August 2020 - Pioneer Magazines

Team Cat Rescue – Busy In Lockdown, Busy With Litters …

Volunteers with Team Cat Rescue have been busier than ever during lockdown as the bigger national charities have furloughed staff, closed the charity shops and branches but – of course – continued to care for the cats already in their care. And cat charities are now reporting they fear 84,000 extra kittens could be born this summer due to coronavirus – because fewer vets are carrying out neutering procedures. Advice is to ‘keep un-neutered cats indoors – and males and females apart’. So lockdown has applied to cats too!

So, what has it been like in lockdown for TCR? Coordinator Lynne Buffery says that, as much as humanly possible, it has been ‘cat business as normal’.

Lynne, who has been coordinator for thirty years, says: “The cat-caring public have been phoning in as usual when they find a Mum who has given birth to kittens in their gardens. And if the finders or I can scoop them up and get them to a fosterer, that is what we are doing. Of course, if we’ve got Mum too, the kittens can thrive, but if not we have some specialist devoted fosterers who can syringe or bottle feed the motherless mites every two hours. We were lucky in that Sarah Doyle, a nurse at Pype Hayes vets, with the support of the vet team, took in some 2-day old kittens to hand-rear for us. And, because some of the big charities were not homing, we have a promising list of would be adopters. So the last few months have proved hard work and we’ve had to be innovative but – paws crossed – win-win for all our ready-to-home kittens and for some of our older, longer-stay cats too.”

Great Barr co-op management and customers alike help and support …

Kittens are soft and fluffy, but times are hard! The rescue is desperate for funds. The monthly table-top sale at the Swan at Yardley – which often raised between £600 and £800 – was cancelled because of lockdown. So fosterer Sue Carty, who doubles as the Floral Team Leader at Great Barr co-op florists on the Walsall Road, has asked manager Gill Evans of the co-op food store nearby if she’s willing to have a TCR cat food donation basket – and she is!

Says Sue: “Customers are so kind too. I’m known as the ‘cat rescuer’ and people come in and donate cat food, blankets, bric-a-brac and knitting wool – all sorts – for us to use or sell. They ask for cat care advice as well as flowers! And TCR is well-known for feral trapping jobs around these parts.”

Appeal for volunteers …

TCR would welcome more volunteers – in almost any capacity. Says Lynne: “Chiefly, we’d like help with transport. Because the work vets can take on has been restricted to emergency or welfare cases only during lockdown, we’ve often had to get cats and kittens to the vets for 8am. And big thanks to Vets4-Pets at the Beggars Bush for accommodating us as best they can, as well as our regular vets, Pype Hayes.”

Adds Lynne: “If you are a cat-lover, call us if we can help you or if you can help us – support, donate or volunteer. If you want to adopt, this can now happen within social distancing guidelines and with outside pens. But the most important message of all is please neuter your cat.”

Looking after a lucky lockdown litter – with Lucy …

Fosterer Lucy Burr works as a mobile chiropodist and has three young daughters to care for – as well as six kittens! She gives her personal purrspective on how the kittens currently in her care were found and how nurturing during lockdown has gone.

“My little charges were found in an overgrown garden. Several had bite wounds – possibly from a fox. They were all very poorly. We are still not sure whether a mix of ‘multiple feral litters together’ or whether one large litter. Sadly, we lost several early on as they were too poorly to survive. They all had cat flu, herpes and infected eyes.

“But these in the photo now have names! They are George, Harry, Misty, Floyd, Artie and Peppa. All the kitties love their bottle, a snuggle and a chin tickle. No wonder they purr like tractors! They’re still poorly and on antibiotics and eye drops. But of course our paws are crossed that they are past the worst and, as a fosterer, I will have the pleasure of seeing them grow, play – and find their forever homes.”

Lucy has been hand-rearing tiny kittens for three years, and says: “I just love it, it makes me happy. I had a room built at the side of my house specially for foster kittens. And guess what? It’s my favourite place!”

Find Team Cat Rescue on Facebook @TeamCatRescue

Park Hall Area Neighbourhood Watch

The last 3 months have been a challenge for us all, but our community certainly rose to the challenge! The generosity, kindness and good will of people has been overwhelming and so many have given their time in volunteering to help the vulnerable in our area through the COVID-19 Support Group.

There has also been a great sense of community and friendship from VE day street parties to gathering on Thursday night to applaud our NHS and carers – all socially distanced of course! We miss the Thursday night ‘clap for carers’ but the friendships made through this, and other activities, we hope will continue for a long time to come. And, some good news – the police have given the go ahead for Street Watch to resume so the patrols have restarted. Look out for the yellow jackets!

Why be part of Neighbourhood Watch?

People join Neighbourhood Watch for many different reasons, whether it is to improve safety around their home or to become part of a group and meet new people. It is widely regarded that being part of Neighbourhood Watch can:

Reduce / prevent local crime and disorder
Reduce fear of crime
Address issues relating to antisocial behaviour
Create safer neighbourhoods
Build community spirit and cohesion
Reassure members of the public
Enhance partnership working with other community groups
Assist in the detection and apprehension of criminals through members providing information to the police
Improve quality of life and the local environment

Campaign To Save Phonebox

Streetly Magazine — Anne-Marie Goodchild (second left) joins locals wanting to save the phonebox

A Streetly woman has launched a campaign to save one of Britain’s iconic red telephone kiosks.

Anne-Marie Goodchild spotted a notice inside the 1950s kiosk in Burnett Road, Streetly, from BT, which said that it was to be removed because it was no longer economically viable.

“I’ve always liked our red kiosks as they are a real symbol of Britain, so when I saw the notice I wanted to do something to save it,” she said.

She hopes the phonebox, which is believed to date back to the 1950s, will be adopted by Staffordshire County Council – it sits just inside the Staffs border, despite being in Streetly – and that it could be transformed into a community asset, such as book exchange.

In just a couple of weeks, Anne-Marie got BT to promise that it will not remove the kiosk while she speaks to councillors about the adoption, which will cost it just £1, and establish how it will be maintained.

“At first we thought it was in Walsall, and the council was keen to support adopting the kiosk, but it quickly became clear that it sat in Staffordshire, so I’m hoping that because there are already adopted ones in Shenstone and Wall that the council there will be willing to save this one,” she said.

Once the plea about the phonebox was posted on the Streetly Community group page on Facebook, a petition was raised to save it and more than 500 people have signed it.

“We’re still in the early stages of the campaign, but I’m hoping that we can get the council on board quickly and then we can look at how we put a committee together to maintain it,” added Anne-Marie.

Perry Barr Trefoil Guild Rallies The Troops

Perry Barr Local Magazine — Member Beryl Bailey with some of the baby hats for City Hospital

Like other organisations and clubs, Perry Barr Trefoil Guild has been in lockdown since the middle of March. Although they have not been able to meet, they have certainly been very busy. Not many days in, they were asked to ‘rally the troops’ as an urgent call came for laundry bags for nurses. Over 300 have been sewn, washed and delivered to Queen Elizabeth, Sandwell, City Coronary Care, Russells Hall, Good Hope, George Elliott, New Cross and the Women’s Hospitals – some even went as far as Scotland. Mask extenders were also made and sent to hospitals with some of these reaching as far as Canada.

The ladies have also been busy knitting and displaying NHS Rainbows, snowmen for a charity, twiddle muffs for Alzheimer patients, hundreds of baby hats for City Hospital Premature Baby Unit and finally, jumpers and jackets for a children’s charity.

Shopping Bags, lunch bags, bead bags have also been sewn, along with reflection for many, sewing ‘Fleeting Moments’ birds to celebrate John Taylor Hospice 110 years.

And the ladies’ skills don’t stop there. Seeds, plants and vegetables are being grown in many gardens whilst others are just enjoying the lovely sunshine and being out-of-doors.

“This is just a small contribution Perry Barr Trefoil Guild has made during these past few weeks and has been linked into our STARS Trefoil Challenge, with many near completion of their 25 clauses,” said Chairperson Wendy Brown. “But, most of all, the Guiding spirit has shone through all of our 31 members, albeit helping others, or themselves, and always supporting each other.”