receive any amount that anyone can afford and is willing to pay.
Other ways in which you can help.
Pass on your newsletter (after making a note of any dates etc. you need).         Persuade your friends/neighbours/relatives to support us either with a donation or joining our Supporters' Group or Sponsorship scheme.
Hold a coffee morning for us.
Place a Standing Order (monthly, yearly) in our favour (forms from Helen)
Do a car boot sale.
Do you have any other ideas?

This year so far.
The Jumble Sale, held in February, went well. We had a good number of helpers, a lot of customers and took £706.84 - a thank you for everyone.
Our Spring Bazaar, was held on a most glorious day in April and raised, with donations, £2,525.45 - a record.  This total was made possible with several donations received from people who could not attend.  If you cannot come to our Summer Bazaar please would you consider sending a donation - every little helps.
The Summer Bazaar is on Sat. July 31^st.  Can you help at this event?  Anytime between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.  Please let us know.  Let us hope we can continue the momentum of our Spring Bazaar.
Small change bucket.  So far we have collected £253.02 (Jumble Sale £53.61, Spring Bazaar £199.41).  We have a long way to go to beat last year's total of £764.38 so please keep saving for us.

Cat Stories
We seem to be getting a lot more 'cat stories' so space in the newsletter is at a premium.  If the number continues to rise I will have to be selective - sorry.
In the last few newsletters we haven't had room to continue the  'Tour of the Rescue'.  The idea behind this was to let more people know about our set up, especially those who cannot get to see us.
I have as a  'one off' enclosed a separate leaflet  giving a complete tour of the Rescue.  For those of you receiving this by email you can see this on our website.

New tea towel
Just before the Spring Bazaar we received our new tea towels, which were designed by Janet Froud for which we thank her.  They are lovely and depict Brandy, Blue, Bella, Pixie, Georgie and Mungo.  They are in black and white and cost £3.20.  Can we tempt you to buy one or two for yourself and for a present?

2011 Calendar
As this letter goes to print the calendar is in the process of being done. They will cost £4 and will be ready for the July Bazaar. I will let all the people know whose cat(s) appear in it.
Christmas card
I am hopeful we will have one this year.  What this space!

Sponsorship
If you are not already a sponsor, would you please consider becoming one.  It costs £18 a year and you will receive a sponsorship certificate.  If you buy a sponsorship as a present, the recipient will receive a card on either Christmas or Birthday and a letter from the cat sponsored.
So far this year we have had 19 new sponsorships taken out in the first 4 months, which is excellent,  but set against this are 14 sponsors who have not renewed during the same period.  At least we are keeping just ahead.
Cats for sponsoring
Queenie & Toby - tabby mother and son
Bobby  - black and white male
Muffin - white and black female
Mandy  - black female
Kay, Stella and Kim  - black females - photos quite difficult
Gertie & Glynis  -  torti sisters
Thumper  -  a female black and white disabled cat

A form for sponsorship or donation is at the end of the newsletter.  If you do not wish to cut the newsletter, please send details on paper to Helen - thank you.

Our summer bazaar clashes with the global gathering at Long Marsden Airfield so please leave plenty of time to get to us but please still come.  We need your support!

Finally, we have been very lucky to be helped by Waitrose and their customers at both Alcester and Kenilworth.  Thank you to our supporters for nominating us.  We are waiting to hear the amounts but I think both are around the £300.  Thank you to everyone who contributed.

Newsletters by email.  Are there any other people who can and are prepared to receive their newsletters by email.  Each one sent by email saves the Rescue about 45p which is nearly a tin of cat food and as one of the supermarkets says 'every little helps'.

Next newsletter due end of September.

Cat Stories
Harry and Ronnie (black and white)
We sadly lost our dear Humbug to cancer last year. He came from ACR 10 years ago.
We still had Flo aged 6 but the house was so quiet. A visit to the ACR website, a car trip and Harry and Ronnie joined us - two great and loving characters.
Once home they explored every inch - no hiding for them. The evening finished in front of the fire eating up the Christmas turkey. We kept them in for a week and let them go armed with collars and tags.  They did have fun.  Up on the roofs, over the fences and were totally shattered when they came in.
2 days later we had snow which they loved!  A month later they were well settled, getting on with Flo and eating us out of house and home.  They are such fun and happy and being spoilt rotten.
Mischief
Thank you for finding us Mischief and even my wife has grown to love her.  We came to ACR on New Year's Day and Mischief hadn't been there long enough to have a name so was called 'The Character'.  She is a lovely little tabby.
She felt at home straightaway and had a good explore getting into cubby holes and crevices and then settled down in the sun.  Two weeks on she has settled really well though still a bit jumpy with sudden movements.  She lives up to both Mischief and 'The Character', is extremely sociable, follows us everywhere and loves to be with us at all times.  She sits on a lap, feet or shoulders, the floor nearby or else attacking paper and protruding labels.
She wakes up around 5.30 am and wakes us up as well.  She wakes up full of energy and will attack my slippers, socks and anything under the duvet that moves.  It is hard to sleep being pounced on at 6 am!  Currently she's curled up on my lap, contented and keeping my warm.  We are very happy. 
William - black cat - 2 years old.
William came to us just over a month ago - initially quite a shy cat. He has become quite a character and is very playful and loving.
He is very much a night owl, loving to play at about midnight, running up and down the stairs. I do feel that he is ready to go outside but we have to wait another week so that he can have his second vaccination.
I know it is only a short time but he is very much loved and has fitted in very well as one of the family. He is very clean and doesn't really eat a lot. William and Suzie (our dog) have been sat together recently and he has even stolen the dog's basket on a few occasions in the afternoon.
We bought William his own basket but he never uses it as he sleeps on my bed. He is very clever and starting to understand our routine and is normally waiting on my bed when I get home from work for some attention.  I am sure it sounds strange but there really are no problems with William being a new addition to our life.
Gregory
Gregory came home with us on the Saturday afternoon and immediately ran behind the sofa and stayed there all evening. When he eventually came out, he went and explored the stairs, poking his head through the rails.
As Gregory had not had any infections we took him to the vet who gave him a thorough check and congratulated us on our choice, saying he was a fine animal and in very good condition.  We have the good care of the Rescue to thank for that.
7 weeks later, he's totally settled in and really enjoys snuggling into tiny spaces, especially under the cushions on the sofa. He has started going outside and is becoming more and more brave every time. Around 9 o'clock each evening he has a 'Mad Half Hour' when he goes tearing around the upstairs and downstairs rooms as far and as fast as he can go while the human residents of the house sit and laugh - it's a wonderful sight. He has developed a keen interest in computers and likes nothing better than walking over the keyboard as you try to type.
Daisy (2 year old black cat)
Daisy has settled in really well in her new home with us.  When we first got home with Daisy, we let her out of the carrier and she made straight for the cat flap and started head butting it to try and get out.  Anyway we put some cardboard over it and the kitchen bin in front of it.
The next day Daisy managed to get under the sink unit, after 5 hours and no sign of her wanting to come out, we used a walking stick to get Daisy out and it is now boarded up so she can't get under again.
Since then Daisy has been great.  She loves being on one of our laps and having a lot of fuss. Daisy likes looking out of the window a lot.  She has had her first lot of injections so after her next ones, she will be able to go out.  Daisy and our dog, Dina,
seem to get along well.  She is eating well, meat and biscuits too.  She also likes prawns.
We are really happy to have found Daisy and hope that we will have for a long time to come.
Muffin - found stray in a car park.
We lost our cat of 15 years and "popped" into ACR to see if we could find a female tabby about 1 year old and when a small tabby face peered at us in the third pen we were hooked!
A family vote meant Kat is now 'Squidgy Muffin' known as Muffin and she settled into family life quickly. Within a couple of days she was wandering around the house as if she had always lived with us. To ensure her place in the family home she has taken on the role of hunter - she tries to feed us at least 2 mice a day to ensure we do not go hungry.
We have a small flock of pure breed chickens that are excellent stalking practice targets.  Muffin enjoys seeing how close she can get to them before they see her.  Even when she gets right next to them she seems to know that they are not for eating and just gives them a nudge.
Family Christmas meant all 20 members of our family came to eat with us. Muffin was in her element, introducing herself to everyone, particularly the young children of the family. She seemed to very much enjoy teasing the little children so she got close enough to gain their interest but as soon as they wanted to touch her she would run away. She would then repeat the process 4 or 5 times before moving onto the next child.
All in all we have been lucky enough to find a wonderful addition to our family.
Suzie
I had Suzie last November.  She is very affectionate and loves a short cuddle.  She is also nervous and flies under a bed if the door bell rings etc. Most of the time she's on my duvet as she didn't want to be out daytime, but now she has sorted out her surroundings but not staying out long in the evenings - am wondering if that will change in the summer.
Holly - longhaired white tabby
Holly has been with us for several weeks now and is fully installed.  She settled in very quickly and after two days she has us organised.
Holly is wilful, she tests the boundaries and is a flirt with males (2-legged variety) as well as being very lovable and trusting.  She is well named as her claws can be very prickly and she can give a sharp nip when displeased but her general behaviour is that of a Duchess - we are getting used to being her servants!
She loves lots of cuddles, food and sizes up visitors for lap space!
Her exercise is limited to high jumps up the back of chairs to get onto your lap and chasing a couple of ping pong balls through the house - usually at 10.30 pm.  She does not like snow or rain.  The vet pronounced her a very fit 13 year old.  All in all she is a delight.
Delsa
Delsa joined our family two weeks ago and has settled in really well.  On arrival she was up on every surface and in every corner etc. and followed us all over the house and seemed to need lots of reassurance.  By the end of the first week she appeared far more confident that this was her home too. We expected it to take a while for Delsa to learn about living in a house again as she was in the Rescue centre for a while but she is a smart cat and within a few days she knew where she was allowed and where she wasn't.
Her routine includes visiting the garden in the morning but frequently popping in to check up and is getting braver.  The neighbour's cat is tolerated at a distance.  She has a long nap, then revisits the garden and usually plays.  She then requires lots of fuss and attention before settling down for the evening. 
Delsa's routine seems to have her looking calmer, more content and means she fits in with us. She eats well and is getting used to being brushed.
She is a great addition to our family and we will keep in touch to let you know how she is. Thank you for looking after her for us.
Bella (black, short haired female)
Bella is happily settled in her new home. We are certainly very happy with her. On arrival she had inspected my room, been very affectionate with much purring and claimed a place on my bed.
Next morning Bella could not be found, it seemed she had been frightened.  Eventually she was found in an old bread oven behind my wardrobe which has become a secret refuge when needed. The oven is no longer used so no danger of baked Bella!
She has now grown in confidence, is playful, mischievous and quite at ease with anyone whom she knows.  Her favourite trick is to roll on her back to display her white bid and white piano-key toes demanding a tummy-tickling session. She is wary of  several folk together, of strangers and by sudden movements, loud noises etc.  Her fears are, however, decreasing.
Bella enjoys exploring the old Manor House full of odd corners etc. She now goes outside carefully checking that the left-open door provides an escape route.
Along with being very much at home Bella has become very vocal and talkative which is pleasing but not always appreciated in the small hours.  Maybe she has some Siamese genes in her ancestry?
Recently Bella had an appointment with the vet for her vaccination.  She behaved impeccably and purred throughout. 

SPONSORSHIP  FORM/SUPPORTERS' GROUP

Supporters' Group  £ …………. (£8)   Donation £ …………...

Sponsorship.  Name of cat chosen ……...………………..    £………… (£18 per cat)   
If for a present please give the birthday.  If for a child their age. …………………………………   
Name  …………………………………………………..

Address (of person paying for the sponsorship)

………………………………………………………………………………….

…………………………………………………………………………………..

……………………………………………………….. Post Code ………………

Address for the sponsorship to be sent to if a gift. ………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………….

………………………………………………… Amount enclosed £ ……………….

Please send this form with your cheque (made payable to Avon Cat Rescue) to
Helen Hall, 24, Hanson Avenue, Shipston-on-Stour, Warwickshire CV36 4HL