Two of the lucky ones...

Whilst getting a call to help out with trapping 5 cats at a garden center in Leeds, the caller also told us that 2 young cats has suddenly turned up, dumped over the fence one night, and there in the morning, fending off the 5 cats who's territory it was. Luckily the guy managed to coral the 2 new cats into a conservatory on site where he gave them food and water. They appeared to be about 10 months old, both very friendly and tame, and obviously 'unwanted', Why on earth someone would dump them over the fence we can only guess that they knew about the other cats there and assumed these guys would fit in.

The cats had clearly been pets and well looked after, so what drove someone to abandon them we'll never know. The manager of the site said the cats couldn't stay in the building they were in and if not removed from the site fairly soon, they would just pick them up and dump them somewhere else!

This is the guys in the Conversatory:

These guys couldn't get a break. I rang round everywhere to try and find a home for them,. but as with most charities at the moment, the Leeds ones are full the bursting with Mums and kittens, some weven being kept in people's bathroom until a better space comes a long. I really wanted these cats to be saved and not moved on again. I contacted Yorkshire Cat Rescue, in Howarth, where I regularly volunteer, as a last resort. I was delighted when the manager said they fell into an 'emergency' category and they would find space for them!!!

Last Tuesday I took them across and put them in their temporary pen, where they are now safe, well fed, and waiting for theur furever home.

Thank you YCR, you saved these cats lives and have given them a second chance. It turns out they are brother and sister... a quick trip to the vets is in order, we think :+}

Here they are in the temp pen, one one side and the other the litter area, on the right. The round 'hole' at the back/middle of the picture/pen is where they move between the two different sections.

New YCR pens all finished and ready for cats!

This was a few weeks ago, but the new pen block at YORKSHIRE CAT RESCUE is now completed, and all ready for it's new occupants.

There are around 7-8 new pens, all but one with an indoor and outdoor section and when I visited last week all the pens were already filled either with single cats or mums and kits. It's alot more cleaning for the volunteers with almost double the usual pens, but it does mean they are able to have a lot more cats back on site now they are finished, plus they look great for people coming to view the cats for possible adoption and will be warm and dry for the cats in the winter.

The below pics are the day before the pens were filled, just as we finished off cleaning them out and getting them ready for their new occupants.

New pens... nearly there.

This is the state of the new block today, everything building-wise is in place save the mesh/iron-work which need to go on the exposed side (facing the camera). This is being made at the moment, so should be in place pretty soon. Then it just finalizing the plumbing and electrics and we shud be good to go!

A week is a long time in building..

Well, last Friday the new pens were really starting to take shape as the frame work was put up during the course of the day.

Looks very much skeletal, and it's nice to see the framework of what the finished pens will be like. So the open side of the pens will be facing the gate, and the entrance/walkway will be at the back (see final photo). Will be interesting to see what progress has been made on my visit this week.

Foundations going down....

Well the cement foundations for the new pens went down today at Yorkshire Cat Rescue, and mighty fine it looked to.

A cement truck came on site and poured the cement mid-morning and the guys spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon smoothing it out and leveling. Here's some pics of the action...

This is how the site looked at the end of day....

A stray's story, a stray's one wish....

More snow....

This was the scene today. The foundations have been covered up, but there is still snow and ice around and it's COLD!

You can see how crisp and cold it is by the sun in the trees, and that's ice on the ground... very slippy.

Kind of excited to see the block take shape, although I suspect a few more weeks before it really takes off.

Slow going, snow going....

A week last Friday, this was what the building site of the new pens within Yorkshire Cat Rescue looked like. The snow was down and no work was going on. To be fair the foundations are now in and, whilst I am no builder, I think they need to settle before anymore work is done.

Anyway, it was COLD out there...

This is what the finished pens will look like...

Maybe not exactly like these, but not far off. These are the current modern indoors pens.

Here you can see inside the indoor part of the pen, with a heated tiled floor, a cat genie (replacing the need for a litter tray in many instances), to the right of the picture is a plastic table and 'fort' where the cats have their bedding, below this is there food and water. At the back, to the right is another small bed they can use, and a couple of toys on the floor. To the top left is the door to the outside section of the pens, accessible for the cats through a cat flap 24/7.

Here is a better view of the back of the pen with exit door to the outside area. You can see some more furniture and a better view of the furniture which is the same as the items inside the pen...

This is the pens from the outside, where you can see the run of outdoor areas, side-by-side. The mesh at the back of the pens is completely open and exposed to the elements. Obviously the cats rarely go out there in bad weather, but it does mean they can get fresh air and 'see' the outside world when they want too rather than having to wait to be 'let out'.

You have admit the pens are really nice, the cats have a safe, warm, indoor area and then an airy outdoor area if they want it.

Progress on new cat pens

A couple of weeks in and the foundations are starting to go down for the new pens.

Big respect to the builders, it was bitterly cold there today, AND sleeting, as you can see from the pictures, but slow, steady progress is being made on the new shelters.