Dear Friends,
We have had a much better time over the winter. Some of our long-term residents have found new homes which is great, other cats have only been with us a short while before being chosen. This means we could help others much more quickly.
Sonny and Bertie, here for over a year, were chosen in September and are doing well with a lot of TLC and patience (see stories). Their sibling ‘Susan’, who hardly left her box, is being fostered now and is having a happy time. Tiger, a timid stray tabby, has gone to a new home after waiting 14 months and Herbie, our ‘indoor’cat is now happily settled in Warwick after being with us for 18 months. It is lovely to think of them all in a home again. Ginger would have had a new home if he hadn’t decided to bite his new owner – would anyone like a challenge?
We still have others of course – see ‘Cats for Homing’. Overall during the year homing has been slow. In 2005 we homed 189 cats but in 2006 it has only been 113. This also means less income. Is this a sign of the times?
Fund-raising went really well before Christmas. We had some very successful stalls at Alcester and Stratford – thanks to volunteers who helped us run them. The Leamington market stall was a bit of a wash-out because of the weather, but we did sell a little. Everyone was very generous and it was good to meet past owners of our cats. Thank you to everyone who sent Christmas cards to us and the cats.
Tins of food, pouches, bags, kitchen rolls, sacks etc. kept coming in and we are well stocked. Many parcels were individually wrapped and we made sure the right cats got their presents. Tesco’s and Jollyes’ bins were regularly filled as well. We are so grateful for everyone’s kindness.
We have recently heard from the owner of a cat, called Melody, whom she had from ACR in 1988. Her cat is still going strong at 20 and asked if we had any other cats of a similar age and did we keep a record.
We don’t keep these details as not everyone keeps in touch but if anyone else has got a story of a cat from ACR who is still going strong at a ripe old age we would like to hear from you. If we could get a few stories and photos together, we could have a ‘Cat Stories’ website page devoted just to these cats.
Next we are hoping that ‘May Trees’ new run will be finished soon and we can move some cats for the Spring. Fund-raising begins again with the Jumble sale – see dates for your diary.
Hope to see you at one of our next events.
Rosemary Spicer Margaret Goode
ps. Does anyone have any unwanted bubble wrap? We use it to wrap our goods when travelling around.
We do have other cats waiting patiently. Please see our 'Cats for Homing' page on this website
From Helen Hall, 24, Hanson Avenue, Shipston-on-Stour CV36 4HL
email address info@avoncatrescue.org
A very happy and healthy 2007 to you all.
Last Autumn the extension to Pebbles was completed. Our grateful thanks to all who made this project possible. It was finished one Saturday afternoon leaving Rosemary to wash the floor before letting Blue, Tabitha and Bella out. They had been shut in their house whilst the front of the old pen was removed. It was some while before they ventured out but very soon one of them was in one of the bunk beds and they have never looked back.
All three cats who are nervous have come on in leaps and bounds. I can actually stroke Bella and Blue and am sure Tabitha wants to be stroked but hasn’t yet found the courage. When visitors arrive they are up on the shelves/climbing frames pushing themselves at the wire. It is a joy to see.
Our second extension, Maytrees, is still not complete. We are waiting on the delivery of the wire. The wire hopefully has been delivered today so the extension will be completed within the next 4 weeks.
The bunk beds and climbing frames that people have bought for the cats are very popular. The bunk beds were soon in use even before bedding was put in them!
We still have three large pens in which we could put bunk beds and several pens where climbing frames can go. Are you in a position to help by buying one of these? If so, please get in touch.
3 step climbing frame £45: 4ft climbing frame £45; 4 step climbing frame £50; 5ft climbing frame £50; 3 bunk bed £105:
OUR COSTS CONTINUE TO RISE!
In 2006 we raised £40,109.02p. Our outgoings, excluding electricity, were £40,114.62. Keeping us afloat and enabling us to do repairs was an additional amount (legacy) of £5,000. Please remember us in your will. These legacies are life-savers. If anyone else can give us a regulary sum of money each month, however small, by standing order please get in touch. I would love to hear from you.
The Sponsorship and Supporters Group makes a major contribution to our bank balance. In 2007 it provided us with £7,550 (Sponsorship) and £1649 (Supporters Group) giving us a total of £9,199. We had 68 people who did not renew their sponsorship but we found 71 new sponsors. Therefore just keeping ourselves ahead!
It is hard trying to raise the £40,000 plus needed each year. Can you help? Do you know anyone to whom you could pass on your newsletter to see if we can increase our sponsorship income (see sponsorship section following)?
As of January 2007, we have 54 cats with us permanently plus a further 4 very nervous black feral cats who are to be moved into one of the homing pens when the weather gets warmer.
SPONSORSHIP COSTS £15 PER YEAR PER CAT
A photo and known details of the chosen cat are given to the sponsor as well as our three newsletters each year.
Sponsorship can make an ideal birthday present for someone who is unable to have their own cat. The recipient of this gift will receive Christmas and Birthday cards and an update letter from the cat on their birthday. If for a child, I will need to know their birthday and age. To apply for a sponsorship please fill in the form at the end of this newsletter.
The Autumn Bazaar went very well and it was lovely to have the help we needed. We took, including donations, £1424.44. This also included £100.61 of small change in the bucket. Please keep collecting your small change for us. If you do not live locally perhaps this change could be converted into stamps.
If you can help at our Spring Bazaar, which is at the Rescue on Saturday, April 14th, please do. There is always more work before and after events when they are held at the Rescue. Please let us know if you can help and for which part of the day. Help is required between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. 9-10 am to put tables/gazebos out.
2006 Cards and Calendars
Both cards and calendars sold well. We sold 138 packs of cards and 176 calendars. This boosted funds by £472. My thanks to Richard Ledwidge for his Christmas card design and to all contributors to the calendar.
Please, if you have some good photos of your cat or cats and are prepared to write a brief story to accompany said photo, let me have them by the 1st May. If we have more than 12 responses I will have to select. Photo quality and newcomers to the calendar will be given preference but do not let this put off any of you sending in these lovely stories and photos. As all photos will be returned, a sae would be appreciated. Digital photos can be sent straight to me at info@avoncatrescue.org . I do not have broadband so please only send 3 or 4 at a time otherwise I may never get them. However, do not make them too small as they lose definition.
We will not be having an Open Afternoon this year. It is far too much work for the small number who attended last year. However, we are intending to move our Summer Bazaar into August. Please check the Diary at the end.
Christmas cat food
Thank you to all who gave food for the cats’ Christmas dinners. It is all very heart-warming to see the generous amount of food appear. It certainly helps our bank balance.
New second-class stamps
Last year we were very lucky to be given 1,389 stamps which is a very great help in reducing our administration costs. If you have any left over from Christmas or can spare a few during the year, I would be happy to receive them.
On two separate occasions recently when I have been at the Rescue I have witnessed how very determined cats can be. On the top of one of the units was an Advent Calendar. Milo was also on the unit and having a wonderful time trying to get into the cat sweets inside. At first it seemed impossible, but, by persevering, he opened the cardboard flap and, with great dexterity, opened the cellophane covering and neatly lifted out one sweet at a time until that pocket was empty. On the second occasion it was Georgie’s turn. What is so strange it that if you gave them the drops they would have nothing to do with them. Clever Milo and Georgie!
Finally, without your help and support the Rescue could not exist. It doesn’t get any easier to raise the massive amount of over £40,000 each year to keep us running. Please continue to support us where and when you can.
BONNIE AND CHUTNEY
(A mother and son who had been at the Rescue for a long while.)
At last some news for you as to how they are getting on, I’m sorry it has taken so long but I wanted to give you a good update. As you know, Bonnie escaped the second day from her stable and left poor Chutney alone, who became rather depressed and lonely. So we decided to let him go after a week to join her and we had to hope for the best that they would come back.
Food was disappearing but no sighting of the cats. I decided to cut down their food and only feed once a day, bingo, result, Bonnie appeared! And also Chutney was spotted sunning himself on the straw bales, they had decided to stay. Bonnie is the bravest around us and comes every day for her breakfast. We are not allowed to touch her but she is happy in our company.
Chutney on the other hand goes off hunting every day and only comes back in the evening for a warm bed in the stable by his mum. At this moment in time we cannot get anywhere near him, he must love his freedom so much and be worried we would send him back! They both look well and are very at home on the yard with the horses.
COLIN & MARVIN
(Were know as Sonny & Bertie and had been at the Rescue for along while)
After many months at Avon Cat Rescue we were driven to our new home. The first 2 weeks we were very scared and spent lots of time hiding – coming out only when our new owners had gone to bed! However, they kept talking to us and climbing under furniture to stroke us and now we are very settled!
We purr a lot, love playing with ping pong balls and love to be stroked and tickled. We have lots of different places to sleep (we prefer being under the bed) but we don’t hide all the time now. We continue to explore the house, but haven’t been brave enough to go out the patio doors yet – maybe we will soon!
Every night we listen for our owners to come home from work because we know it is time to eat and play!!
We love our new home and our new names – Colin and Marvin.
Since the earlier part of the letter we have begun to explore the patio for only a few minutes at a time. However we are not out there for more than a few minutes before we run back inside. Strange sounds spook us!
CHARLIE(photos on the website)
Charlie (Dudley as he was called) has settled in very well indeed with our three other four-legged friends. On day 2 he could be found stretched out on the rug in front of the fire.
He was easily introduced to our 3 other cats and seemed totally indifferent to having them around. The two older cats, Oscar (10) and Maddie (12), are both great with him. Our youngest, Holly (7), is still inclined to hiss a little but then Charlie does keep getting into and falling asleep in her bed/box.
Charlie is extremely playful and you do have to watch his sharp claws and teeth. We have great fun in the evenings playing with him with balls and fishing rods/string which he loves to chase.
He has been to the vet and started his vaccinations. He hated being chipped but it was all over very quickly.
He has a passion for sitting in windows (and climbing blinds) to see what’s outside. He has even wriggled behind blinds to get a view.
He is adorable, very cheeky and growing in confidence.
JEM AND JESS
(formerly Pebbles and Patch. Their photos are on the website)
Just wanted to drop you a line and let you know how Jessie and Jemima are settling in. The first day they were, of course, very nervous, but they stayed calm and I left them to their own devices. When we went to bed, they then came out to explore and from that night onwards they have become more and more confident and are establishing themselves around the cottage very, very well. They are so playful and are both extremely loving and gentle – they eat well, sleep well and play well and love bouncing around on the bed in the mornings when I first get up. They are delightful and I could not imagine life without them now. I have not yet let them in their garden; I will keep them in for another week and after they have had their second vaccinations I will consider letting them out to explore outside.
I am so very pleased to see that Amber has finally been found a home, fingers crossed for her – she is lovely. I will keep you posted on my two.
Wishing you every success and the very best of luck with everything.
“MJ”
( Now known by my full name of MONTAGUE JORKINS, or MONTY)I came here in March 2006 and settled in very quickly. There are 3 other cats – Humphrey, a black Persian of Breeding (he says); Polly, a smaller 10 year old and Penny, an Essex cat with white boots and a white plastic handbag. She tried swinging it at me, but I have her one of my looks and she generally avoids me now. There are also 2 dogs but they are of no account.
The staff here have arranged things to my liking. I get them up at 6 am by jumping on their bed and sticking a wet nose in their ears. Breakfast is a sumptuous affair which Humphrey shares with me. I then go to the gym for a workout with a soft ball on the dining room carpet. This lasts for 3 minutes, then it’s time to go to my office for work. I have several offices – armchairs, beds, sofas, etc and I spend the day until teatime working hard on philosophical matters. Unfortunately, I haven’t found out how to write it all down so no one knows.
I stump off out into the garden whenever I feel like it and practice singing occasionally, both in and out of doors. After tea, it is back to work.
Hope you are all as well as I am.
MOUSE, LOTTIE & HOBBS
In 2004 when Mouse lived with you, her name was Tilly and she was very young. Too young really to be looking after her new family of kittens; three girls and a boy. Fran and Steve came along looking for two girls, but two of the girls had already been snapped up, so they decided to take Tilly and her remaining girl kitten. But that left the little boy kitten all alone. He had scared wide eyes and Velcro paws that clung on to Steve’s jumper. So the decision was made to take all three. Quite a change from the elderly cat Fran and Steve had just lost. So a week later, they started their long journey back to Banbury, making the little girl kitten sick less than a mile from their new home. Names were issued – Hobbs for the boy, Lottie for the little girl and it dawned on fran and Steve that “Tilly” was a silly name and “Mouse” more fitted the bill, as she was very timid and very, very frightened of everything.
Time passed and the family settled in. Mouse, although still very timid, slowly allowed Fran & Steve to stroke her (but only when she wanted and only as much as she could brave). Hobbs and Lottie grew and grew. Hobbs turned into a handsome but gangly lad and his name mutated to that of “Bob”. Lottie grew into a charming and sweet girl, not growing very much and became known as “Little Dot” because that’s what she is. Hobbs and Lottie have become ridiculous in their contortions when they think they are in for a bit of fuss, especially Hobbs – the “man” of the family.
They have a high old time, surrounded by fields – the mortality rate of small furries became quite alarming - spending the whole of the summer days out and about, only visiting for a quick dinner pit stop. But Fran and Steve make it a rule they must come in at night. No real punishment with cat baskets, fleeces and little cat duvets. Every now and then, one or the other stay out for the night but it’s not long before they get back into the coming in routine – they know which side their bread is buttered.
When the weather is cold and wet, they rush in with their wet little paws, squeaking about how cold and wet they are and Fran and Steve dutifully dry them off with little towels.
A more perfect life for a cat cannot be imagined. They are so pleased you let them go to live with Fran and Steve. So thank you for all that you did for them and all that you still do for others like them.
MYSTI
(Photo on the website)
We adopted Mysti on Bank Holiday Monday, 28th August 2006. It was explained to us that, at four months old, she was slightly underweight and a little nervy having been neglected and abandoned. Well, what a transformation! She is now the most beautiful, loving, happy cat with the loudest purr, that you could ever imagine. We love her to bits and are so glad that she came into our home.
The first night, we awoke to find her curled up under the quilt with her head on the pillows, having made herself completely at home. Since then, she has high-wired across the curtain poles, mountain climbed up the doors and garden pergola and abseiled back down them again. She chases our old man of a dog around the coffee table – desperately trying to encourage him to play with her. We are met by the door at the bottom of the stairs every morning with a miaow that sounds more like “hello” every day and she won’t settle down at night until she has had her obligatory cuddle on the sofa. She will even chase balls of paper flicked across the lounge and bring them back to you, ready to flick again! She had recently discovered the joys of the garden and has even found her very own cat flap – the bathroom window – for when she has had enough and wants to come in. (Thankfully the bathroom window is downstairs!).
Now approaching seven months old, she has grown really well and we are thoroughly pleased with her progress. She is quite a fussy little eater – preferring Whiskas to Felix – and will still only eat little and often, however, she is putting on the weight steadily and has filled out nicely now.
We can definitely confirm that she has settled down into our lives without any problems or worries and is a pleasure to have in the family.
Many, many thanks for giving us the opportunity to adopt such a wonderful cat.
POPPY AND ROSIEANNE
(pictures on the website)
Just to let you know that Poppy (the short haired kitten) and Rosieanne have settled down very happily and are growing fast and eating well and very playful.
On Thursday they are having their second jab and the vet says a week after that they can be introduced to the garden etc. Fortunately, they have not yet worked out the cat flap!
Dates for your Diary
Name of cat chosen ..................................................
Amount enclosed £ ...................(£15 per cat)
Name .........................................
Address ..................................................................................
Post Code ................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