Cats Protection: Help Duke find his forever home

Unfortunately, these qualities are often overlooked and they can become long-term residents in care. Back in January Peterborough Cats Protection took in the handsome Duke. He was reported as a stray after being possibly left behind or dumped. He is what we refer to as one of our middle-aged residents and is between 8-10 years old. When he first came into our care his teeth were in quite a bad way, causing him a lot of discomfort and he had a stiff gait when he walked.

Over the past few weeks, Duke has had a course of anti-inflammatories to settle the stiffness in his leg, which was possibly caused by the time he spent as a stray sleeping rough, along with some dental work. I don’t think I have ever met anyone who enjoyed a trip to the dentist. A cat is no different! But the instant relief he felt afterwards was well worth the visit!

His fosterer has worked with him on a daily basis and he is now very settled and loves to show off his sociable chatty side. He is also very partial to a good head rub and fuss!

Even with all this in his favour, we know that his age will mean that he will stay in our branch for a longer period of time than most.

We understand that people will be concerned that if they adopt a slightly older cat, they may have health issues, but you can be confident that our vets give all the cats in our care a thorough health check, so you will have an up-to- date record of their health from the moment you adopt them. Your cat will also have at least the first part of their vaccination, if not the full course, dependant on the length of time they remain in branch, they will be neutered, microchipped and have had their flea and worm treatment.

Our cats all come with four weeks free pet insurance with PetPlan, which is guaranteed to continue regardless of your cat’s age, if you wish to continue the policy with them after this initial period.

Many other insurance companies do not insure older cats, which is why we chose PetPlan as our partner.

So please, don’t walk past a slightly older cat. They have a lot of love still to share.

With advances in veterinary care and nutrition and more protective and informed owners, cats can 
expect to live way into their late teens quite happily, so taking on a middle aged to older cat doesn’t mean you will have to say your goodbyes too soon; you could have many, many happy years of love and fuss ahead for both of you!

And don’t forget, they won’t mind if you’re not home on time, they can wash their own socks, they appreciate their food and above all they will make your house feel like a home.

If you would like to find out more about Duke (pictured), contact us on 0345 371 2750 or email us at [email protected]

Sheridan Gaunt is spokeswoman for Peterborough Cats Protection