‘Our funds are gone’

A local cat rescue sanctuary says it has no funds left to continue their services and is appealing to the public to get behind their vital fundraiser this Saturday (November 8).

A bric-à-brac pop-up shop will be hosted at the Masonic Hall in Oldcastle in aid of Kitten Cottage Animal Sanctuary, with cakes, clothes with tags, handbags, shoes, jewellery and toys for sale for under €5.

Sanctuary owner Máire Egan was waiting for a delivery of two cats when The Anglo-Celt called last Thursday. The animals had been abandoned near Poles in Cavan, and despite all 25 cages being full at Kitten Cottage, she agreed to take them as a matter of urgency. Twenty-eight years in operation, Máire said 2025 has been the “worst year” to date in terms of the number of feral cats in Cavan, and described the county as “overrun”.

Currently, the shelter is running on goodwill and Máire's own funds. She praised the vets who have been “very good” to her during this time, and also those who have donated cat food in recent days, however she stressed that this will not be enough to sustain the shelter.

“We have twenty-five cats and kittens here that we are looking after and our funds are gone,” Máire stated.

“We can't take anymore in until we get some funds to look after this lot,” she stressed.

She received 11 calls to come out and trap kittens last Monday, five calls on Tuesday and four calls on Wednesday.

“These are people whose kittens have had kittens, or they've found kittens.”

In an emergency situation where a cat has been injured, Máire said they will take it in because she “can't see an animal in pain”.

While she “can't take all of them in” Máire says “as soon as” she finds homes for the cats in her care, she will take more.

“Cavan SPCA are doing the best they can, we're doing the best we can.”

Nowhere else

On the possibility of the shelter closing, Máire said: “As long as we can go, I'm going to stay open.”

“There's nowhere else that we can find that's doing this.

“Is it sustainable? It has to be, because where else are they going to go? Who else is going to look after them?”

Kitten Cottage received €13,900 in funding from the Department of Agriculture at the end of last year, however by March these funds had already been used. The sanctuary has been operating off voluntary funds since, which have now run out. They have been doing “anything and everything” to raise money, however “it is just not enough.”

Máire is aware of five cat sanctuaries that have closed down within a 50-mile radius of her own sanctuary between Oldcastle and Virginia.

“All of them have just closed, they said they can't cope, they haven't got the funds.”

She describes these services as “vital” and called for a scheme throughout the year to neuter wild cats.

“We'll always help to get a cat neutered; we'll get a discount from the vets to do it.”

“The only solution is neuter,” she urged.

Everything at Saturday's sale will be under €5.

Máire encouraged people to come along to the pop-up shop and “buy something” to support Kitten Cottage.

Donations can also be made by contacting Máire on 087 7676 714, or can be dropped to the sanctuary at A82X443.