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May 2001, I was back on Rhodes. Impulsive as I can be sometimes I wanted a break and I wanted it now. Just looking on the Internet for a destination somewhere in Greece simply because I love that country. On the times that I had available only Rhodes had possibilities. Well, why not. |
By Henk Keers
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I had been there fifteen years ago and had good memories of
that.
As always the weather was lovely in early spring. While landing I
thought that a lot would have changed. It was late so it was dark. I
noticed
RAWS Does
the government take any actions to control the population. No the
government here does nothing. Most leave the cat alone but for some
excesses. Like said before, the Become a donor of the Cats of
Rhodes!
Copyright © 2001CST
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the exuberant lighting of Rhodes city and it made me shiver a
bit. I was a bit anxious about the thought that the charming looks of
this city would have fallen prey to tourism . My anxiety proved
unfounded.
English in the period
of 40-45. When the Italians were literally put off the island by the
Germans in 1943 they left a beautifully restored part of the city but
also an island without cats or dogs. Prior to their expulsion in a
period of prisoner of war situation there was no supply of food.
Everything that moved was eaten.
They are very difficult to be approached.
And
when you do get the chance they first read your soul. Piercing eyes
carefully scan your mind, good or evil. What do you want from me? You can see that they lead a roving existence. As a rule they are dirty
and have a skinny to normal body. Overweight occurs with neutered
animals from groups which are regularly fed. Some are ill or have gone
through illnesses of which the ravages are still visible.
Rhinotracheitis, inflammations of the eyes and abscesses regularly occur
and are as a rule not treated. Flea allergies can be spotted because of
the bald spots. Most of them, especially the males, look very damaged.
This as a result of territorial fights. Many have lost part or all of
their ears. They live in groups in designated fields. Striking is that
often there are more males in such groups. They have a strict order and
there is a relative calm in the group, but as soon as a male from
another colony invades their territory, there is war.
feeding places and on one feeding place a box with
kittens of some five weeks old. This colony had more than enough food
available. They didn't even eat it all at once. A bit further on I see a
Greek driving up the pier of Mandraki on a motorbike. Out of nowhere the
cats come running. From the cracks and rocks of the pier the cats come
calling loudly towards the man. Soon there are dozens. I thought that he
would feed them regularly. The cats look upon him as their caretaker. I
approached the man and discovered that he was warm-hearted towards the
cat. He feeds them almost daily, several colonies on several places in
the city. The food varies from pasta-like dishes to cat food. The good
man however does nothing about the ill cats. Of course there are also
tourists who feed the cats. My pita with gouros is regularly shared with
one or more cats. Whether this well-meant gesture is also a wise one, I
doubt seriously. The feeding of the cats alone does not solve the
problem, on the contrary it perpetuates it. 
On a beautiful but late evening I strolled along the dark
alleys of the ancient city of Rhodes. The atmosphere, the
sounds, music and all those wonderful smells of edible
products and charcoal fires on which fish is roasted, just
outside on de sidewalk. The lights of the far and few lamps
project my shadow as a giant on the pitch dark mediaeval
walls. 
After that it is put on the windowsill for a number of years
somewhere in a house on this world just to be thrown away casually
sometime. When I walked alongside one of those stalls where they
sell this junk I noticed that the collection of fake cats was quite
large here. Those skins, I shouldn't have to think about it, could I
be that wrong? The owner told me with a look of innocence that the
producer of that junk had assured him that it was all synthetic. I
pointed out to him that you cannot copy the ticked hairs and the
implant. He scolded a bit. I pointed out to him his responsibilities
and that he shouldn't sell stuff like this. In so many words he told
me that in no way was he going to stop selling it. There must be a
lucrative market for this kind of junk. It is only too bad that we
accept things like that so easily. When it's the money we don't have
a high standard in animal welfare. We got the responsibility for the
animals and we refuse to take it, moreover we abuse it.
When I was
on Rhodes fifteen years ago almost no one seemed to care for the cats. We
saw horrible things. Often I thought back to those days. I felt guilty.
I looked at it and did nothing. Especially when my cats were being
obnoxious I told them that I would send them to Rhodes. Luckily there
are people on the island, usually foreigners, who know how to organise
things. Danish Jitty Anderson established RAWS in 1990. Their aim is to
neuter as many cats as possible to limit the number of cats. Kittens are
homes if at all possible. Usually by foreigners who take a kitten home
and in that way make its life more pleasant. In the year 2000 there were
fifty of such kittens. I have been told that Trans-Avia has a special
arrangement. In 1998 the foundation was recognised by the city council
of Rhodes but only for the dogs. The cats are still not seen as a
problem and thus ignored. The foundation now has recently renovated
kennels for the dogs but has only one improvised space for ill or
convalescing cats. When a cat escapes it is immediately surrounded by
dogs. Certainly not an ideal situation which urgently needs improving.
Most cats are now outside the gates of the pound. It is all about the
basic needs a cat has to be able to survive. Everything is done to get
the appropriate funds and to have the ill cats treated by a vet. In
several European countries there are groups who actively support the
foundation by collecting money and cat food to especially feed the cats
in winter. The organisation also tries to make children understand by
visiting schools. In the long run things will get better. You can find
the pound just outside Rhodes city on the way to Lindos.
Karina Hopley, an English woman
who has lived on Rhodes for 16 years already, is the main drive when it
is about the cats of Rhodes. She is always there, even during the
winter, to feed the cats. She has done this work for eight years, seven
days a week.
Only a few Sundays a year she takes a day off but still worries about
the colonies and goes to check on them. RAWS is a fine initiative but
Karina (left on the picture) is the one who looks after the interest of
the cats. She is also the only one to man an information stand at the
Mandraki Harbour near the taxi-stand. She told me that it is generally
known that she looks after the cats and regularly bags and boxes with
kittens are dropped at the stall. This way the people think they can
clear themselves of their responsibility. A major part of the misery
comes from ignorance but also from carelessness. She told that someone
had asked her to come along because a sick cat had been seen, sitting in
a restaurant behind a fountain for three days. The animal was supposed
to be hit by a car. The cat was ducked behind a water curtain of the
fountain. When I picked it up my hands disappeared into the belly. The
raw flesh was soaked with water and the maggots fell out. These are the
less nice things. I didn't feel quite well then with my hands full of
blood and maggots. I loudly asked if there was a place where I could
wash my hands. You should have seen the tourists. For them the cat would
not have been very noticeable but for the employees of the restaurant
they must have seen the cat and done nothing about it. She is still
angry. 
Most Greeks ignore cats completely she says. Of course I had the
cat put down. It could not be saved. Next I asked her if the others who
also feed cats are also working for RAWS. This was not the case. These
were just people who were attracted to the fate of the cats and fed them
regularly. However the ill cats were left to their fate and neutering
was quite another matter. Karina had problems telling that. RAWS does
look after the ill cats, she says. Sometimes she finds it very hard to
make choices. With a limited budget you do have to make choices. We
can't afford all those expensive operations. You try to help as many
cats as you can. Somewhere in Rhodes there is a cat about with a broken
pelvis, something which can very well be treated but finances do not
allow that. The animal is coping fine so putting it to sleep is not an
option. Then she tells me that once she had a cat with a pyometra and
had it sterilized. The cat was pregnant and all the kittens were
infected so everything had to come out. The cat recovered beautifully
and after a period of being looked after it was returned into the colony.
A day later she was run over by a car. That does not really cheer me up.
Greek do not look upon the stray cats as
a problem. During my trips into the interior I saw quite a number of
cats as well. Is there any form of shelter anywhere on the island? I
asked. No due to lack of manpower we limit ourselves to Rhodes city
where most strays are anyhow. Usually the local population look after
the cats in the same manner it is done here. We go beyond feeding the
cats. We aim for the restriction of the number of cats. I am busy with
that all year round, who else is there to do that, she says. You see
that sponge tent a bit further on? In winter I use it as a shelter for
the cats. I am not allowed to do that, but I do it anyhow so that the
cats have a dry feeding place. Last winter the weather was so bad that
the whole place was awash. I had to save the cats in the heavy rainfall.
They had nowhere to go. I promptly had a pneumonia as a result. Do you
do anything about fleas? Yes, we try to with powder an so on but it is
hopeless. I asked her about the rehomed cats. Many kittens had left for
abroad and she showed me photos of cats who had found new homes
somewhere in Europe. One had only one eye and she told me the story of
the little kitten with the enormous infection and how she had looked
after it. An Austrian couple wanted to take it along but they left on a
day when the kitten was not completely recovered. The kitten went to
Austria later anyway and had its eye removed there. She shows me a few
photos of a cute spotted cat with only one eye lying on the bed with the
Austrians. That's what Karina lives for. She
I quickly
count 15 amongst which an enormous boss cat which looks a lot like a
Norwegian Forest
Cat. Nice male I say to her. Yes He was thrown out of car here some
three years ago. It took me two years before I could touch him. He is
still entire, why isn't he treated?. He and Jack are the only two entire
cats but can't be handled. I can stroke them but picking them up is an
entirely different ballgame. Once I had him but he is so strong that he
scratched me open, pointing at her underarm. Can you also replace adult
cats? No that's not possible she says resolutely. Cats that grew up here
are real vagabonds. If you replace them they tear off as soon as they
can and they go on the street again. I asked her about the fake cats,
she knew about them and confirmed that some of them were made of real
cat fur. She thought they were imported from Taiwan. I told her that I
had seen cards with "made in Greece" on them. She avoided the
subject a little. She told me the organisation had to be very careful in
its actions and words. The city council could become very negative. Do
you remember, the cats of Rhodes are still ignored by the city council.
There is not cat problem so there is no fake cat problem.
On
the wide sidewalk walks a small round furry white-cream little boy, only
about six weeks old. A fuzzy tail pricking in the air. Strong and boldly
drawing the tourists' attention by tapping them against the legs. Look
at me. I can do quite a lot, don't you think so? Do you want to take me
along? So young and yet having experienced so much.
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