Poor Harry was brought up in a house full of cats! He had no choice in the matter. I was heavily pregnant with Harry while still roaming Romford Market with my feral trap and a bag full of fish heads. (During the summer nights I was like the pied piper!) Oh how I remember those nights spent hiding in the shadows waiting for Mr Tom Cat to spring the trap!
As soon as Harry was old enough we adopted a cat of his very own - a rescued cat of course from one of Jennie's contacts - and so our cat family swelled: Tabitha, my hand tamed feral kitten and now the biggest, silliest, softest cat you could wish for; Scampi, my dear little no tail - I rescued her from a fly infested rabbit hutch; Jessica, nice but dim; dear old Yum Yum, a docklands cat, no longer wanted because of "children"; and Harry's new kitten, BagPuss - a very vocal cat indeed.
Harry with the money he raised
Our house is a house where the cats come first. We squash ourselves on to the available chair or cling to the space left in the bed! I had thought of maybe putting Harry down in the garden... We have a very nice dry warm shed, but I think the NSPCC might of been called! Oh and of course only the very best in cat food while we have shops' own brand food! This is how the love for cats and all creatures grew with Harry. Did I mention he is also a vegetarian? "I'm not eating any thing with a smile".
One day, Harry came home from school explaining the other children were holding a raffle in aid of a well known charity. Harry wanted to do some thing for the homeless cats, the unwanted strays, the roaming ferals and most of all for an animal charity that really cared. His school gave permission for Harry to run a raffle for PussyCat Lodge but only for one week. Now Harry takes after me with my great ideas and no nonsense attitude. He raided my cupboard where I keep useful presents for short notice birthday parties. He made posters and newsletters. Every break time Harry would man his stool hard selling his 20p raffle tickets or 5 for £1. The raffle was so popular that it continued into the following week. Come rain or high winds, Harry without fail stood through his lunch break selling tickets.
Harry with his "thank you" gift from PCLT
To our amazement, Harry raised a total of £117! This was proudly given to Jennie at the Open Day. Even as I type this Harry is planning his next big fund raising adventure.
Claire Buck
