By: Gabrielle Cauwood
Hi, my name is Gabrielle.
I’ve always loved cats, long before I got the change to help with Cats Protection. Seeing the cats at the centre is the highlight of my week; I always take lots of photos so I can remember my favourites! Before I came to Team Tyneside, I rescued a cat of my own; I called him Fluffy. Fluffy came to me as a stray. He would sit in my garden every night and my boyfriend would go out every night in the cold and give him food, some blankets and something to drink. One night poor Fluffy was sitting out in the snow, so we brought him inside, wrapped him in a blanket and he’s been with me ever since!
I have been a volunteer at the Cats Protection Tyneside Adoption Centre for over one year now; my role is a Cat Desensitisation Volunteer. This means that it’s my job to spend time with the more nervous ones who aren’t as comfortable around people. I love spending time with the shy cats and helping to make them more comfortable and confident!
I help out at the Tyneside Adoption Centre every Monday and Thursday; I love it! My day starts at 10.30am. After a quick cup of tea with the team, I collect my pen key and check the socialisation board to see which cats need some time spent with them. Some of our cats are very, very shy so it’s important that we socialise them slowly at a pace they’re happy with. Whenever I spend time with a shy cat I write notes in their Desensitisation Diary so I can see their progress.
Since I started volunteering with Cats Protection, I have improved my confidence and made lots of new friends along the way. In addition to my role as a Cat Desensitisation Volunteer, I now also help out with the cleaning on a Thursday. It’s very important that we spot clean the cats pens every day to make sure none of them get sick. I now help with cleaning one block of pens (6 cats) every Thursday and I love it!
Some of Team Tyneside
Once I’ve finished with the daily cleaning, it’s time to get the washing up done. Did you know that when we have a full centre we can go through over 80 food bowls a day? That’s a lot of washing up! When we wash anything that comes into contact with the cats it’s really important that we disinfect and rinse so everything is nice and clean for the next cat!
In the afternoon it’s time to do the evening feeds and observations. We make observations on our cats three times a day so we can spot straight away if something’s not right. Sometimes we give feeding enrichment with the night time feeds to keep the cats’ minds active – an active cat is a happy cat!
Seeing all the cats at the centre and helping them to find new homes is such a rewarding experience. I would definitely recommend volunteering with Team Tyneside to anybody!
Gabrielle has been a dedicated volunteer for the Cats Protection Tyneside Adoption Centre since 2018; initially as a Cat Desensitisation Volunteer, and then expanding her responsibilities to include Cat Care. When Gabrielle isn’t helping out at the centre, she enjoys catching up on the soaps, going out for food and spending time with her lovely cat, Fluffy.
Cats Protection Tyneside Adoption Centre 