22/05/2026
We are absolutely devastated, angry, and honestly at breaking point.
We recently agreed to take in a cat from a vet, believing we were doing the right thing, giving a cat safety, care, and a chance.
We have now discovered this cat has ringworm.
We were not told the cat had ringworm when he came to us. He had symptoms already. However, we now understand the vets are also fighting their own outbreak, which makes this even more heartbreaking and worrying.
This cat should not have been moved.
A cat with suspected or confirmed ringworm should not have been placed into a rescue environment where other vulnerable cats could be put at risk. We would never knowingly have taken that risk , not to our cats, not to our foster homes, not to our volunteers, and not to the rescue itself.
*THIS CAT DID NOT COME FROM OUR REGULAR DAYTIME VET.
FOR EVERYONE CHASTISING US FOR NOT QUARANTINING HIM. HE WAS ISOLATED IN THE INTAKE CATTERY, HE WAS NOT MIXED WITH OTHER CATS. HOWEVER RINGWORM SPREADS BY AIR, SO ALL THE OTHER CATS IN THE ISOLATION PENS COULD BE AFFECTED DESPITE NEVER MIXING WITH HIM. WE ALWAYS FOLLOW PROTOCOL AND ISOLATE NEW INTAKES. PLUS HE WAS AT THE VETS FOR 18 DAYS.
For most people, ringworm might sound like “just a skin issue”. For a rescue, it is an absolute nightmare.
It is highly contagious, it can spread between cats, it can spread to humans, and it means deep cleaning, isolation, treatment, protective measures, extra vet bills, extra time, extra stress, and potentially putting everything else in our care at risk.
We spotted it within a matter of days, but by then, it was already too late.
The cat in the pen next to him is already showing signs too, which is exactly what we were terrified of. That cat has now been tested to confirm whether ringworm has spread, and we are anxiously waiting on the results.
That cat is Barney, and just testing Barney for ringworm has cost us £222.63.
That is a bill we should not have.
We currently owe the vets £11,229.00. We are already drowning. We are already fighting every single week to keep going. We are already closed because the debt is too high.
And now we are being hit with costs that should never have landed on us in the first place.
On top of this, there are 3 other cats who were in the cattery at the same time as “patient zero”, and they now also have to be kept in isolation for at least a month.
If those 3 cats also test positive, we are facing the very real possibility of bankruptcy. In fact, it is almost certain.
Treating just one cat for ringworm can literally run into the high hundreds. Multiply that by several cats, add in testing, isolation, cleaning, PPE, bedding, equipment, disinfectants, and the loss of usable rescue space, and it becomes impossible to absorb.
That is 3 more cats who cannot move forward. 3 more cats who need separate care, separate cleaning, separate precautions, and extra time we simply do not have. It is not just the ringworm itself, it is the knock-on effect on every cat, every foster space, every pen, every blanket, every piece of equipment, and every single person trying to keep this rescue going.
We are incredibly lucky that our own vet spotted it very quickly, because without that, this could have spread even further through the rescue before we had any idea what we were dealing with.
But even catching it quickly does not make this easy.
Last night, for the first time in a long time, I sat and cried.
Not a few tears. Not a little wobble. I sat there and cried because I genuinely do not know how much more we can take.
This could genuinely bankrupt us.
We are heartbroken because we try so hard to say yes when others can’t. We try so hard to help the cats who need us. But how are rescues meant to survive when situations like this land on us with no warning, no warning signs passed on, and no support?
This isn’t just frustrating. It is terrifying.
Every cat in our care now has to be protected. Every foster home affected has to be supported. Every surface, blanket, carrier, room, and item has to be cleaned or replaced. Treatment costs money. Testing costs money. Cleaning costs money. Time costs money.
And we simply do not have it.
We are angry because this should not have happened to a small rescue already on its knees.
We are upset because every time we feel like we are making even the smallest bit of progress, something else comes along and knocks us straight back down. Its not fair.
We are exhausted because we never stop fighting for these cats, but we cannot keep absorbing crisis after crisis with nothing left in the pot.
We desperately need help.
If you can donate, please do.
If you can send cleaning supplies, please do.
If you can share this post, please do.
If you have ever supported us before, please know we are asking again because we truly have no choice.
We are not being dramatic when we say this could finish us.
We are trying to protect the cats, protect our foster homes, and keep the rescue alive, but right now, we are absolutely terrified.
We cannot do this without you.
bank transfer Rescue Kitties
sort code 01-02-96
account number 29560306
PayPal
https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/rescuekittiesltd
Alternatively if you would like to call and pay directly to the vet the account is Rescue Kitties 0161 475 5720
Text RESCUEKITTIES followed by your donation amount to 70490 to give that amount.
Texts will cost the donation amount plus one standard network rate message.
Please help us help as many cats as we can.
