Volunteers Kathleen Rutten and Valérie Delfosse are urgently looking for new colleagues for the Geel stray cat project Missie Miauw. — © RR
Mission Miauw is the cute name that the volunteers have given their Yellowish stray cat project. But the reality is less rosy: on the eve of kitten season, they are urgently looking for new volunteers and local foster families.
Missie Miauw is a group of about ten volunteers – the term ‘mission’ not coincidentally also refers to ‘woman’ or ‘girl’ – who primarily takes care of stray cats in Geel. “Captured stray cats are neutered or sterilized and then released,” explains coordinator Valérie Delfosse. “That only happens with wild cats. When we notice that the cat has been socialized and was therefore most likely abandoned, we take them to a host family. Kittens and sick animals are also cared for there until we find a golden basket for them.” The group also closely monitors calls for help about missing cats on social media in an effort to reunite cats with their owners more quickly.
The stray cat project took care of 358 captured stray cats in 2023. “Beautiful stories, but sometimes also heartbreaking,” it sounds. Just under two hundred animals have been relocated, and in one hundred and sixty cases these were kittens that were taken into care. Mission Miauw had to put ‘only’ eighteen mustached four-legged friends to sleep. “We are not cat huggers, but we really work practically to protect them. Stray cats have no voice in our society, but we believe they should be treated with respect and the necessary care,” says Valérie Delofsse.
Helping hands
Now that kitten season is here, volunteers are in for some very busy times. That is why Missie Miauw is urgently looking for helping hands. “Anyone who cares about cats and wants to roll up their sleeves can help us. We are making an additional call for catchers with their own car, who can also take animals to the vet, and handy Harrys to help build and maintain shelters. In addition, we are looking for local foster families who want to open their hearts and homes to the care of the little ones and the not-so-little ones.”
www.facebook.com/missionmiauw.be
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