Well, we're still here! So many of you have helped us with donations, food and bric-a-brac to help us going over the past twelve months that together with our own feverish fund raising efforts, we have survived another very busy year.

We now combine our Coffee Mornings with Table Top Sales - and they are proving highly successful. The most recent one coincided with Flu Jab Morning at the Surgery practically opposite the Community Centre in Disley, so we were busy all morning with extra people popping in for coffee.

Until recently, the tireless Branwen has been running her weekly car boot stall at Leek, doing garage sales from her home and liaising with her son to put the sanctuary "on-line". You will find all sorts of information there, including advice on the adoption of our cats and kittens.

We have also had a lot books, CDs and videos given to us, so we are trying a Book Fair at the Ram's Head, Disley, at the beginning of December. Branwen will also be at the annual Dickensian Market in Buxton, and Andrea, who still supports us in any way she can (one of her extremely alcoholic Christmas cakes is a prize in this year's raffle) is planning next June to run a half marathon (13.5) miles for the Sanctuary on the Isle of Sky, where she now lives. She is training as we speak. Incidentally, SYBIL, one of the three cats Andrea took to Skye, recently went missing. She was found the next morning locked in the Island's Toy Museum next door, posing presumably as one of the exhibits. Nice one SYBIL.

Of course, the biggest fund raising event of the year has to be the Christmas Raffle and Calendars. Because the Calendars were so popular last year we have taken a deep breath and ordered more this year: Our representatives this year is Rowley (November).

We were sad to hear a few months ago that High Peak & Glossop Cats Protection had had to close, as Dorothy and Lyn have worked together on a number of local projects in the past. We have yet to see what effect the closure will have on us.

The cruelty cases we have seen over the past year are, sadly, inevitable, but the bravery shown by people who do care when an animal clearly needs help, never ceases to amaze us. A recent example is a black kitten about 12 weeks old, brought in after having been kept locked in a shed without food and water. A neighbour, who had become aware of the situation, actually broke into the shed and brought the kitten out. He is now called LUCKY, is reasonably well after his miserable imprisonment, and we are very grateful to that brave neighbour.

A neighbour also played an important part in helping to rescue LOTTIE. Just an ordinary black and white cat, she was fending for herself and her three kittens in an overgrown garden, waist high in weeds and littered with lager cans and rubbish. The rescue took an unexpected turn when it was discovered that a five year old child from the same house had been begging food from neighbours. In this case we were not only able to rescue LOTTIE, but also help the little boy as well by contacting Social Services.

Another case that upset us was a cat that had been tied to a table with a rope. She had had kittens, but this fact had been totally ignored by the owner, as had the deep weal marks on her neck. Happily she is now in a new home, having recovered well from her ordeal.

A great deal of patience and diplomacy is needed to rescue a cat from a bad situation and we are lucky to have such qualities in Karen. Not only does she doe a lot of rescuing in the most dubious of neighbourhoods - and a lot of chatting up of people - she is a champion kitten fosterer from her home in Poynton, place upwards of 85 kittens this summer in very good homes with people who care.

There is a fine line between the cruelty cases and the ones we see that are the result of sheer ignorance and irresponsibility. Pat, a lady who works mostly with feral cats in North Manchester, told us the story of two young cats whose owners claimed they couldn't afford to have them neutered. Pat offered them financial help, only to be told later by the vets that the cats had arrived for their operations with diamond studs in there ears!

Another example of irresponsibility is one of a couple who came to the Sanctuary asking for two unneutered cats, one male, one female, because they though it would be nice for the children to have a kitten each when they bred. They were sent on their way, and probably got what they wanted elsewhere, but not from us thank you very much. Strong coffees all round that morning!

At the end of June we were made aware of a multi-cat household consisting of 10 adults and 16 kittens. The owner had non intention of having the adults neutered and apparently had let the kittens go at old two weeks old in the past, so it was important to try to remove at least the kittens. This was done, again with gentle persuasion, but an offer of free neutering for the rest by a local charity was turned down because the owner “couldn’t be bothered with the upset”.

Round about the same time, in an area known for its drug and gun culture, we were informed by a resident that her friend “wanted rid” of a mother cat and five kittens. They were brought into the Sanctuary but on a return visit to the area it was found that the woman who “wanted rid” of her previous cat had acquired another one – a male kitten. Predictably she soon tired of him as well, he was brought into the Sanctuary too, and eventually they were all homed to people who did want them.

We get quite frustrated from time to time about the sheer thoughtlessness on the part of some people we meet: for example those who have found themselves in domestic situations where sadly for whatever reason the family cat has to go. At least by bringing them to us we feel they are showing they care what happens to these cats, and there are often tears shed when they are handed over, but in an awful lot cases the owners then drive off, often in expensive cars, without anything being offered towards the caring of that cat until we find another home for it. We are glad to help in these situations whenever we can, but even a small contribution towards food, litter or possible vet fees would not go amiss – or are we being to sensitive?

Yes, enough of all this whingeing! We are still in existence, despite our problems, and that’s the important thing – especially for all the cats who arrive at our door needing our help.

We are so grateful to all of you who have helped make things easier for us over the last twelve month: the Disley Estate Agent Crank Peach, who continue to support us; Strines Post Office, both the owners and their customers; the lady from Disley who insists on remaining anonymous, but gives us so much help especially with the raffle prizes for the Coffee Mornings, and who has generous friends and neighbours; Ian, who has put in a collecting box for us in his restaurants at the Manchester Evening News; Drake Carr Cattery is Disley and Three Chimneys Cattery of Cobden Edge selling Calendars for us – the list is endless. Without you all, and many other people that we never meet – like those who quietly keep our food tubs in the area topped up – we could so easily lose the will to carry on.

Let’s finish by focusing on our cats. At the moment we have quite a number in the Sanctuary that have been with us for some time. Several come in twos, and Dorothy is reluctant to split them up if they are really close, hence they stay with us is quite a long one until the right person comes along.

The afore-mentioned LOTTIE is one of our long-stay residents. Whereas she is very approachable and friendly, her three kittens are not. They were completely feral when they were rescued from that dreadful garden and consequently have yet to be homed. They are now great strapping teenagers and although quite timid, and two of them are girls, they are complete tearaways. They come on a lot, are as big as there mother and streak around the garden and up the trees in true hooligan mode.

Yet no matter how rough the going gets, or how foul the weather becomes, our cats can always be relied on to cheer us up. Their contributions to the housekeeping budget of dead (sometimes!) mice from time to time can be quite touching if you are in the right frame of mind, but quite scary if you’re not.

Already there have been some pretty cold mornings up at Dove, and our trusty helpers have been spotted with curious bumps in the most interesting places as tiny kittens are cuddled inside fleeces and anoraks. It is worth noting too the amazing observational skills of our volunteers. Their eagle eyes relentlessly check litter trays, bedding, food dishes – and bottoms – looking for anything untoward. Information is recorded for Matron’s daily round, but nobody, not even the usually infallible Dorothy Lower, noticed until almost a week after one cat had been brought in, that it only had three legs. Yes, we are all getting on a bit!

Well, that seems to be all our news for another year. Thank you for reading our Newsletter and for your continuing support of our Raffle. We really do appreciate your time and generosity as we know at this time of year there are so many other pressures.

Please keep sending us your cat photographs, especially if you think they could be suitable for next year’s Calendar. If they have been take with a digital camera that would be even better. We don’t have the final say, but we know a man who does!

A Closing observation:

“No matter how tired of wretched I am, a cat sitting in a doorway can divert my mind.”
(Mary E. Wilkins)

Very best wishes to you and your families for Christmas and the New Year from us all.

Coffee Mornings 2005

Saturday 4th June and Saturday 8th October – Disley Community Centre – 10:00 ‘til 12:00 noon.