A COALFIELDS cat dubbed Princess has become the centre of a campaign to give her royal treatment after she became paralyzed earlier this month.
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Weston’s Sawyers Gully Animal Rescue group has raised thousands in the first hours of their push to give Princess, a cat who has lost the use of her hind legs, proper treatment from specialist vets in Sydney.
Within five hours on Monday the campaign had raised more than $3600 towards its $10,000 goal.
At 5pm it had garnered more than $4100 from 119 donors and soared over $6200 by 6.30pm.
The cat arrived in the registered not-for-profit’s care last Saturday after it suffered a spinal injury on May 6.
The rescue group said they had urged the cat’s owner to refer the matter to police and the RSPCA.
It was unclear on Monday night whether it had been taken to authorities.
Initial fears the animal had died proved unfounded when the feline survivor dragged herself to a safe area, where she had given birth to five kittens a week earlier.
Sawyers Gully Animal Rescue president Dee Walton said the fundraising campaign was primarily about helping the cat herself, who is now unable to excrete waste without assistance and requires pain medication.
Princess continues to tend to her kittens despite her painful injuries, the extent of which Mrs Walton said can only be discovered through further scans and treatment.
Mrs Walton said it was unlikely the cat would be re-homed given her needs, which include manually expelling her faeces and urine.
“It’s just not something you can give up, she needs that lifelong commitment,” Mrs Walton said.
“It’s quite daunting because you’re trying to make sure you don’t hurt her any more.”
Mrs Walton attributed the extraordinary generosity displayed on Monday, including a single donor contributing $1500, to growing outrage over animal cruelty in the Hunter.
“The Hunter Valley has started to get known for real animal cruelty,” Mrs Walton said.
“I think people are really sick and tired of all the animal cruelty, and they’re looking at this and saying this is something we can do.”
Ms Walton and Sawyers Gully Animal Rescue have launched an appeal to seek testing and treatment from North Ryde’s Small Animal Specialist Hospital.
Scans alone are expected to cost more than $2600 while surgery would likely push the bill past $10,000.
Mrs Walton said the only time Princess had been disagreeable since her injuries was when her bladder was manually emptied.
“But if you press my belly, I’d get grumpy too,” she said.
View the funding appeal here.
Matt Carr
Matt began his Newcastle Herald career as a cadet in 2009. He is a Walkley nominated reporter who has covered councils, police and general news rounds across the Upper Hunter, Port Stephens, Maitland, Lake Macquarie, Cessnock and Newcastle. Now his focus is on digital storytelling and breaking news.
Matt began his Newcastle Herald career as a cadet in 2009. He is a Walkley nominated reporter who has covered councils, police and general news rounds across the Upper Hunter, Port Stephens, Maitland, Lake Macquarie, Cessnock and Newcastle. Now his focus is on digital storytelling and breaking news.
