Looking back and looking forward…

Looking Back at 2024

In 2024, we registered Syros Cats UK with the charity commissioners in the UK. This means we have to work to rigorous administration standards accounting for donations but also we can claim Gift Aid from those supporters who agree – potentially a big boost to our funds. And we have more credibility when applying for funding.

Currently we have 70 cats living on site, many of whom need regular treatment or medication and we always have between ten and twelve ‘oldies’ who have access to the house if they wish, so they can get lots of cuddles and treats, while they live out their last days with us.

Each day in Kini, we feed 70 street cats at feeding stations around the village. This number has currently risen to 100, as the visitors have gone and tavernas have closed for the winter.

Our trap, neuter and release programme continued throughout the year, with a total of 173 cats – 80 males and 93 females – being sterilised in 2024. We are very pleased with this figure, as in the early part of the year we were short of funds, so were not able to operate on as many as we would have liked. But by October, we had raised enough to work not only in Kini but also to help local people in Galissas, Danakos, Dani and Lazareta. That month, we really stepped up our efforts and sterilised 61 cats. In December, we added a further 36 to the overall total for the year.

TNR in Lazareta

With the help of volunteers, sponsors and visitors, we rehomed 32 kittens and adult cats to Switzerland, UK, Sweden, France, Germany, Italy, Belgium and the USA. We are very grateful to the adopters and everyone who helped these cats find their forever homes.

Sadly, 11 of our resident cats died; six from old age and three from road accidents (it’s always a delicate balance between freedom and safety). We also had two sickly kittens, who did not make it.

We rescued 31 kittens who were sick or abandoned. They found their way to us by various means. It’s a lot of work to rear kittens, especially if they are sick. So we have to keep them a while until they are able to be vaccinated and rehomed – usually a minimum of six months.

Of course, as our resident cats age, that too brings a few issues. Older cats often have dental problems, sometimes due to the poor condition of the mother and early vitamin and mineral deficiency from inadequate food. This year we arranged for 11 cats to have dental treatment – and it gives them an amazing lifestyle improvement. We also vaccinated 41 cats against infectious diseases and administered more than 535 parasite treatments.

Our grateful thanks

All this would not be possible without the support we have received and continue to receive from numerous organisations and individuals:
Our sponsorship scheme is up and running and we have a number of regular sponsors who each generously donate between 10 and 50 euros and more per month. This help is invaluable as it enables us to plan and makes our ongoing work possible. But we still have some cats who need sponsors, such as the beautiful Mel , one of our ‘Aussie’ kittens!

Mel seeks sponsors!

We continue to receive fantastic support from Animal Action Hellas, The Greek Cat Welfare Society and Friends of the Greek Strays, all charities who understand the plight of animals in Greece. Likewise we are grateful to the trustees of Syros Cats UK who are constantly promoting us and working behind the scenes to make sure we stay legal…

2024 saw the launch of our new website and we thank James, of Black Spiral Design, who designed and built it and continues to provide us with support.

And finally, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to our manager, Jo, who works tirelessly to ensure that everything runs smoothly here.

Looking forward

We have a number of rescued kittens to rehome, so we’ll be focussing on getting them healthy, social and travel ready, so they have the best chance of adoption.

We have some funding for our TNR programmes in the early part of the year and we are already hard at work. It’s vital to catch the females before they start to breed. So more sterilisations are planned in Danakos, Dani, Lazaretta, Kini and Galissas. With your help, we’d like to extend our TNR into February too, to coincide with World Spay Awareness Month. So we’re running a campaign to raise funds to spread our TNR to other places on the island and save as many cats as possible from the endless round of breeding and raising kittens.

When the weather improves a little, we’ll be looking for contributions in cash or expertise to build a new storage and DIY shed. The cats are occupying all our current spaces! And we need somewhere to store tools and work with them and some of our other equipment. It may not be a very appealing campaign, but essential for our continued smooth running!