And then there were 57… the story of a hoarder in Athens

Over and above our daily trap-neuter-return programmes, feeding, rescues and veterinary care for stray cats, this spring we faced a gruelling challenge rehoming cats saved from animal-hoarders. 

In early-May, Athens Municipality contacted us to ask for help. After a decision by the public prosecutor, they had entered two apartments and removed 57 cats that were being kept in tragic conditions. Having removed the cats, the municipality had nowhere to put them, and asked for help from Nine Lives. Likewise having no facilities to keep cats (only our own homes, a very few foster homes, and the vets we work with), this put us in an incredibly difficult position, but knowing that if we did not find safe places for these poor creatures they would simply be left in the streets, we made a superhuman effort and at the time of writing have managed to rehome or relocate almost all the cats.

Mini

We are still seeking loving homes for the final few, among them Mini and Jack, hoping that someone will give these very friendly cats a second chance.

Mini is a petite 6-month-old rare all-ginger female. She’s been spayed, vaccinated, microchipped and has tested negative for FIV/Felv. It’s hard to imagine how her first months of life were, crammed into an apartment with another 40 cats, and when she first came to us she was painfully thin. Despite everything, she is very sweet, affectionate and trusting.

One-eyed Jack is one of the quietest, gentlest cats we have met in a long time. He gazes at you wistfully through his one eye, rubs on your legs and waits hopefully to be stroked. He loves to lounge in his cat-bed enjoying the peace and comfort that he was deprived of for his years in an apartment full of 40 cats.