Due to the current situation with coronavirus, Cats Protection has had to make changes to our usual services. Read on to find out more about these temporary changes. We will be updating our advice regularly as the situation progresses.

Can you temporarily look after my cat while I am ill?

Cats Protection is unable to offer a temporary boarding service for owned cats.

Are Cats Protection branches and centres open?

To find out what is happening in your local branch or centre please contact Cats Protection on 03000 12 12 12 or visit our Find Us tool to contact them directly.

When will Cats Protection shops be re-opening?

We are following national and local guidance across the UK to determine whether or not we are able to open our shops. From 5 November all our shops in England will be closed until further notice. 

Where our shops are open elsewhere in the UK, to keep our volunteers, employees and shoppers safe, we’ll be implementing the following measures in store:

• strictly adhering to social distancing rules
• using floor markers to assist in maintaining distances
• issuing our teams with PPE
• providing hand sanitiser stations for customer use
• cashless payments
• regular and thorough cleaning

To find out if your local shop is open, visit Find a Shop

Can I donate to your charity shops?

We’re always grateful for donations and really appreciate the generosity of our supporters. We’ll be putting procedures in place in every shop that remains open to ensure we can accept, process and store donations safely, including quarantining donations for 48 hours before processing. If you’d like to donate to a shop near you, we’d recommend phoning the shop first to arrange a drop-off.

If your local shop is closed due to regional or national restrictions we ask that you please hold onto your donations until we are able to receive them. Items left outside shops are at risk of being damaged through weather conditions or stolen, so we ask that you kindly donate to us during trading hours.

What will happen to the cats in your care?

We are continuing to provide high levels of care for the cats in our branches and centres. We are phasing the opening of our centres and branches to rehome these cats.

Is the neutering helpline still open?

The national Neutering Helpline is currently open from 9.30am – 1pm, Monday to Friday on 03000 12 12 12.

Will you still be able to provide financial assistance towards the cost of neutering my cat?

Yes, we can still help with subsidised neutering. Our regional neutering campaigns are continuing for the time being. However, most vets will only be doing urgent or emergency treatments.

Is Cats Protection currently helping to neuter feral cats?

We are following national and local guidance across the UK to determine whether or not we are able to do trap, neuter and return (TNR) of feral cats.

From 5 November in England we are stopping TNR work purely for neutering. If a feral cat is ill or injured and requires treatment which a vet practice has confirmed it can provide, it can be trapped and treated.

Any TNR work we do will be subject to an initial risk assessment and care will be taken to follow national and local government COVID-19 restrictions.

I am supporting a local or regional fundraising event. Are they going ahead?

Unfortunately our face-to-face events are on hold until further notice. For local and regional events organised by branches and centres, please visit their individual websites for updated information. If you’re unsure, please contact our Fundraising team who will do their best to help. Email fundraising@cats.org.uk or call 01825 741 960.

I am due to take part in a challenge event to raise funds for Cats Protection. Are they going ahead?

Many of our challenge events are rescheduled for 2021, the 2020 events have been replaced with virtual challenges.

If you would like further information or to check on your specific challenge please contact our Events team who will do their best to help. Email events@cats.org.uk or call 01825 741 960.

Can I host an event to raise funds for Cats Protection?

Unfortunately our face-to-face events are on hold until further notice. Many of our fundraising events now have virtual options.

If you would like to find out more or receive guidance on how to turn your fundraising event virtual, please contact our Events team who will do their best to help. Email events@cats.org.uk or call 01825 741 960.

Can I volunteer with you now?

For the latest updates on if you can volunteer with us, click here. If you prefer, you can contact your nearest Cats Protection team direct – you can search by your postcode here: https://www.cats.org.uk/find-us

Please do contact volunteering@cats.org.uk if you have a volunteering query.

Is Paws Protect still operating?

Please contact Paws Protect directly on 0345 260 1280 (9am to 5pm Mon-Fri) to discuss your specific circumstances. Please note we are only able to speak to referrals who are fleeing domestic abuse.

Are you still accepting job applications to join Cats Protection?

Yes. Visit our careers site to find details of our current recruitment activity.

What is Cats Protection doing to protect its staff and volunteers?

Cats Protection is taking extra precautions to try and ensure that we keep our people safe. This includes:

• enabling employees who can work from home to do so
• closing all centres to the public – all of our centres are running on small teams only, focusing only on cat care (with social distancing in place and different teams on different days to limit risk)
• all charity events and meetings are taking place by telephone/online where possible or, if necessary, postponed
• all employees and volunteers with an underlying medical condition are ceasing activities for Cats Protection that bring them into contact with others
• all our work places present a COVID-safe environment.

Information is correct as of 5 November 2020.

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