It all started here...

Some evening back in early September of last year I was greeted by these little faces. It was the usual story of someone haven discarded them. Them were all completely tame. Unfortunately (at that point after four years of Greek cat rescue) with 40+ cats I simply didn't have the capacity to rescue these little guys off the street. I have lost count of how many kittens and young cats I've witnessed dying here. Either being run over, dying from a flu or respiratory infections, poisoning or otherwise vanishing into thin air. And no... believe me, people don't just pick kittens or cats off from the street here. No one wants to know of them! So this was not an easy situation for me. During the last couple of years I've actually learnt to cut off emotionally from new cats and especially kittens arriving here (those with a feral cat mamma). When you've had your fair share of being directly involved in the misery of seeing them die you have to cut off for the sake of self preservation. It has honestly left me so brokenhearted so many times. 

But... with these four I simply couldn't cut off. They were tame and so sweet. So once again I found myself caught up in praying and hoping each day for their safety and that they would all turn up each day when I came to feed them among the other cats living by the dumpster. Because I've witnessed so many young cats die here I knew I had to make an effort to try and get them all vaccinated... that would at least give them some chance of survival. So I raised the funds via donations and many kindhearted people chipped in to ensure they could have their double vaccinations and be treated for parasites. 

After four months of them living by the dumpster and surviving a very unusual Greek spell of a snowstorm and a windchill of down to -20 °C (I believe that's -4 F, they survived the cold by seeking shelter in these polystyrene boxes which I set up for them) I knew it was time to have them all spayed and neutered to avoid the misery of three girls having litters of kittens and the boy getting himself badly wounded because of fights (the stray males inflicts horrible wounds to each other). So once again, with the amazing kindness of some wonderful people, I collected the funds to have them all fixed. But I knew I had the biggest hurdle ahead of me. After them recovering with me at home - how was I going to be able to release them back in the field by the dumpster!?? In the image below, that's them recovering with me at home after them being spayed/neutered. 

After four months surviving on the street and in the wild they were as sweet and tame as it comes. It's tough accepting any cat having to make it in the wild on their own, but it's a different thing when you have four tame young cats that someone once lovingly cared for when they were small kittens and then discarded them when they thought they were old enough to fend for themselves! 

Well, I was amazingly lucky. My dear friend Natalie, who recently adopted the three ginger girls (discarded by the exact same dumpster exactly one year earlier!) reached out to me and the four cats. She offered to foster them and help find new homes for them in Canada! We talked about helping each other posting about raising funds for them to be able to have their rabies shots, microchips, passports, transport boxes and their flight fare. Knowing the costs from before, we knew we would have to raise 1,500 euros or $1,700. BUT... Natalie's offer of helping didn't stop there. Her and her husband wowed to match each donated dollar with $1. An absolutely outstanding offer of generosity!! Right now a BIG fundraising is underway for these four and so far we've collected it the range of $570. We still have some way to go (and I would love for Natalie and her husband not to have to chip in - they've done so much already, and just read her blog and see the beautiful life they provide, not just for cats, but other rescue animals too) so I am asking if you would like to donate towards these four being able to start a new life in loving homes in Canada instead of being released back to a life by the dumpster. Any donation - big and small - will help these four make it to a new life in loving homes. Donations can be send to my Paypal account: saints@mail.dk 

You can also use the DONATE button on the right side of my blog. Please make sure to tick the donation as a gift - that way we avoid any fee!

We are also looking for their forever loving homes (after they have been fostered by Natalie) so if you live in Canada or the US and would like to either adopt or help find them loving homes, please contact Natalie by email: quazilla@ncf.ca or me joanbowell@yahoo.com

Here they are...

Girl: Annuk

Playful, sweet and inquisitive.

Boy: Archie

Playful, confident and cheeky 

Girl: Aggie (also named Luna by her kind sponsor)

Playful, smiling personality and cheeky 

Girl: Ambie (Amber)

Quiet, shy but gorgeous personality

She needs someone who will have patience with her. 

She is playful but needs a lot of reassurance. 

It would be a wonderful help if you would please help share their story. Thank you dear friends!