Wild Honey Press in aid of charity

If you like poetry, I urge you to run over to Wild Honey Press.  Wild Honey Press is a small press in Wicklow, which publishes poetry chapbooks.  Not only do they support new talents, but they also support charities.  Indeed, their 2010 and 2011 titles are available for a donation to the charity of your choice.  All you need to do is contact them to order and make a donation to your chosen charity.  Isn’t it such a lovely idea?

September 2011 Photo Competition

I am delighted to announce the launch of our monthly photo competition.  Every month we will offer a different prize to the winner.  Moreover, the winning photo will be displayed on our website, blog and Facebook page, as well as become the cover for the following issue of our booklet of creative writing, Furry Tales and Meowsings (note that we will ask you to sign a very simple form authorising us to do that).

To enter the competition, it’s simple.  You first need to go to our website and buy a photo competition entry here.  You can buy more than one entry (and use them either to submit more than one photo or keep them for following months) as we will keep track of how many you buy and use.  Make sure that you write down the reference number that is given to you (it should also appear in the confirmation email).  The entry costs €3.50 and the money will exclusively be used for the welfare of animals.

Next, send your photo (it must ne related to animals) along with your reference number and your details (name, address, email and phone number) to photos@animalcaresociety.ie.  You can send more than one photo, but make sure you have bought the necessary amount of entries as submissions without a valid reference number will be refused.

You can send your photos as soon as we announce the competition and until the 20th of the month.  Photos will then be displayed in an album on Facebook, where people can vote for them by clicking “like”.  On the last day of the month, the five photos with the most votes will go to a judging panel who will select the winning photo and announce it in the next few days.

This month, we are really pleased to offer a family pass to Fota Wildlife Park (for 2 adults and 2 children) to the winner of the competition.  Fota Wildlife Park is located only 20 minutes from Cork, near Cobh.  You will be able to walk amongst many varieties of wildlife animals and meet Conan, the giraffe, who was born on the 5th of August.

What are you waiting for?  Grab your camera and send us a photo!  We look forward to seeing them…

Many thanks to Fota for their much appreciated support and to Fireball Media for setting up the link on our website.

Inko the budgie: a happy ending

One evening we received an email from a lady who had found a budgie three weeks previously.  She had been looking after him since and had put up posters in the local area, but could not find his owner.  We offered to help her and posted an ad on Facebook.  Not long after, Aileen commented on the post explaining that she had lost her budgie a few weeks before…

I asked both ladies to send me a picture of the budgie.  The finder, Nicola, sent me a picture of the budgie:

I waited with anticipation for Aileen’s photo, which soon came in….

The similarity between the two was striking and I put the two ladies in contact with each other.  A day later the good news came in and Aileen had been reunited with Inko.  I was told that the reunion was very emotional and I can imagine so.  I was so happy for the two of them.  It is such a great feeling when a pet gets reunited with his owner and this was my very first reunion.

Later, Aileen told us that Inko had gone missing for twelve weeks.  This means that he must have been fending for himself for about two months.  How incredible is that?  She actually thought she would never see him again has there had been some torrential rain a few days after he disappeared.  Nicola said that when she found him in a ball on the path near her house, he was exhausted and very very hungry, without her care he would surely have died.  What a brave little budgie!

Thank you so much Nicola for looking after him; compassionate people like you give us faith…

Nora’s fostering experience

Nora, who works at The Cat Hospital in Glanmire, recently fostered three kittens for the ACS.  She now tells you about her experience:

On May 13th, a Friday afternoon, I was relaxing watching Coronation Street! I had just finished college exams that day, bringing to an end an academic year that consisted of a 7 day a week schedule for me between school and work!

I was enjoying a glass of wine and dinner when I opened my laptop and saw an
appeal on facebook by Anne Fitzgerald. Three kittens had been found in Hollyhill and brought to her. Their mother had apparently been chased into oncoming traffic by youths, died, and her kittens were being tossed in the air! A gracious cabman took them to Anne.

At this time, Anne was stretched beyond belief with kittens. I sat for a few moments before I found myself writing Anne an email to say I would take these poor babies in!

Anne arrived within the hour, carrier in hand. We went to the spare room I had set up for them. She opened the carrier to reveal three handsome kittens. Barely three weeks old, they quietly began to stick their heads out to investigate their new surroundings. I piled them all on my chest and found myself falling deeply in love as they all stared at me with their gorgeous blue eyes.

Nora and her three foster kittens

Needless to say I had a few sleepless nights, syringe feedings, etc. Thankfully my amazing husband adores cats and works nights so took over early morning feeds when he would get home. The boys quickly melted our hearts. we named them Bobo, Harvey, and Baby. Bobo was extremely inquisitive and a loving boy. Harvey way a tough brute that demanded to be fed first! Baby lived up to his name, adorable, sweet, tiny, and cheeky!

Full of love!

Our time with them was amazing. Over 10 weeks, it had its ups and downs. Seeing them grow and discover new things was entertaining. When they all became sick with suspected girardia I was beside myself. I quickly took them to The Cat Hospital, where luckily they were quickly put on the right track.

It's not always easy to look after a tiny baby...

As they grew it was time to start looking for homes. My mother, a long time cat owner, happened to be looking for a new kitten to join her household of two other rescue kittens at the time. She adopted Baby. he was so cheeky and flirtatious at that stage, I knew he’d settle in well. He has! Delighted with his new home…spoilt beyond belief!!

In late July we went on a week holidays and left the two remaining boys in The Cat Hospital to be looked after by Clare and Lesley. On their last day up there they caught the eye of an amazing family. A lovely lady and her three gorgeous kids fell in love with Harvey. They wisely decided to talk about it over the weekend. When they came back they had decided to take them both! They took all of our advice from the Cat Hospital on how to introduce them slowly to their
existing cat. At this stage, they had already been vaccinated and neutered for the ACS by Clare at The Cat Hospital so they made ideal pets.

Will you adopt us? Of course!

To say I was heartbroken saying goodbye is a massive understatement! These
boys touched my life in a way I simply cannot describe. I truly miss them. Still, when ever I hear a high pitched squeak in the house I think it is a three-week old Harvey demanding his milk!

I feel honoured and blessed to be one of Anne’s last fosterers; she was supportive and encouraging throughout. She would be proud of the boys today.

At last count they are absolute terrors, causing mayhem around theirs homes and enjoying life thoroughly.

Nora's foster family

I would highly recommend the fostering experience. And, although I am clearly biased from working at The Cat Hospital, I would strongly urge any fosterer to avail of the FREE nurses clinics we offer there for any health checks / advice.

Thanks for writing your story, Nora!

A diet of bread and tea

When the phone does not ring, it is the email box!

A couple of days ago, we received an email from Niall regarding a colony of ten cats and especially a female cat and her kitten.  Niall explained to us that the colony lives on the land of an old gentleman, whom he visits regularly.  As well as looking after the gentleman, Niall looks after his cats, dog and chickens, making sure that they receive proper care and good food.

One of the two female cats of the group had two kittens in June; however, one got killed by one of the male members of the pack.  Thoughtfully, Niall put the mother and her remaining kitten safely in a shed.  When Niall came back this week, he found the shed in an awful state and the mother and kitten looking thin, pitiful and miserable and with no access to fresh water.  He told us that the kitten had failed to grow and looked as if he were four-week old.

Tea, a very small kitten for his age

Niall took it upon himself to help the mother and kitten and contacted us for advice.  Of course, we offered to help and recommended that the cats should immediately be brought to a vet to be examined, and should receive proper food.  As it happens, the cats were fed bread and tea since the old man thought that if it was good enough for him, it was good enough for the cats; something that might seem logical, but is very different from reality.

Cats and humans are different beings and have different nutritional requirements and one of the essential element a cat needs is taurine.  Neither bread nor tea contain taurine.  A dog will survive for a long time on bread but in the end his pancreas will go as the lack of protein will destroy it.  For a cat, the end comes much more quickly and lack of taurine will destroy the cat’s nervous system.  Taurine is an essential dietary requirement for feline health, since
cats cannot synthesize the compound.  The absence of taurine causes a cat’s retina to slowly degenerate, resulting in eye problems and (eventually) irreversible blindness — a condition known as central retinal degeneration (CRD) –  as well as hair loss and tooth decay.  Moreover, decreased plasma taurine concentration has been demonstrated to be associated with feline dilated cardiomyopathy.  You might understnd now why we always insist on the fact that cats should receive a proper diet.

Bread and Tea

Niall brought Bread and Tea, as they are now nicknamed, to Clare at The Cat Hospital where they received a check up.  They were later collected by Albert to go to the sanctuary where they feasted on cat food.

Bread and Tea enjoying a good meal

Both mother and kitten are doing well and regaining forces, enough forces to play with Nicole, our little helper at the sanctuary.

Tea playing with Nicole

Hadn’t Niall been there, these two cats would have suffered a painful death.  Niall did not stop at this since he has offered to adopt them and will welcome them as soon as they are neutered and in full health.  As for the other cats, they will also be looked after and neutered.  If you would like to help with the cost of their neutering, please visit here.

Sign the petition!

Lorcan when he was rescued (photo courtesy of his Facebook page)

No, this is not an ACS kitten.  This is Lorcan, the blind kitten.  If you live in Ireland, you might have heard about him already as he has his own Facebook page and also appeared in the newspaper.

Lorcan was rescued on the 21st of July with a severe eye infection, so bad that his eyes could not be saved.  There are many kittens like Lorcan who suffer from carelessness and cruelty, so many that animal welfare charities find it difficult to actually cope with the situation.  There are not enough good homes to welcome all the kittens who are born every year.  As long as people do not become more responsible regarding the neutering of cats and as long as the legislation regarding animal cruelty does not change, this situation will remain the same.

But, maybe if we decide to act together we can get things to change?

Lorcan settling in after his operation (photo courtesy of the Lorcan Facebook Page)

Lorcan was lucky, he was rescued and offered a new life, which he can enjoy despite being blind.  He has also become the symbol of a very important campaign for the right of animals to live a happy life and that concerns all animal rescues.  Many animal welfare charities, including the Cork Animal Society, have been fighting for the rights of animals, but today, the public is also given the opportunity to support this campaign by signing a petition.  The request in this petition is simple: a change of legislation (one that dates from 1911) and more funds being made available for cat welfare.

So far, only 622 people have signed the petition; a strange figure considering that 807 people have liked the link on Facebook.  This is not enough, we can do better than that.  So please, if you are even the slightest bit concerned by the welfare of animals in Ireland (whether you live here or not), sign this petition and show that together we can be stronger!

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/funds-for-irelands-feral-cats-and-kittens/

Furry Tales and Meowsings: Call for submissions

Furry Tales and Meowsings is the name of the Cork Animal Care Society’s first booklet of creative writing.  We are hoping to have the first issue out this September; however, for this to happen, we need your help!

We are looking for poems and short stories, either factual or fictional, that we would be able to publish in this amateur booklet.  It will be nothing fancy at first, but who knows what it will become?  The only guideline we have is that the piece must contain an animal, although it does not have to be a main character.

There is also one extremely important condition: the work must be yours!  We will in fact ask you to fill a form certifying that it is your own work and that you authorise the ACS to use it for the booklet.

Furry Tales and Meowsings will then be put up for sale on our website and some local outlets.  All the proceeds will go towards the welfare of animals.  The only thing it will cost you is a stamp to send the form back.

You’ve always wondered how you could help us when you do not have much money to keep going in these difficult times?  Here is the answer!   So, pick up your pen and paper and email your piece to emilie@animalcaresociety.ie.  It could be your claim to fame!

The week in pictures

On Monday, a queen and her five kittens were rescued from near a busy road.

The mother:

Queenie

One of her kittens:

They found a safe place to stay at Maggie’s:

Adam Ant, Stripe, Tear, Red and Charlie

On Tuesday, this little ginger kitten was rescued in Midleton.  He is now with a fosterer.

Leo

On Wednesday, Inko the budgie was reunited with his owner.

Inko

On Thursday, Mr Pickles, the last kitten rescued by Anne (RIP), fell ill.  He is now getting better.

A sick Mr Pickles

On Friday, a kitten was rescued from outside an office where he had spent the whole week.

Shan, the office kitten

Meanwhile, Brambles made some new friends at the sanctuary.

Brambles having fun

As you can see, it was a busy week!  You might get a better idea of why we say that we do not have any space left.  We have many animals looking for their forever home; you can see some of them on our Facebook page.

Maggie and her husband were also very busy doing some trapping/neutering/releasing (TNR) of feral cats in their area.  Such programme helps controlling the cat population in Ireland.  However, it also cost a lot of money as spaying/neutering is not free.  If you would like to help by making a donation, please visit our website.

Daisy and Little Bea

At the Cork Animal Care Society, we love to hear how the animals we have rehomed are getting on.  And not long ago Albert received news from two of these cats, Daisy and Little Bea.

But wait!  Before I go on with their story, you might want to hear first how they were rescued?  I’ve had to look back into the archives of the ACS, but I found the story of this coup de force.

“The call came late: Hello, you’re the ACS people?  Listen, I have a lot of cats here and I don’t want them anymore. It’s the type of call we dread.  Where are we supposed to go with them ? Good homes ? Very hard to come by in large numbers. A lot of cats  can mean anything. Anything between 5 and 50. Our welfare officer took note of the name and address and said she would visit to see the situation. In these cases we often find that people give us a lower number of cats than there actually are, and this turned out to be exactly the case here.  10 became 20, 20 became 30. Our welfare officer made it clear to the person that even though we would try to help, the caller would be responsible for the cost, of having the cats seen by our vets and any treatment or testing needed. To our great surprise, agreement was given !

On inspection it transpired that the poor cats had only ever been fed on BREAD AND WATER !!, that they were interbred and some in a very poor condition. These older people did not realise the vital importance of spaying and neutering and the fact that cats need meat and cannot survive on bread and water. Over the period of a week our welfare officer managed to get all the cats and each and everyone went to our Vet. Sadly, in one case our officer was too late and in other cases the vet recommend euthanasia since the cats were in too poor a condition to be saved and it was the only humane thing to do. Taking in that many cats entails a huge risk, you do not know what illnesses they might suffer from and as it turned out, several of them had Feline Aids. (FIV). In desperation and to isolate the new cats from our other sanctuary cats we pressed the ACS ambulance into use, not ideal, but it has heat and light and the cats can be handled and treated on our site.

In the cat ambulance

Due to our excellent connections with a premier UK based rescue organisation we got the agreement that they would take all cats which had not tested positive for Aids and/or Leukemia. So, last week our ambulance travelled the 1100+ miles journey. INSPITE OF THE DREADFULL WEATHER, our volunteers made the trip over this huge distance, roads covered in ice and snow. 6 cats were left behind at our sanctuary. They tested positive for Feline Aids and could not go. But.. they now have a heated shed, warm beds, and the best of food. But above all:  THEY are LOVED. For the first time in their lives, they know what human compassion and kindness can do. I, as chairman of the ACS pay tribute: Tribute to Sara and all our other helpers.  These women embody all that the ACS stands for: Their Lives.Our Passion.

A very very special Thank You to our Friends at Wood Green Animal Sanctuaries in the UK. Without their help this story would not have had this happy ending. PLEASE visit their website at: www.woodgreen.org.uk and support their work. By doing so, you are helping them and us and thus help both the cats and dogs who need our joined help so very badly. Thank You.” (Story originally published on the Cork Animal Care Society website during the winter 2008-09)

On their way to a new life

I know, I am sorry, this is a sad story.  But now read the story of Daisy and Little Bea, as told by their owner and this should put a smile back on your face and you will also understand what we work for…

“Born in County Cork, Ireland, they lived with over thirty other cats in a barn. Inbred, malnourished and suffering from many diseases and injuries, they had little to eat with bread and water as their mainstay.  The future looked bleak. Then, in early 2009 Albert Kleyn and his helpers from the Animal Care Society of Cork were called in. They rescued the cats, took them to their shelter and began to care for them. There were so many that they could not take care of them all. Albert asked Wood Green Animal Shelters for help and WGAS agreed to take some cats into their care.

In early February, 2009, one of the coldest weekends of the year, the day arrived to make the journey to Heydon. Only those well enough to make the journey could travel. Sue was lucky in that she was loaded into the converted ambulance with her sisters, Sarah, Sugar and Sally. Their mum was too ill to make the journey so they had to leave her behind. I can only imagine how scared and cold they were as they set off on that epic journey. They left Ireland from Rosslare and several hours later drove off the ferry in Pembroke.  A long, tiring journey lay ahead through Wales and into England on a cold and snowy day. The Severn Bridge was closed during part of the journey as ice was falling onto the carriageway.

The ambulance almost made it to Heydon, but with only a few miles to go, broke down. Staff from Heydon came to their rescue ferrying them to their new home at Heydon.

Their new friends at Heydon were very kind but the cats were very poorly. Sue had a flank wound, we think she got caught up in barbed wire and it gouged her flank and shoulder, and terribly itchy skin; Sarah had Calicivirus and had to be fed by syringe and was also deaf as was Sally; their sister Sugar developed mammary gland tumours which spread to her chest and, sadly had to be put to sleep.

Everyone could not believe how thin they were. They had next to no teeth.  There was no fur on their ears or noses.  A diet of bread and water left had them all with a severe taurine deficiency.  Slowly with the loving kindness of everyone at Heydon they all started to slowly improve. One day they were well enough to go outside into a run.

Sarah loved to climb on shoulders; and was nicknamed Parrot.

Meeting our new family. Sue is the one with the collar.

In May, 2009, we went to Heydon as we had recently had to have one of our cats, Millie, put to sleep as she had suffered a stroke. We had only had Millie for a short time and she had also been rescued from Ireland. We were told about the three cats from Ireland who were in the Ruby Run; Sarah who loved to climb on shoulders and Sue who was in an Elizabethan collar and was very depressed. Her skin was so itchy she was over-grooming and wore the collar to stop her pulling her fur out. They were incredibly small and thin – despite being adults, the Wood Green staff said we would think they were kittens because they were so small. Despite all that they had been through, they were so trusting of humans.

We decided to adopt Parrot because she was a great character.

Sarah aka Little Bea, also nicknamed Parrot (photo courtesy of Sue)

Sally was adopted at the same time and went home. Later in the week, Sue went to see Sarah. Sue knew that Sue would be alone when we took her sister so she phoned me and we decided to take her as well. Due to their poor state of health we were told they might not live long but decided to give them a chance to live a happy life no matter how short.

As my wife is called Sue we decided to rename Sue, Daisy, and Sarah became Little Bea.

Sue aka Daisy in 2009 (photo courtesy of Sue S.)

Daisy’s skin condition had not improved and she was on medication. We took both cats home but over the next few days Daisy had extreme diarrhoea and vomiting and we were worried that she would become dehydrated unless we got urgent medical help. We spoke to Heydon and took Daisy back for them to look after her. On the journey back Sue put her finger into the carrier to reassure Daisy who hooked her claw into Sue’s finger and looked her in the eyes. That look was so intense and pleading, it was as if Daisy was ensuring we would go back and get her.

Daisy was put on a drip in the Kitten Block for a few days and started to get better. After about a week we brought Daisy home.

Sarah aka Little Bea in 2009 (photo courtesy of Sue and Robert S.)

Two years on, a lot has changed.  Both cats have put weight on and have luxuriant coats.  Little Bea was diagnosed with two mammary tumours in October 2009 which were successfully removed.  Daisy was sent to see a
Cardiologist in January 2011 with a heart murmur but the specialist did not think her condition was serious.  He did, however, find a liver infection when running blood tests and she was treated with a month’s course of antibiotics.

Recently we went back to Heydon for a visit to see all the kind people who helped to save them and they were amazed at the difference in both of them.

Daisy in 2011 (photo courtesy of Sue and Robert S.)

They are happy cats and we are so grateful to Albert and his helpers and to all the Staff and Volunteers at Heydon who cared for them.

They might not have had the best start but they have both won their battle for a happy life thanks to people who love and care for animals.

Little Bea in 2011 (photo courtesy of Sue and Robert S.)

Whilst I am writing this Little Bea is on the chair next to the desk and Daisy is lying next to my chair. It feels as if they know I am writing about them and they want to say thank you.

We have seen and admired the dedication and care the Staff and volunteers at Heydon give to their work and have read so much about the great work of the Animal Care Society of Cork led by Albert Kleyn.  We feel privileged to be part of Wood Green Volunteers and to have the opportunity to give something back to animal organisations striving to improve animal welfare.” (This story was written by Robert and Sue S. and reproduced with their authorisation)

Isn’t it just a lovely story of hope?  This is what the Cork Animal Care Society works for: giving a second chance to unwnated animals, saving their lives and giving them the right to happiness.

We would like to thank Sue and Robert S. for writing the story of Daisy and Little Bea and authorising us to reproduce it.  We are grateful for all you did for Daisy and Little Bea.

Many thanks Wood Green Animals for their support through the years and helping us to rehome so many animals in the UK.

Floyd the Dog and Finn McCool

Have you heard of Floyd, the writing dog, and Finn McCool, the magic leprechaun cat?  The two of them are talented storytellers narrating the adventures of our furry friends.  Let me tell you more about them.

Floyd the Dog writes stories, but also publishes stories on the internet.  You can subscribe to his stories by filling a simple form and will receive at least one story every month.  You can also submit stories, and if your story is chosen Floyd will give a donation to the animal welfare charity of your choice.  Floyd is indeed a generous dog.  Have I mentioned that the amount of the donation increases with the number of subscribers?  So, what are you waiting for?  Run to his website and have a look.  You can even explore a few of the stories there and if you subscribe you will be able to read more archived stories.

We were delighted to hear that Floyd the Dog made a donation to the Cork Animal Care Society on behalf of Leo whose story was selected for the month of August.  “Doggy Bank” is told by Leo, who is a St Bernard working for a hospital in Cork at the end of the 19th century.  It is a story based on real facts, which necessitated some careful research.  I’m sure you’d love reading it.

Not long ago, the ACS received another donation on behalf of Finn McCool for his story “Wearing the Green”.  Finn McCool is a leprechaun magic cat, who brings luck and happiness. It is also the nom the plume of author Karen A. Lynch, who writes about more than just Irish magic cats, so you might want to check her website.  As you might guess, Finn’s stories will take you into a magical Ireland and they can be accessed on the website (see here for an index of stories).  And if you like this little cat, there is also an online shop where you can find various good with his effigy.

Happy reading!

The Cork Animal Care Society would like to thank Floyd the Dog for his generosity, as well as the authors who picked us up as their chosen animal charity.  We are most grateful to you.