The Sunbeam

Newsletter

Issue 21 - April 2017

It’s April and spring has sprung. Hopefully the weather will allow you to head out to the garden and curl up with a nice cup of tea to peruse this edition of The Sunbeam. As always, please feel free to send in your stories, artwork or suggestions and pass on the newsletter to your friends. Jessica Wilson, Editor Charity No. 1154876

Molly

Yes, time really does seem to fly by when you’re having fun - or when

you’re super busy looking after cats and kittens! Since Sunshine

started 5 years ago we’ve taken in and helped over 700 cats! Lou

Tyack, SCR’s Manager says, ’Sunshine would not exist without our

supporters and I would like to thank all of them for their

input, large or small. I hope in the next 5 years SCR will go

forward to help even more cats and people with cat

problems.’ Here’s to another fantastic 5 years!

We’d also like to thank those of you who use

easyfundraising.org.uk. We’ve raised a total of £1894.19 so far!!! Plus

through using easysearch.org.uk we’ve raised £109.45 all for

absolutely no cost to supporters! Every penny helps!

NEWS & VIEWS

Kidnapped Kitty from California to Canada - and Back! Booboo the tabby cat has travelled more miles than some people - and it was all by

mistake! Booboo is originally from California but she ended up in Guelph, Ontario, Canada

after a couple who moved from the US brought her with them to Canada. It’s not known

exactly how she came to be in their possession, but the guess is that as Booboo is such a

friendly cat, the couple may have found her in her home town on their way to Canada and

decided to take her with them. However, when they got to Guelph they abandoned her

and that is how she ended up being taken to the animal shelter where her microchipped

was scanned and her original owners in California were located. The whole episode lasted

four years! Thankfully at a rendezvous in New York State, Booboo was handed back to her loving, original family.

Source: www.cbc.ca/news

Street Cat Adopts Puppy It’s not all that uncommon to find cats and dogs that are the best of friends. However, in

the case of Gertrude the cat, she has every right to despise dogs and want nothing to do

with them after she was viciously attacked by them causing severe injuries. Luckily,

Gertrude, from Mexico, was rescued by a kind woman who took her to a clinic for medical

attention. At the clinic it was discovered that Gertrude was pregnant. Sadly, the kittens

didn’t survive the horrific attack, but at the same time that Gertrude was receiving care,

a young puppy named Clementine came into the clinic. It didn’t take long for Gertrude to

notice Clementine and her mothering instincts kicked in as she cared for the homeless

puppy. She groomed Clementine, snuggled and played with her. The two are bonded like

mother and baby. Happily they are both now living in a loving forever home where they will never have to be separated.

Source: www.thedodo.com

Puss Poirot in Plymouth Predicament A woman checking the oil levels in her car was shocked to find a black and white cat tucked

up behind the headlight. Annette Goddard had been driving around the town and this

moggy must have been there the whole time. At first, she feared he was dead, but then he

let out a feeble meow and Annette was able to coax him into a carrier and rush him to the

vet. The kitty was held for a short time to find out if he had an owner as he wasn’t

microchipped. When no one came forward, Annette, who’d fallen for him the minute she

saw him, adopted him and named him Poirot. Despite all he’s been through, Poirot is a

friendly and still curious cat. Annette who is smitten says that Poirot has brought a lot of

joy to her home and everyone who meets falls for him too. Source: www.plymouthherald.co.uk

Marathon Run for Moggies!

Sharon Carbonero, the Treasurer for Sunshine Cat Rescue has a

sporty and generous member of the family who is hoping to raise £5,000 for SCR! Sharon’s nephew Ryan is currently training and will

run the London Marathon on the 23rd of April. If you would like to

support Ryan and help him towards reaching his goal, you can donate

by visiting the Virgin Money Just Giving page http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/ryancarbonero

Everyone, at Sunshine Cat Rescue, including the cats and kittens,

wish Ryan all the best of luck with his marathon run and we thank him from the bottom of our hearts for his generosity!

Vet Visit Vexations

A lot of people are fortunate enough to only ever have to visit the vet when

our cats have their yearly vaccine and examination. Or if you’re like me whose

vet receptionist once proclaimed to the waiting room, ‘this lady pays my salary!’

you unfortunately spend a lot of time at the vet’s with a poorly pussycat.

Whether you’re a yearly visitor or a frequent flyer almost all of us have one

thing in common—our kitties DO NOT like going to the vet! By nature, cats

are independent, territorial, need to be in control of their surroundings, and

are sensitive to different smells – all these things make veterinary visits

stressful, for both you and your cat (see chart). Yet there are ways to help

make your kitty feel less anxious and upset about visiting the vet.

1. Choose and always use an appropriate cat carrier. Never travel with the

cat loose in the car.

2. If possible, get the cat used to the carrier by having it as ‘part of the

furniture’ in the house.

3. Use familiar smelling bedding in the carrier and line with

newspaper in case of an accident.

4. If the carrier is wire or has a lot of open areas, cover it with a cloth or

towel to help keep kitty calm.

5. Secure the carrier in the car in a foot well or on a seat (with a seatbelt)

so it cannot move.

6. Stay calm so kitty doesn’t pick up on stress from you. Be reassuring and avoid loud noises.

7. In the waiting room, try to get a seat away from dogs and keep the carrier away from the floor or where any

dogs can come up and sniff the carrier.

8. When in the consulting room leave kitty in the carrier when she is not being examined or

handled.

9. If you need to administer medication, ask the vet to show you the proper way to do it so that you’re comfortable

with the process.

There are some veterinary practices in England that are accredited as ‘Cat Friendly’ where the staff are especially

aware of and take into consideration the different requirements of feline patient care as opposed to that of dogs.

Their processes and procedures are aimed at delivering high quality veterinary care in such a way that the stress and

anxiety felt by cats is reduced. To find out more about the ‘Cat Friendly’ vet scheme visit www.icatcare.org/

catfriendlyclinic/ Although trips to the vet will most likely never be seen as a n enjoyable event, following these tips

may help you and your kitty become less anxious about mak ing the vi s i t . By Jessica Wi lson

Tips from icatcare.org

icatcare.org

A Pint-O-Cats! By Ro Long

Well its not your usual fundraising venue but at Sunshine we really don't mind!

We had beer, we had games, we had a raffle and most importantly we had a

great time, all thanks to Stanton Harcourt Village Hall! As Sutton and Stanton

don't have a pub at the moment, a few willing volunteers have opened up the

Village Hall as "The Village Inn" once a month and have kindly offered to

donate half the proceeds to the hall and half to a deserving charity. And yes,

you guessed it, last month was Sunshine’s time! We had so many offers of help

it was amazing. Sara and her son Oliver ran the raffle and sold an incredible

amount of tickets, Christine, Margaret and Lis made some delicious food for

the punters, Kaye and Keith manned the bar like a sequel to Cocktail, Margaret and Colin kept the

kitchen in tip top condition with food prep and glass washing and Pat worked the room promoting

Sunshine to everyone, even managing to recruit a couple more volunteers! All in all it was a great

evening, and we raised a smashing £367.58 for our beautiful cats! So a big thank you goes to

everyone, including the Village Hall team and Steve Tuck in particular for allowing us to benefit

from this wonderful evening.

For more information on our work, to rehome a cat, donate, volunteer or seek advice on cat rescue, please contact Lou on:

01993 831279

lou@sunshinecatrescue.org.uk - General Advice

sunshine.cat.rescue@gmail.com - Volunteering

www.sunshinecatrescue.org.uk

facebook.com/TheSunshineCatRescue

CONTACT US!!!

LOVING FOREVER HOMES WANTED!

This handsome boy is Robbie! He is such a loving,

big fluffy bundle and would SO like a forever home.

His fosterer has grown very fond of him. He came to

us as a stray. He is about 12 years old and would like a

nice quiet home, probably without children or other

animals. Can you offer this sweet boy a loving home? This is Chilli, he is black and white and is a very large cat but

by no means fat weighing in at 7kgs. He is neutered, vaccinat-

ed, microchipped, flea and wormed. Chilli is a very charming

young man at 7 years old. When he came to the charity he was

suffering with cystitis due to the stress of living with small

children, dogs and other cats. He would love to be the only pet

and will reward you with chatting to you. Do you have room in

your heart and your home for this loving, gentle giant?

If you would like more information on any of these beautiful cats, please phone 01993 831 279 or email

homing@sunshinecatrescue.org.uk

Milo is a handsome 2-year-old black and white

boy, who was timid but he has now grown in

confidence and his fosterer is able to hold him

and give him plenty of affection. He is fine with

dogs and likes to play with the kitten in the next

pen. He’s been neutered, flea-treated,

vaccinated and wormed. Please consider giving

this gentle, tuxedo– cat a loving, forever home.