West Oxfordshire Cats Protection Branch Information

The West Oxfordshire Branch was established in 1997 in Carterton. To start with, the ‘Branch’ consisted of 20 helpers and covered Chipping Norton, Woodstock, Witney, Burford and Faringdon and surrounding villages.

The Branch has always been responsible for raising all of the money it requires to function on a day to day basis. In an average year the costs of food and litter alone can be as much as £3000 and veterinary bills are often around the £5000 - £6000 mark. On top of this there are of course general day to day running and maintenance costs for the cattery, pens, telephone lines and Branch van, as well as booking fees for event venues and stock to
re-sell at these events. The list is almost endless and therefore the fundraising has to be tireless.

The Branch is now based at the home of our Co-ordinator in Milton Under Wychwood. Despite the large area we cover, we are still relatively small in administrative terms and operate with a committee of just 9 people. Every month the Committee meet to discuss all matters pertaining to the successful and continued running of the Branch including correspondence received, the accounts, ongoing and proposed publicity, forthcoming events and, perhaps most importantly, about the cats currently in our care who need help, love and lots of cuddles!

We currently have 14 garden pens in operation throughout our area and, together with 14 fosterers - who take cats into their own homes until suitable permanent homes can be found for them - we manage to help and re-home somewhere in the region of 220 to 250 cats and kittens every year.

We rely completely on our willing band of volunteers who give up what little spare time they can to help with fundraising, publicity, home-checks, vet-runs and administration, as well as helping at events. We are always delighted to welcome new volunteers as there is always so much to be done and most of us have full-time jobs as well as families to care for. If you would like more information on volunteering then please have a look at our How To Help page.

Over the last ten years we have helped more than 1500 cats and kittens to find new loving homes as well as reuniting more than 250 with their owners after they have become separated. If you would like to read more about some of the success stories, please click here.

The work of the Branch involves helping all sorts of cats - from those whose owners simply cannot manage any more to those who’ve never had an owner and a family to care for them.

All cats who come into our care are neutered as soon as is practical and Cats Protection also operate a voucher scheme to assist people on Benefits who would otherwise find difficulty finding the money to have their cat neutered. More information on neutering and the voucher scheme can be obtained from the Branch Co-ordinator.

We do a great deal of work with feral (wild) cats such as humanely trapping, neutering and returning them to their domain or finding alternative land where they can help with rodent control and human friends can keep an eye on them with no threat of poisoning or shooting. Feral kittens that are caught when young are easily tamed and make the most wonderful domesticated pets.

The area which we cover currently consists of the following postcode areas:-

OX5, OX7, OX18, OX20, OX29, SN7, SN8, GL7 3** GL54 1**,
GL54 2** and GL54 3**

If you do not live within the area which we cover then details of your nearest Branch can be found on the Branch List on the HQ Website.

Cats Protection

The Cats Protection League was originally formed in London in 1927 to actively and exclusively promote the interests of cats. It is the oldest and largest feline charity in the UK. In 1999 the name was shortened to Cats Protection although the main aims remain the same:-

To rescue stray and unwanted cats and kittens
and rehabilitate and re-home them where possible.

To encourage the neutering of all cats and kittens
not required for breeding.

To inform the public about the care of cats and kittens.

Cats Protection helps tens of thousands of cats find new and loving homes every year through it’s network of 29 Cat Adoption Centres and 260 Branches (run by volunteers) throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. We received no government funding and without the support of the cat loving public we would not be able to continue this valuable work. A full list of Branches can be found on the Cats Protection National Cat Centre Website.

Volunteers form the backbone of the Charity and carry out 90% of the work involved on a day to day basis in looking after the welfare of homeless cats and kittens and raising funds. If you would like more information on how you can help the West Oxfordshire Branch, please click here.