Andree’s devotion to cats

Andree’s devotion to cats

22 July 2015

ANDREE Brown adores cats, whom she calls everything from “cute” to “masters of manipulation”.

She has her hands full with eight of her own plus a puppy to look after, but Andree also takes in the lost and unloved of the cat world.

Coordinator of the Downpatrick branch of Cat Protection, she can house an extra four at her

home between Killyleagh and Crossgar and demand for places is high.

She ended up adopting one of her beloved strays, Pepper, but knows that’s not the answer in every case.

Twice a month Andree will therefore be publishing photos in the Down Recorder of the latest cats who have come to her door in the hope that she can find them new homes.

“We are constantly getting phone calls and we don’t always have the spaces for them,” she said of her strays.

“Sometimes they end up with us when their owners move house and leave them behind to fend for themselves.

“There have also been cases of neglect and we work through Downe Veterinary Clinic with these.

“I hope through the Down Recorder to highlight the cats in care and gain adopters for them.

“The thing is we want these cats going to new homes. We never put a healthy cat down here.”

Andree’s foster cats enjoy a little of the luxury they may have been missing, with their carpeted summer houses and plenty of play time.

“All cats go to the vet,” she added. “They get spayed or neutered, microchipped, de-fleed, wormed, vaccinated and FeLV/FIV tested [feline leukaemia and feline aids].

“The cat adoption fee is £45 so that person is getting the cat for nothing.

“I come from a conservationist background, I love all animals, am interested in all animals. I especially like cats, as they weave a little web around you.

“It does demand a lot of your time. They need to be cleaned, sanitised, played with. But it is also very therapeutic and very rewarding.

“You don’t just throw a cat in a cage. That’s not what it’s about. Cat Protection are very, very strict about home visits. They have very strict criteria and the cat’s welfare is paramount.”

As well as home moves, unexpected kittens are the cause of many phone calls to the charity, and is something that could be easily avoided, as Andree pointed out.

“There needs to be a little more awareness especially for neutering and spaying,’ she said. “People are not realising cats can come into season again two weeks after having kittens. The next thing the cat is pregnant. It can happen very quickly. We had three phone calls yesterday about pregnant cats.

“We also trap and neuter and treat feral cats.”

For Andree, one cat who landed on her doorstep never left and became part of the family.

Pepper fell on hard times and was “just a skeleton with fur” when he arrived at Cat Protection.

“When he came to us, he hadn’t long to go, starved to the point of death,” said Andree. “He is now absolutely enormous. A big boy of 11 years-old, completely grey. He is a darling.

“It is such a privilege to be loved by a cat.

“You also have to understand their psychology. They have more intuition than we give them credit for, they definitely have ESP. 

“They know if you are going away for the day. At holiday time they have a habit of creeping around you. ‘Take me, take me,’ they are saying. They know instinctively. You think you are being cute, but they have it all analysed in advance. They are masters of manipulation.”

While not everyone will share Andree’s natural love for the animal, she appeals for pet owners and members of the public alike not to overestimate a cat’s independence.

“They do have a survival instinct but that can only work if there is a food source,” she explained. “We deactivate these animals’ instincts and then leave to their own devices. By the time the basic instinct kicks in it’s usually too late.”

For anyone interested in adopting a cat with Cat Protection Downpatrick telephone 07583109777 and see their Facebook page for more information.

The charity are also holding a jumble sale on September 12 at the Dufferin Coaching Inn in Killyleagh.