Shoppers lay down coins at Mall of the North to help tackle feral cat problem

The sight of three adorable kittens drew a lot of attention at the CatSnip stall at Mall of the North’s Game Court on Saturday morning, but the reality of their existence soon turned excited smiles into concern.
“This is what happens when we don’t sterilise domestic and feral cats. These kittens were left to fend for themselves on the side of the road and would have died if it wasn’t for a Samaritan who picked them up and found a foster home for them,” explained CatSnip volunteer, Kirsty Cawood.
By humanely controlling the population of feral cats in Polokwane through a Trap Neuter Release programme, CatSnip aims to maintain the health of feral colonies, which has the added benefit of protecting domestic cats from the spread of disease during inevitable interaction.
All trapped cats are screened for feline Aids and leukaemia. If both tests come back negative, the next step is sterilisation or neutering after which the adult cats are released back into their territories and attempts are made at re-homing kittens.
This is a very costly process and that is why volunteers manned the CatSnip stall on Saturday in order to obtain the cash needed to help these animals. “Every donation, no matter how big or small makes a difference,” said volunteer Susan Smith.
Mall of the North and CatSnip are running a competition where the winner will win a professional photo shoot worth R7 000 of his choice. The prize was sponsored by a respected Pretoria based wedding photographer and the photos can be of anything or anyone, not necessarily a pet.
The second prize is a wonderful hamper with pet food, bowls, toys, bedding, accessories and even a tunnel for small dogs or cats to play in.
Competition entry forms are available at R100 per entry at Vetsmart at Mall of the North. All donations will go towards the veterinarian cost, shelter, construction, food and medicine of the Mall of the North cats. The competition ends on 30 November.

Story and photo: MARKI FRANKEN
>>marki.observer@gmail.com

Featured photo: CatSnip volunteers Suzette Prinsloo, Susan Smith and Kirsty Cawood help look after orphaned kittens while manning the CatSnip coin run stand at Mall of the North on Saturday.