Animals in Need: Furever home sought for ‘talkative’ Snow Bengal cat

Five little puppies rescued by Animals In Need (AIN) Donegal over the Christmas and New Year period have had offers of new homes.

Four of the pups are 13-week-old Maltese/Jack Russell-cross pups that were taken in at an AIN foster home just before Christmas, and the final pup, Hudson, was rescued from the Letterkenny Pound on New Year’s Eve, after he was found straying around Stranorlar and no-one came forward to claim him. 

AIN will be carrying out home checks for the pups this week.

Some people are wary about home checks, but they are not to check if you have done the washing up or if the house is tidy, they are to see where in the house the dog will sleep, that there is a safe, enclosed area outside and to ensure that the dog will be living as a member of the family in the house.

Home checks for two of the pups have already been completed and these pups will be going to fantastic homes this week.

The wintery conditions last week held things up but the rest of the home checks will go ahead this week and hopefully the pups can then go to live with their new families.

In a first for the rescuers, Nala, a young Snow Bengal cat, was taken in by AIN.

Nala is 13 months old, spayed, microchipped, wormed and has had her first vaccination. 

She is extremely affectionate and playful, but her previous owner found Nala too active and was unable to meet her needs.

Nala is seeking an inside only home.

Snow Bengals are very intelligent, high-energy, and attention-seeking and love human company.

A talkative breed, they enjoy exploring their homes and climbing whatever they can, whenever they can.

Snow Bengal cats make wonderful family pets provided you have plenty of time to dedicate to keeping these busy cats entertained and they would be a great companion for older children who want a cat that will love to play games for hours on end.

If you think you can offer the perfect home for Nala, please contact AIN’s cat helpline or Facebook page for further information.

It is a hard life being a homeless cat at the best of times, and the recent harsh weather has proven too much for some of them.

A stray cat called Vicky was rescued by AIN at the weekend.

Vicky had been living on the streets for a long time until a kind family in the neighbourhood noticed that she was looking unwell and in need of help, and so contacted AIN.

Poor Vicky was indeed in a dreadful state. Her fur was completely matted, with felt-like clumps hanging from her sides.

She also had cat flu, very bad teeth and smelt terrible.

Vicky was dehydrated and as light as a feather and sadly, she tested positive for FIV (Feline ‘Aids’) at the vets.

She was an older lady who had lived a tough life and the kindest thing for her was to end her suffering and so the tough decision had to be made to put her to sleep.

The only consolation was that at the end, someone had sought help for her when she needed it and she was therefore able to pass peacefully rather than to continue to suffer alone.

If you see a cat in your area that clearly needs help, please contact an animal rescue.

In better news, the AIN volunteers were delighted to have an update on Mistique (now called Polly) who was found just over a year ago with an extremely infected eye.

Mistique was a grey, feral kitten, who had to have her eye removed, but she then went on to find a fantastic home, where she has settled down and has become an affectionate, much-loved pet.

It is happy endings like this, amongst all the heartbreaking stories, that make it all worthwhile.

For further information on adoption, fostering, volunteering etc, please contact the main helpline on 087 1356188. For cat/kitten enquiries please call 087 7644420. Animals In Need Donegal is also on Facebook and has a website at http://www.animalsinneeddonegal.com

,,