The RSPCA has this week revealed there were 2,238 calls to its cruelty line in Somerset last year with concerns for the welfare of cats.
As August 8th is International Cat Day, the RSPCA is shining a light on the plight of the animals. It says that across England and Wales the charity received more than 100,000 calls and it rescues more cats than any other animal.
The calls in Somerset were the highest of any county in the south west region.
Alice Potter, RSPCA’s cat welfare expert, said: “It’s sad to see that we have received so many calls about cats in need.”
Cats end up needing our help for a variety of reasons, for example their natural curiosity can mean they need rescuing when they get into scrapes and tricky situations.”
“There are also some real issues that we see time and again including cats and kittens being abandoned, cats having unplanned and unwanted pregnancies due to a lack of neutering and multi-cat households where breeding has sadly become out of control.”
“However, there are many cats who are much luckier and are very much a part of the family and loved by their owners who understand their likes and dislikes, their little quirks and routines.”
“Every cat is an individual but there are some signs we can look out for to see how our cats are feeling through understanding their body language and behaviour to ensure they are happy and healthy.”
Number of RSPCA calls about cats in south west:
County | Number of calls |
Bristol | 920 |
Cornwall | 1,345 |
Devon | 2,797 |
Dorset | 1,427 |
Gloucestershire | 1,530 |
Somerset | 2,238 |
Wiltshire | 1,472 |
Total | 11,729 |
