“A cat charity is not just about a full belly and a warm home”
A cat rescue in Hessle has been forced to stop taking in more cats due to funding issues. Jenny’s Cat House takes in stray, neglected, and often heavily pregnant cats throughout the year.
But vet bills, including emergency c-sections that cost upwards of £2,500, mean the charity needs more funds if it is to continue functioning. This comes after the CEO of Hull and East Riding RSPCA made a statement highlighting the pressures of caring for cats in the city.
Volunteer Charlie said the city is full of stray cats in need and the charity is “always picking up the pieces”, but due to low funds, the charity’s founder, Jenny Musgrave, can’t take in any more. Charlie said: “It was heartbreaking for her to make the decision to have to pause intakes, but with the vet bills rising, it just isn’t possible to keep going at the rate we were.
“A cat charity is not just about a full belly and a warm home. People always ask, ‘How do cat rescues get themselves in so much debt?’ But when you have c-sections and out-of-hours vet charges, it adds up.”
Charlie said it was sadly all too common for pregnant cats to require a c-section, especially if they are under a year old. “It’s the young mums having their babies and obviously getting stuck,” she said.
One cat helped recently was Mama Lilian, who was found abandoned in a cat carrier in Pearson Park in west Hull in the beginning of September. Charlie sad Mama Lilian was “heavily pregnant”, which is common with the cats that come into the charity’s care.
Around the same time, Jenny was nominated for the BBC‘s Make A Difference awards. The night of the awards, Mama Lilian went into labour and subsequently gave birth to seven kittens, who were all named after local BBC News presenters.
Sadly, the smallest kitten, Peter Levy, died. “He only weighed 65g and passed away even though Jenny was giving him extra milk and doing everything she could,” Charlie said.
The other six kittens have been “absolutely thriving”, along with their mother. Although Mama Lilian was microchipped when she was found, no details were registered and Charlie said owners are circumventing the law that all pet cats be registered.
Mama Lilian will be available for adoption after about four weeks when she has weaned her kittens. When they are old enough, the kittens will also be up for adoption and are playful, friendly, and “very inquisitive for their age”, Charlie said.
There is a Just Giving page to support Jenny’s Cat House. The target is £10,000.
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