Tourists visiting Greece have plummeted due to COVID-19, and cats have lost a vital source of food in the Summer. Please donate to help fund vet care and food for up to 400 cats.

Support Koula Davie to help the ghost cats of Greece
My name is Koula Davie, and I have the fortune and, at the same time, misfortune, of being a Greek animal welfare supporter living in the UK. Misfortune, because I find myself staying awake at night thinking of the never-ending suffering of the stray cats back home, a suffering that has been made worse during the pandemic. And fortune, because, with your help, I am in a position to help save their lives.
You might be familiar with the iconic Greek Cat, featuring on calendars and postcards, fat and relaxed, usually on a white washed greek island wall, with a beautiful sunset view behind her. But there is an ugly truth behind this image. This very same seemingly healthy cat, well-fed by the tourists in the tavernas and relaxed in the summer, most probably won’t survive the winter. Restricted access to food due to overpopulation, lack of proper shelter and veterinary care if the cats get sick, combined with complications during birth and sexually transmitted disease result in greek island cats living short lives. And most often dying suffering and alone, invisible to all, being ghosts even before they die.
It might be hard to imagine that in 2021 in a european country this is the case, not only in the greek rural areas, but also in the towns and cities. There are still hundreds of thousands of strays and although there is legislation since 2012 assigning responsibility for their care to the municipalities, in reality very few of them take real action for neutering, feeding and treatment, if any. And if they do, dogs are the priority, as they are considered dangerous for the residents, if left uncontrolled. For cats… nobody really cares. The majority of stray cats live short, difficult lifes, threatened by disease, traffic, dogs and people. They suffer silently and try to hide in their weakness, like ghosts… And if you are lucky you will not see them.
But if you see them and their suffering, then the memory may haunt you forever.
That is why my every visit in Greece results in a new cycle of deep sadness and despair. To the point that I am reluctant to spend my holidays back home. But at the same time I started seeking ways to take action, to find hope in this desperate situation.
And I realized that in Greece, there are other individuals like me, seeing the ghost cats and understanding their suffering. They typically go out late at night or early in the morning, when things are quiet and people are not looking, to find and feed their little furry friends. Some only feed, others try to offer veterinary treatment when they are sick, others go a step further and try to neuter the cats under their care. Sometimes they meet, forming official or unofficial groups.
To the inexperienced, external people who sometimes view these groups, it is hard to imagine the hard work and sacrifice that usually comes with caring for the strays. The money spent on food and veterinary expenses, the hours trapping, taking cats to the vet, caring for them if they are ill, organizing, communicating, rushing any time of the day if called for emergencies. A handful of people have to care for in most cases for hundreds of cats and every day brings to them a new challenge: a seriously ill cat, an injured cat, a new abandoned cat, cases of maltreatment. The statistics are not in their favor: With at least 30 cats in a typical urban city block, hundreds in a neighbourhood, there is great chance of a new problem every day.
And these groups, struggling even before the COVID-19 pandemic, they are facing now a new level of challenges. With the bigger part of the market closed, with tourism in a halt, animal welfare volunteers are struggling to continue helping the cats in the same way as before.
Looking desperately for ways to support these groups, I discovered the Greek Cat Welfare Society. It is indeed a UK organization and not greek, but a group of similarly minded people, like me, having visited Greece and dedicated to trying to support our greek friends, two legged and four legged. We ourselves get desperate calls for help every day for all those groups all over Greece struggling to help cats and facing insurmountable problems. Our list of requests is so long that we are in difficulty to support everybody. Feeders currently unemployed, not able to feed anymore, others with huge veterinary bills, as the winter has been harsh and an unusual number of cats fell ill.
You can help us make a difference for the ghost cats of Greece by donating and sharing this fundraiser. We can neuter 40 cats or feed 100 cats for 4 months with £1000.
Thank you for your support!