Thanks to a pet food maker's generosity and a phalanx of environmentally conscious volunteers, a group of Richmond's homeless moggies will keep their paws warm and dry year round.
Purina Canada provided the Cat Sanctuary run by Richmond Animal Protection Society (RAPS) with a donation of $10,000 Thursday to spruce up a portion of the nine-acre site in east Richmond, which currently shelters around 640 cats - some of them feral, who have been trapped and brought to the facility where they will live out their natural lives.
Janet Reid, manager at the sanctuary, said she was delighted to get the financial assistance, plus the help from environmental group Evergreen BC, to make some changes to the surroundings that will benefit the cats.
Reid said some of the funds are being used to build small cat boxes, made from cedar and lined with blankets.
Round planter beds in the sanctuary's main courtyard were also being renovated to provide a softer look for the area.
And one of the numerous cat chalets dotted around the three acres of the actual sanctuary is having its exterior paving renovated to ensure water does not pool so the cats can keep their paws from getting soggy.
The sanctuary is the fifth pet shelter in Canada to be provided an outdoor restoration by Paws for the Planet, a joint initiative by Purina and Evergreen.
Reid said the facility is dependent on donations to run, and thanks to a steady stream of cat-loving donors, needs are met, most of the time. Still, there are periods when more help is welcomed.
"For one thing, our monthly vet bill runs about $16,000 a month," Reid said, highlighting the need, especially for cash donations to keep things running.
Originally started by airline employees who were caring for a large population of cats in and around Vancouver International Airport, the sanctuary stays true to RAPS' no-kill policy. That means the population can significantly rise on occasion.
"At one point, I think we had about 1,000 cats," Reid said. But since many are caught and transferred to the sanctuary in batches of similar-aged cats, the numbers can also drop quickly.
All of the cats entering the facility are checked out by a vet, spayed or neutered, and those with pre-existing medical conditions such as feline leukemia are segregated from the main group.
Since many are feral, just a small number of cats are deemed adoptable, Reid said.
