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Dollar a Day
By Summer Baxter
FIGHT FOR A GOOD CAUSE! Cat Haven is a charity organisation that relies on donations and funding to run the shelter. The shelter over the years have received an overwhelming influx of cats and relies on the public to adopt or foster the adorable felines.
The shelter opened its doors in 1961, and are an open admission shelter, meaning they do not turn away any cats (no matter how sick, feral and / or old they are). In 2017 Cat Haven received 8436 cats where 6438 were re-homed, 179 reclaimed, 2663 placed in foster homes and 1064 cats euthanised. At the moment the shelter is caring for 300 cats with 430 cats in foster homes across Western Australia.
A sad issue about Cat Haven is the amount of cats that are surrendered to the shelter such as; owners who no longer want to take care of their cat/s, stray or feral cats and cats who are old and sick. The shelter also has their own ranger, who drives around neighbourhoods to pick up lost, dumped and stray cats.
Cat Haven is apart of the ‘Getting to Zero' program, where it aims to minimise euthanasia of healthy. The euthanasia rate has dropped dramatically since a decade ago where the rate was 75%. But now the rate is between 9 to 12%, and this rate continues to drop.
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The decline of euthanised cats is due to the amount of programs offered by Cat Haven, such as; Foster Care Program, Ringworm Cat Program, Animal Support Program, Barn Buddies Program and Companion Cats Program. Since the Foster Care Program began, no more healthy cats are being euthanised (this is due to 300 to 500 cats in Forster Care at any one time).
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Cat Haven relies on the values of Integrity, Respect, Kindness, Ongoing Improvement and Collaboration & Teamwork. All these values show when you enter the facility and see how well cared for all the felines are. Not only does Cat Haven have payed workers who work there, they also have an abundance of volunteers, who give up their time to care for the kittens and cats at the shelter.
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Cat Haven has developed immensely since a decade ago, but a lot more action and awareness needs to be taken. Not only is Cat Haven helping abandoned cats, they are helping to keep feral and stray cats off your streets and into loving homes. So if you have a soft spot for kittens and cats or for any abandoned animals, please spare a dollar for this amazing cause. It will go a long way!
If you want to know how to become a Foster Carer to these friendly felines, check out the website for more information! http://www.cathaven.com.au/support/foster/
Cat Haven is a well looked after shelter and even though they do not receive a lot of funding from the government, they sell their cats for a very reasonable price (sometimes adult cats for free). The shelter really relies on the community to help donate and to keep these little felines healthy and adopted.
This is Beatle. She is a one year old, female domestic short hair mix, and in need of a home. The shelter receives many cats from around Western Australia, some abused and not loved. The donations from the public really help look after the shelter cats and with the cats being looked after, they have a chance of being adopted.
Not only does Cat Haven take surrendered cats that are delivered to their shelter, they also help the neighbourhood by working as the local ranger as well. The Cat Haven Ranger drives around neighbourhoods to look out for stray or feral cats. This not only helps the local government authority, it keeps these scared cats off our streets and into a better home.
Cat Haven is a well looked after shelter and even though they do not receive a lot of funding from the government, they sell their cats for a very reasonable price (sometimes adult cats for free). The shelter really relies on the community to help donate and to keep these little felines healthy and adopted.