Cat Sterilization Campaign

By the end of December – Castration and spaying of cats at only NIS100 in the SPCA Veterinary Clinic in Tel Aviv and the Sharon area SPCA Veterinary Clinic in Moshav Bnei Zion

While the issue of limiting the proliferation of cats is on the agenda and the proposal of the Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Uri Ariel to terminate the budget for castration and spaying operations has been raised, the SPCA in Tel Aviv and the Sharon area SPCA in Moshav Bnei Zion are encouraging the general public to sterilize domestic cats and homeless cats by offering these important operations at a subsidized fee of only NIS100.

There is wide consensus amongst all organizations supporting animal rights that castration and spaying surgical procedures are the humane solution to reducing the proliferation of the cat population living lives of suffering on the streets, exposed to many dangers such as hunger, illness, accidents and abuse.

These important operations, which are carried out under general anesthetic and for which the recovery period is relatively fast, prevent disease, prolong life, improve the quality of life, lessen the level of aggression and territorial wars and fights over females and reduce the uncontrolled proliferation of the street cat population. In this manner, births of kittens, that are in the most part destined to a life of suffering, danger and agony on the streets, are prevented. Amongst domestic cats, spayed females do not attract males, the tendency of males to mark their territory lessens and the chances of them running away from their homes is reduced.

The veterinarians performing the castrations and spaying surgical procedures in Tel Aviv and Bnei Zion are highly skilled professionals with years of experience. In addition, the clinics offer vaccinations, teeth cleaning and other veterinary services at reasonable prices.

To make an appointment in the SPCA Tel Aviv veterinary clinic or the SPCA veterinary clinic in Moshav Bnei Zion and for further details, please contact us at: *4553.

* This special offer is valid till the end of December 2015 depending on the number of operations possible and is intended for cats over three months of age and females that are not in heat. In order to continue operations in the sterilization clinics, thus preventing suffering, the public is invited to contribute by phone or our internet site.

The Cat was Saved

The SPCA Rescue Squad saved a homeless cat who was in distress while giving birth

Following a call to the Society’s call center, a cat who hid in a closet on a street in Bat Yam, was found giving birth, with a kitten stuck in her cervix. When the call was received, the SPCA rescue team went to her rescue. According to the callers, they had first approached the Bat Yam Municipality where they were told that neither the Municipality nor the Veterinary Department could help.

Due to the cat’s delicate condition, the rescuer used a special net to catch her and she was brought in to the SPCA clinic immediately.[ The kitten was already dead, and the cat underwent sterilization. The two-year-old cat was kept under veterinary supervision for one week, and once she regained her strength and recovered, she was returned to her familiar environment in coordination with the cat feeders, who were used to feeding her regularly.

The cat giving birth hiding in the abandoned closet

It is estimated that there are over two million homeless cats living on the streets in Israel. Some belong to orderly groups and are fed on a regular basis and, in some cases, are altered, but most of them live lives of suffering under terrible conditions, struggling with never-ending battles for food and territory. The problem is that even cats that are supposedly cared for and are lucky enough to be fed regularly, are exposed to ongoing dangers. Often, they are suffering from cuts, inflammations, eczema, ulcers, infections or other illnesses, and are sentenced to lives of indescribable suffering. Even if the people in their environs notice their distress, the authorities do not always take responsibility and offer a helping hand.

The Society asks the public to be alert with regard to animal suffering. If you come across an animal in distress, please call us at: *4553.

Trapping, Spaying and Neutering

A kitten that was stuck in a restaurant fireplace in Tel-Aviv was rescued

A kitten that was stuck in a restaurant fireplace in Tel-Aviv was rescued by the SPCA and will be neutered at the Society’s clinic.

In order to facilitate the complicated rescues, the SPCA rescuers are assisted by state-of-the-art equipment such as a net gun, which shoots a 2/2 meter net and is primarily used to trap dogs; a net lasso to trap small inaccessible animals, primarily injured cats; Blowpipe – in which an injection is inserted with anesthesia and designed to trap animals from a distance (under veterinary supervision), and that is particularly effective in trapping unsterilized cats located in a group in which some of the cats have already undergone spaying or neutering; Pincers, which are primarily used to trap kittens and dogs in the chest area to prevent them from escaping or injury; Lasso stick – stick with lasso at the end, primarily used to trap wounded dogs; and dog and cat traps, in which food is placed as a bait for capture. The prices of these special equipment are particularly expensive, and we wish to thank Dr. Alice Neumov-Raban, whose donations has help us purchase some of the equipment.

Starting All Over Again

I tiny kitten who was almost run over was rescued by a group of young girls, and adopted a few days later

At this time of year, between spring and summer, many recently-born kittens beginning to show their independence and find themselves in dangerous situations that wait to ambush them in the outer world.

About ten days ago, a group of kind young girls from Rishon Le Zion found a tiny kitten wandering around on the main road and took her in because they were afraid that she would be run over. The girls, who wanted to ensure the ginger kitten’s safety, went to the SPCA Chairperson, Hilma Shmoshkovitz’s, home and gave her the kitten.

The kitten was brought to the SPCA’s clinic, where she was examined by the veterinarian and received vaccinations, before being transferred to the cats’ home where they tried to find a new home for her.

The kitten’s story was posted on Facebook and all members were asked to suggest a name for her. From all the suggestions that poured in, the name Mango was chosen.

Mango’s good luck continued to accompany her and a few days later she was adopted by Emily, from Tel Aviv.

We wish to thank the girls from Rishon Le Zion for their alertness and resourcefulness and wish Mango and Emily a happy life together.

Little Oren

A tiny kitten was rescued from the tree top by the Petah Tikvah Fire Brigade

This week we set out on another rescue mission that ended successfully, with the rescue of a cute little ginger kitten that was stuck on the top branches of a tree.

Following a call that was received in the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel call center, and a report from Petah Tikvah residents about a cat that was stranded in a high tree on Borochov Street, the rescue team set out to the scene. According to the neighbors, the cat was stuck up in the tree and had been yowling for three days without food or water, while all their calls to the Municipality and the Fire Brigade went unanswered.

Since the cat was stuck very high up, the rescue team realized that only with the help of the Fire Brigade and their special ladders could the cat be reached. The Society staff contacted both the Veterinary Department, directed by Dr. Tika Brown, who sent supervisors to the scene, and the Fire Brigade. The Petah Tikvah Fire Brigade team, under the authority of the shift officer, Simon Lugasi, reached the spot, took out their equipment and with the help of a very high ladder, the kitten was safely rescued.

The kitten, a cute, friendly, ginger, four-month-old kitten was named Oren. He will remain in the Society for a few days of observation, be given vaccinations and be neutered and then we will find a loving and responsible family for him.

We wish to express our appreciation to the Petah Tikvah Municipality Veterinary Department who set out immediately to help the kitten and to the firemen who undertook the rescue of the hapless creature. We call on all members of the public to be vigilant and to keep their eyes open for animals in distress and, when necessary, to call the Society’s call center: *4553.

It’s a Tough Life

Dubious Administration of Ramat Gan Municipality’s Veterinarian Department

This week we were witness to yet another reminder of the authorities’ rigid attitude towards anything relating to the miserable existence to which street cats are destined.

A Ramat Gan resident came across an emaciated, dying kitten near her home, suffering from severe eye infection and respiratory problems, and out of pity for the animal, she took him into her home. Following a conversation with the Municipal Veterinary Department, under the management of Dr. Shai Melman, an inspector was sent to her home.

The concerned citizen breathed a sigh of relief but to her amazement, once the inspector saw the kitten, he claimed that the only solution was to let the cat free in a different area since there was no point in taking him to the veterinarian department as they had no way to care for him there and that the only treatment would be to put him down.

The woman, who understood that the kitten could not survive on the streets and that the meaning of releasing him constituted a terrible and agonizing death, sent the inspector away and contacted the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel. A patrol was immediately sent from the Society to pick the kitten up and bring him to the clinic. There, Dr. Ayah Peri, the Society’s veterinarian, diagnosed that the two-month old kitten was suffering from Feline Herpes which causes mouth ulcers, preventing him from eating, He was also suffering from a severe eye infection causing sight-loss, and respiratory complications. In addition, the kitten was dehydrated and apathetic. With great regret it was determined that in order to put the kitten out of its misery, it should be put down by humanitarian means.

It is important to note that the State Comptroller’s Report on the increasingly severe and sorrowful condition of street cats has recently been published. It seems that the policy of the Ramat Gan Municipality ignores the plight of the animals and continues to perpetuate the life of suffering for cats living within its area of jurisdiction. The harsh pictures of these cats speak for themselves, and the wish to release and abandon dying cats, which borders on abuse, cannot and should not be acceptable to any humane person of conscience, particularly any professionals with experience in this field.

Should you happen to come across animals in distress, please do not hesitate to call the Society’s call center: *4553.

Ma’ayan Squared in a Double Rescue Operation

Two kittens were rescued from car engines on the same day

Many kittens born on the streets slowly get to know their way around but their unquenchable curiosity often leads them to the edge of the abyss. One of the most dangerous phenomenon is their search for a warm nook, which they too often find in the bumpers of cars parked on the streets. The engine, that retains its heat, provides them with the warmth they are looking for, but often they have difficulty finding their way out or are killed when the engine is ignited. This phenomenon is most common in the winter season, but throughout the whole year, cars constitute a dangerous shelter to tiny kittens.

One day last week the Society rescued two kittens that got stuck in car engines. The first incident took place in the Tel Kabir residential district in Tel Aviv, when Ma’ayan Demati, aged 17, and her father heard the sound of cats yowling coming from the bonnet of the car, while they were driving. The father stopped the car as quickly as he could, turned off the engine and started looking futilely for the cat. They continued on their way, assuming that the cat had managed to run away, but when they reached their destination they again heard the yowling.

Ma’ayan, who rears her own cat, ran to bring food for the cat in the hope that the cat would be tempted out, but it was all in vain and the cat remained in the engine. Ma’ayan remembered that she had once read that the Society carries out cat rescue missions so she immediately contacted the Society Hot Line. The Society’s rescuer set off to the scene and began the rescue operation, which went on for about one hour because the frightened little kitten went deep down into the engine. The kitten was rescued and brought to the Society where the vet on duty examined her and found her to be in good health and very friendly! At the moment the cute, two-month-old, black kitten is being looked after in the Society and in another month will be strong enough to be adopted into a warm and loving home.

The second rescue took place about one hour later in Rishon Le Zion. As Ma’ayan Levine parked her car, she picked up the sound of a cat yowling from a nearby car. Ma’ayan called the Police in order to locate the owners of the car, but after half an hour of waiting on the line, the call got cut off. When she called again, she was told that there was no point in contacting the Police as they couldn’t help her. Ma’ayan didn’t despair and decided to contact the Society. And so the rescue person set out for the second time that day to rescue a kitten from a parked car. The grey dappled kitten was brought in to the Society safely, and in another month he will also be ready to go to a new, adopted home.

Please remember – a light rap on the bonnet of the car or making a sudden noise under the bumper can flush out cats hiding in the engine and so prevent their deaths, as well as damage to the engine, which can cost a lot to be repaired.

We wish to thank Ma’ayan from Tel Aviv and Ma’ayan from Rishon Le Zion for their alertness and for their prompt reporting which led to the kittens being rescued. If the stories and pictures of the kittens touch your hearts, you are invited to come to the Society and to adopt them.

Bella mia

Jennifer Fleisher, a player of the Israel national basketball team, had her cat flown to her grandparent's home in the U.S.A., with the help of the Society

Jennifer Fleisher, a member of the Israel national basketball team, grew up and was raised with cats from when she was a baby. Her family was always raising cats and she was used to playing and feeding them. At this time she is unable to have a cat in her home because she is frequently flying to France, where she plays for the Challes-les-Eaux team, to the United States, where she visits her parents and family, and to Israel to represent us faithfully in the uniform of the Israeli National Team.

While Jennifer was living in Israel, and right before she moved to France, she visited a friend in Kfar Saba. There she heard the mewing of a cat, and following the sound she found a cute calico kitten, which followed her around the streets of the city. Jennifer wanted to take the kitten with her, but because she was due to leave Israel she refrained from doing so. The next day she returned to Kfar Saba still thinking of the kitten. When she found the kitten, she decided that she could not leave it on the street, and she took it with her. According to Jennifer, this is a special kitten. “She isn’t so beautiful to look at, but she has an amazing and friendly personality. I decided to call her Bella,” Jennifer said.

During the following three days Jennifer tried to find an adoptive home for the kitten, but was not successful. In the meantime the two became friends, with the kitten walking after her wherever she went and even sleeping in her bed. When it came time to fly, and she had not yet found a solution for Bella, Jennifer brought the kitten to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel – Tel Aviv. Bella, however, did not leave Jennifer’s thoughts, and she continued to search for a home for the kitten even outside of Israel.

Amazingly, her grandparents, who live in California, and whose cat had just then died, expressed interest in adopting Bella. Jennifer contacted people from the Society, who after making various enquiries, began the preparations for sending Bella to the United States. Since we are talking about a long procedure, which includes a three month wait for blood tests and inoculations, Bella stayed at the cat boarding facility of the Society and was pampered by the staff.

This week the waiting period was over; Bella flew to the United States and arrived safely at her new home in California. “Bella’s acclimation was very quick,” Jennifer tells us. “The large selection of toys that they bought her did not impress her and she prefers spending most of her time on the laps of my grandpa”.

The Killing of Cats in Rishon Le Zion

An unknown person cruelly killed two kittens in a residential neighborhood

Galina Finklestein, 61 years old, from Rishon Le Zion is a sworn cat lover. She is raising a cat at home, and is consistently feeding the cats that live in the street in her neighborhood. The cats have become part of her daily routine, but nothing could have prepared her for what happened, on what seemed to be a perfectly normal day.

She heard the loud howling of cats in the street, and Galina assumed innocently that the cats were playing and amusing themselves or maybe fighting amongst themselves. What she was about to see would never have occurred to her. When she went down to the yard to feed the cats, a frightening sight was revealed to her eyes: two kittens, which she was in the habit of feeding, were dead after there heads were smashed into a wall. The blood of the kittens was splattered everywhere, and the mother cat was standing by their bodies and howling helplessly.

The enraged Galina contacted the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel and found it hard to describe what had happened. Representatives of the Society who arrived at the scene instructed Galina to speak to the police and to file a complaint about the criminal deed. Galina even contacted the office of the mayor of Rishon Le Zion, but got no response to this terrible occurrence.

According to Galina, one of the neighbors threatened her in the past saying that he would destroy the cats that she feeds, and even her husband testified that the time that the howling was heard was when that particular neighbor would go off to work every day. The police told Galina that the complaint would be investigated, but in the days following the filing of the complaint not even one policeman showed up at the site. This shocking occurrence is the latest in the chain of abusive incidents against animals, which does not gain serious consideration by the police. Almost weekly we receive complaints about abuse of animals. However, the police does not take action and does not do enough to investigate each incident. We are of the opinion that this criminal contempt of animals cannot be tolerated by society. It is not possible that individuals will carry out shocking crimes against animals and the authorities will remain indifferent to these acts. Animals are not able to raise their voices in protest, but we, who give them a voice, demand a stern response. We are sure that only when the police will begin to take action to investigate, and the courts will mete out true justice and will begin to convict and to punish, then the public will understand that for every action there are also consequences. Until then the animals are in real danger, and are easy targets for those who think that everything is permissible and that they won’t have to pay for their actions.

Kittens in a bag are thrown into a refuse container

Three small kittens were thrown into a refuse container by an inebriated man

Another case of abuse of cats occurred about two weeks ago at about 2:30 in the morning. At that time a call came in to police headquarters about kittens that had been thrown into a refuse container on Nachalat Binyamin Street in Tel Aviv, next to Hotel Nordau. A security guard who works close to the hotel is the one who called the police, after he saw one of the guests of the hotel throwing a garbage bag into the container and returning to the hotel. His suspicions were awoken when immediately afterwards howling noises were heard coming from the refuse container.

The security guard began to search within the refuse container until he found three small kittens, about two weeks old, within the bag that the hotel guest had thrown there. The security guard contacted police headquarters, and within minutes a patrol team arrived at the site from the Lev Tel Aviv – Yarkon area police station, who saw before their eyes the frightened kittens.

Limor Rostmein, one of the police officers who arrived at the site of the occurrence, said that when the police team entered the hotel they found the man, who had thrown away the kittens, totally inebriated. The mother cat was found in his hotel room along with three other small kittens. The man claimed that he thought the kittens were dead and therefore he threw them out. According to the policewoman, the man who threw out the kittens was so drunk that he could not perceive whether the kittens were alive or dead.

The police team arrested the man for further questioning at the Lev Tel Aviv station house. The policewoman, Limor Rostmein, collected the six kittens and their mother and contacted Hilma Shmoshkovitz, the chairwoman of the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel, who quickly alerted a Society worker to meet the policewoman to collect the cats and bring them to the Society. The mother and kittens have been at the Society since then and have gotten used to their new surroundings. In another two months, when the kittens will be big and strong enough, we will be able to put them up for adoption, and we hope to find warm homes for them.

We wish to thank the security guard, who showed responsibility, and the policewoman, Limor Rostmein, through whose efforts the kittens were saved. Sadly, there are many other cats living in the streets whose luck is quiet different than that of these kittens, and who will meet their end in atrocious deaths by way of road accidents, abuse, cold, hunger and illnesses. We fervently hope that these things will not happen in the future, but together with this we are full of hope that the officers in the Israel Police will be sensitive to the subject of animals, and will function correctly, as did Limor Rostmein.