World Cat Day

Today is World Cat Day. Yes, there is an entire day for the world to celebrate cats, as if they needed an excuse to be worshipped! I may be a little cat obsessed and on my way to becoming a crazy cat lady, I realise this. 

On Sunday, after talking about how much we really didn't feel like working, a friend and I decided on a spontaneous trip to the Grahamstown SPCA to visit the cats. Until then, I’d forgotten just how much happiness stroking a cat could bring. These are some of the gorgeous fluffballs that we met. 

Photos of the cats are credited to the Instagram skills of Tristam Riordan

I used to have three cats at home until we learnt that my sister was allergic to most animals and so the cats had to go. I still wish we could have given the sister away instead but the SPCA wouldn't take her. 

This is my sister, Annelisa, with one of the cats, named... well... I called her something different every day. Not that she ever responded to my calls unless food was involved.

As I no longer have a pet at home or at university because I live in res, I've been thinking about ways to help animals even when I don't own one. Here's what I have so far:

1) Volunteer to walk the dogs regularly at your local SPCA, or if you have limited time, then visit when you can and play with the animals. They will show you more love than your own mother ever will. True story. 

2) Every time you do your grocery shopping, add a tin of dog/cat food to your trolley to donate.

3) Support the Animal Anti-Cruelty League. They work in areas where poverty and ignorance lead to animal cruelty, not by prosecuting people but by advising and educating them. They give talks on animal cruelty and also provide mobile animal clinics in townships. 

I've supported them this year by buying their personalised diary, which is not only very pretty but also packed with useful advice and tips. Inside there are basic first aid instructions, energy saving information, pet care advice, cooking and baking info, and even recession fighting tips to save money. Not that I know how to cook or save energy or money but hey, with this diary I'm a step closer to getting there. 

4) Encourage people to adopt pets from the SPCA instead of buying them. 

5) Support local groups that care for feral cats. If you're a Rhodes student like me, that would be the Grahamstown Feral Cat Project that traps, neuters or spays and then releases feral cats. For more info, click here. 

6) Got an old blanket or two? Donate it to the SPCA or an animal shelter.

7) As for fireworks, if you're near animals, just don't.

On a lighter note...