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It’s been a busy weekend for Warrington Animal Welfare (WAW) as we neutered, chipped and health checked 37 vulnerable, community cats as part of a special two-day campaign in memory of our much-loved colleague and animal rights campaigner, Andrea Jeffries who sadly passed away late last year after an extended battle with Cancer.
The event, held at our on-site neutering clinic saw 37 cats from the community spayed or castrated, micro-chipped, health-checked and returned to their owners in a bid to help reduce the amount of unwanted and abandoned cats in the local area and promote responsible pet ownership, with each cat was picked up and returned to their owner by the charity.
The event was made possible by the WAW’s on-site neutering clinic in Warrington and the amazing volunteer Vets and Vet Nurses that work in partnership with the charity.
Veterinary Nurse, Claire Shepherd, said:
“There is a huge need for community neutering in the Northwest, there are not enough good homes for cats. Most people don’t realise that cats can get pregnant from four months, plus there are the benefits of neutering as neutered cats tend to live longer and happier lives, they are less likely to roam and go missing and male cats are less likely to spray and fight.”
“We hope that the event will help reduce the annual spike in the numbers of unwanted and abandoned kittens, known as ‘Kitten Season’ which lasts from Spring to late autumn.”
Janet Thornton, WAW Trustee spoke about Andrea:
“We were proud to be able to do this campaign in the memory of Andrea, who worked tirelessly for animals throughout her life both here and abroad often in deprived areas, especially around the Wigan area.
“She was steadfast, kind and brave knocking on doors in the most challenging situations, greeting people with her big smile and unassuming manner, she saved the lives of 1,000’s of animals who had suffered and become invisible behind closed doors.”
Claire added:
“There is no real excuse for people not to be a responsible pet owner and neuter their cats, there is so much help available. There are schemes like this available from both small local charities across the country as well as larger national charities, such as Cats Protection, schemes that offer free or very low-cost neutering and projects like these break down the barriers people use for not neutering their cats, like affordability or access to transport.”
This campaign was for Wigan residents in honour of Andrea, but WAWs next campaign will focus on the Warrington are, with more information will be available soon.
The event was entirely funded by WAW and between October 2021 – April 2022 we have neutered 110 cats, 28 dogs, 19 rabbits and 3 guinea pigs. The charity receives no government funding and relies entirely on donations from the public, if you would like to support our work, to allow us to continue to serve the community and reduce the problem of unwanted and abandoned pets you can make a safe secure donation at www.justgiving.com/warringtonanimalwelfare, or visit here to find out more about making a donation.
Visit our 'Get Involved' section to find out more about how you can support our work and get involved.
Information non our next campaign will be available soon, however in the meantime if you need help to neuter your cat, please get in touch with us, Cats Protection or your own local animal charity.