A Brentwood cat rescue trust is appealing for the help of the public after unfortunate circumstances mean that they will be having to relocate. Pussycat Lodge (PCL), based in Brentwood, was established 25 years ago and has been a focal point for a group of hard working and dedicated volunteers who rescue and care for cats in the Basildon, Dagenham, Redbridge and Havering and Brentwood areas in Essex.
The trust was set up by Jennie Hurley in 1999, who initially began taking in cats that could not be cared for and housing them in her garden. Andrea Nicholls, warden of Pussycat Lodge Trust, explained that Jennie struggles with health and mobility issues and is needing to downsize her home, but the trust simply cannot afford to buy the current property.
Pussycat Lodge Trust’s website reads: “After 25 years we now have to move our central rescue centre by the end of 2025, which can accommodate up to 50 rescue cats and kittens. Without this facility we will not be able to continue our vital work rescuing and rehoming 250-300 cats per year.”
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Andrea Nicholls, warden of Pussycat Lodge Trust, spoke to EssexLive about the difficulties of relocating the trust, the current “crisis” in rescuing pets and ultimately the financial help needed. The trust is looking to raise £500,000 to purchase a new property for the cats to live safely in.
She said: “It is absolutely devastating that we are going to have to move – we have a great relationship with the local vet, and brilliant support from locals. The problem is, until we raise the money, we can’t start looking!
A kitten at PussyCat Lodge Trust
(Image: PussyCat Lodge Trust)
“We can’t just blow all of our savings, as with vet bills, food and everything else it costs over £4,000 to keep the trust running. Brentwood is of course a really expensive area, too, but we would really love to stay in the area.
“It would be fantastic if we could get to our savings goal – what we really need is a big celebrity or company to take us under their wing and give us a big boost. We just need to get the ball rolling, as at the moment we are just in limbo.”
The move is being made even tougher due to the number of cats that Pussycat Lodge is having to take in. The trust rehomed just under 300 cats last year, and this amount is very normal for the number of cats they receive each year.
Luckily, Pussycat Trust Lodge has a pretty good rehoming rate. However, this isn’t the case nationally, as Andrea described the “national crisis” that cat rehoming centres are experiencing at the moment.
Some kittens at PussyCat Lodge Trust
(Image: PussyCat Lodge Trust)
She said: “We are really fighting a losing battle – we have a constant waiting list, and as soon as one cat is rehomed, another takes its place. Stray cats breed very quickly, meaning that shelters just keep getting filled up.
“It’s a major problem, and different trusts just cannot cope at the moment. We all need to work together to keep cats healthy and happy and decrease the pressure on shelters.”
You can donate to Pussycat Trust Lodge here, and purchase items for the cats living at the lodge here, to make sure that the cats have a home in the long term.