Families fleeing violence desperately need cats cared for

08.03.2013

We are currently inundated with a record number of pleas for help from families who are escaping domestic abuse and asking for someone to care for their pets.

We run a pet fostering service, PetRetreat, which looks after cats and dogs belonging to victims of domestic abuse. Many people feel unable to escape as moving into temporary accommodation often means they have to leave their animals behind.

Appeal for fosterers

Today (March 8) PetRetreat is launching an appeal for cat fosterers in Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Hampshire, South Wales and the Midlands.

PetRetreat manager Carolyn Southwell said:

We really need more people to come forward to foster cats in these areas so we can provide urgent help to people trapped in this harrowing situation.

We get so many calls and we just don’t have enough foster homes. We simply cannot continue to help if we don’t find more fosterers to care for these very special cats.

As a recent example of a family that found help through Pet Retreat; we were contacted by domestic violence outreach service after their client fled to a women’s refuge.
 

Unfortunately after only two weeks of being in refuge she returned to her abuser after he made threats against her cat Oliver, who she had been forced to leave behind with him.

After a month of going home she was attacked again by her husband and hospitalised and PetRetreat received a call, saying she would only leave and go into refuge if a foster home could be found for Oliver.

Oliver came into PetRetreat’s care for a period of six months, during this time he was neutered, vaccinated and microchipped at one of our centres and then he went to a foster home until his owner was rehoused and able to take him home.

We have seen annual increases in the demand for the PetRetreat service and are handling nearly 100 calls a week from victims of domestic abuse who need someone to foster their pets so they can leave the situation.

Can you help?

If you think you could be a PetRetreat fosterer, please visit the PetRetreat web page.

You can also read more stories about PetRetreat and how it has helped to change people's and animal's lives.

We can't do it without you

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