The end of February 2024 marked the first anniversary of our community cat care project on the Cycladic islands of Paros & Antiparos.
Our most ambitious project ever and the largest cat population management project of its kind the project is being implemented with the support of Battersea Dogs & Cats Home.
It has been an exciting year of both challenges and opportunities, but we are very proud of what we have been able to achieve together with both municipalities, the five local animal welfare groups on the islands and the three veterinary practices.
The aim of the project is to reduce the population of free roaming cats on the islands at the same time as improving their health and welfare.
At the core of the project is a commitment to CNVR: Catching, Neutering, Vaccinating and then Returning the cats to their homes on the island.
By neutering at least eighty percent of the cats on the island we want to reduce the number of homeless kittens born and stabilise the cat population.
Vaccinating the cats is helping to reduce disease and treating them for injuries and illnesses improves their health.
And the numbers really do speak for themselves…
These numbers represent not only a crucial step in ensuring the welfare of these cats but also a testament to our commitment to supporting the community that grapples with the challenges posed by the ever-growing population of strays on the islands.
Each year, these colonies expand, and dedicated volunteers find themselves stretched to capacity trying to feed and care for them.
Identifying cats in need of treatment for conditions like cat flu and parasites becomes an additional challenge.
“We want all the cats on the island to become community cats, which means they’re neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, fed and monitored by a local member of the community.” said Flora Tsilaga, Community Cat Care Project Coordinator.
“I’ve been doing this type of work on Antiparos for many years but the expertise, equipment and funding support that this project has brought to the islands is proving truly transformative.
“I’m confident that Paros and Antiparos will before long, be the best place to be a free roaming cat in Greece and maybe the world,” she concluded.
The project is helping to demonstrate what large scale care of free roaming cats looks like in practice.
Greece is home to an estimated 3 million stray cats.
Constantly searching for their next meal, at risk of injury and disease, these vulnerable cats can spend their entire lives without any veterinary care, shelter, or positive human contact.
Our ultimate goal is to transform the lives of every free roaming cat in Greece, giving them all the chance to be happy and healthy community cats.” said Animal Action Greece’s Chief Executive Joseph Nhan-O’Reilly.
We would like to extend our thank you to our supporters for your ongoing support and dedication to our cause.
Special thanks also goes to Battersea Dogs & Cats Home for their support of the project.
If you would like to support our on-going work providing the stray cats of Greece a second chance at life, please click the button below.
