Durban - Every morning before work, Sherryl Bradfield, Rose Magic and Pauline Tribe feed 72 feral cats. They begin in Shepstone Road, in Pinetown, and work their way through several colonies in Durban, making sure the animals are fed.
“It costs us R16 500 a month just to feed them and we use our own money from our salaries. Rose and Pauline have woken up at 2.30am every day for 10 years to feed the cats and have never missed a day,” said Bradfield, the co-founder of St Francis Carers, a nonprofit organisation (NPO) that looks after abused and abandoned feral cats.
But for their work to continue, Bradfield is hoping that a fundraiser, in the form of sales of a 2023 calendar that features the animals, would assist in bringing in the required funds for their operations. Their organisation, which was registered in 2018, was among the beneficiaries of Compass Cares fundraising event. Compass Cares, is a voluntary organisation under the umbrella of Compass Medical Waste.
St Francis Carers came about when Bradfield met Magic and Tribe while they were feeding feral cats on the Durban promenade. “I was going for a run after gym and stopped because I have a passion for cats. I asked them if there was any way I could assist.
That was about eight years ago and ever since I have provided for these animals who don’t have a voice. We live far from the colonies, and we travel long distances to get there and to get to work afterwards. “Ian and Judy du Rant from Compass Cares produce the calendars and find sponsors for each page.
Once the calendars are sold, Ian gives several organisations the money, so we have some funds to help subsidise us. The calendars are crucial for the survival of the cats.” Bradfield said all proceeds raised from the calendar sales would go towards sterilising, rescuing, and feeding feral cats. She said while it was a joy to care for the cats, the organisation required financial assistance to continue in its work. “We can only afford to feed the cats one meal a day.
We have a network with dedicated women who take kittens that are abandoned and keep them. Proceeds from the calendar goes towards sterilising, rescuing, and feeding because people don’t sterilise their animals. “One unsterilised female cat can have 25 kittens in a year and by the time those kittens are four months old, if they are female, they can fall pregnant. We also have a team of trappers who have full-time jobs.
“They are totally dedicated and go out to factories and companies and sterilise all the feral cats in the colonies, so they don’t continue to breed,” said Bradfield. Compass Cares also supports the Feral Cat Rescue Trust, and Hope for Kittens organisations, among others.
SUNDAY TRIBUNE
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