What We Do
The Appin Cats Project was started in 2018 when we, as cat lovers, decided that we could no longer watch the suffering of a large cat colony in our village. We did not get into this for glory or a rush of satisfaction; our hearts broke as we began saving living beings from impossibly poor conditions. We are humans who care about animals, trying to do what’s best for the animals we bring in. We left our egos behind long ago in pursuit of good endings; it’s better to do good despite criticism than be proven right by doing nothing.
Our rescue project was not designed to be a continuing thing, but five plus years on, there remains a vacuum in our community when it comes to animal care. Our municipal bylaws did not make mention of cats until 2022, when it was decided that in residential neighbourhoods, homes could have up to three cats. This is the entirety of our current bylaw. Later that same year, the Humane Society London & Middlesex became our animal welfare providers. This is a step in the right direction; the issues – and everyone knows them, whether they care to consider them or not – remain.
We take donations, but we are not a registered non-profit. There are many good folks out there who have donated, but these days, we rarely fundraise. Our long-term goal is to make institutional changes so that we can someday somewhat reclaim our home and help the countless others who still need saving.
Potential adopters are invited into our home, usually at the kitchen table over a cup of coffee and a cat or two. We open our door to strangers who hopefully will be loving caregivers to these wonderful creatures, and it’s hard to let them go; they have become part of our family.
Our felines roam freely, barring extraordinary circumstances, learning to socialize with other cats and humans in order to make them as adoptable as possible. We do not discriminate when it comes to rescue; sick, feral, diseased, we strive to be shelter from the storm. Our former feral cats are unrecognizable in their domesticized splendour, and in some ways are even sweeter than a born domestic – they have experienced the worst that our society has to offer – abject neglect from a mostly indifferent species. That we are entirely capable of remedying the issue easily but lack the will to be so kind is unfathomable.
In the coming weeks and months, we will continue to try to find homes for the ones we have with us. As many know, the problem in our area is so pervasive that we are always at capacity, and it breaks our hearts to have to close our doors to intakes. We continue, however, to assist with referring people to organizations that can help, putting together trap planning, offering microchip scanning, and giving general advice in matters of the feline persuasion.
What do we want? We want good homes for our amazing cats; they deserve the best. Consider us the next time you someone you know – and trust – is looking for a companion. The more adoptions we have, the more we can continue to help.
If you have money to donate, we strongly urge you to donate to Humane Society London & Middlesex so that they can strengthen their assets, realize their ambitious goals, and offer care and shelter to cats in THIS community.
Peruse our lovelies, fill out an application, and meet us at the kitchen table for coffee and scritches.
Alexandra and Stephen
“beautiful flowers in your garden, but the most beautiful by far
the ones growing wild in the garbage dump, even here we are.”
-Paul Westerberg
