Abandoned Cats - Israel Disengagement

August 2 to August 25, 2005:


Pets left in Gaza are evacuated
New York Newsday, NY - August 25, 2005
... from Gaza--including an iguana--have been rounded up by animal-rights groups, the Israeli government said Wednesday. The statement said about 200 animals are ...

Pets rescued from abandoned Gaza homes
Jerusalem Post, Israel - August 24, 2005
However, that's exactly what's been happening to animals in Gush Katif, who have not been evacuated by soldiers or police, but rather by volunteer workers in ...

Groups Round Up Pets Abandoned in Gaza
Newsday, NY - August 24, 2005
JERUSALEM -- About 100 pets left behind when settlers were evacuated from Gaza -- including an ... The statement said about 200 animals are still on the loose. ...

Israelis hunt for lost Gaza pets
BBC News, UK - August 24, 2005... Up to 200 animals are thought to remain inside Gaza but activists are battling to save them before bulldozers move in. Israel's ...

Cat Society of Israel
Update: August 23, 2005
TIME IS RUNNING OUT!!
[Excerpt]
The cat in the house with the blue Peugot, the injured cat by the dumpster, the grey cat near the soldiers garbage cans, the tricolour mother of the two kittens in the house by the fence, the mother and 5 kittens under Ogen's house, the two cats in the 3rd house right to the garbage can after the square, a black & white cat...

Israeli Settlers Make Last Stand Atop Synagogue
ktla 5, CA - August 20, 2005
[Excerpt]
With most of the settlers gone, an animal-rescue group said Thursday that it planned to enter the settlements to round up stray dogs and cats left behind in the crush. The Society to Protect Animals planned to seek permission to go in as soon as all 21 settlements were declared secured by the army.

CHAI UPDATE August 19, 2005: Today, Hakol Chai's mobile spay/neuter clinic, veterinarian, and staff entered Gaza to begin rescuing animals abandoned there. The clinic's first stop was Morag, where they rescued dogs and cats left behind by departing settlers.

Israel to rescue cats, dogs from Gaza settlements
Reuters AlertNet, UK - August 18, 2005
... Israel is known for its many stray cats but some of the animals could be pets that got lost when owners left suddenly or were dragged away. ...

Animal rights group awaits permission to enter Gaza to save strays
Ha'aretz (registration), Israel - August 18, 2005
... "Cats and dogs left behind by departing settlers have no ability to survive under the ... The group said it is concerned about stray dogs and pets left behind by ...

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August 16, 2005
ISRAEL: FATE OF ANIMALS IN THE TERRITORIES

Israel’s Veterinary Services has organized an official contingent of animal groups to enter Gaza to help rescue any animals who may be left behind by departing settlers. Evacuation of settlers begins tonight, Sunday, and all areas in Gaza have been sealed off by the Army days in advance in preparation. Even families of the settlers have not been allowed entry. Concern for Helping Animals in Israel (CHAI), www.chai-online.org, the SPCA in Israel, in Tel Aviv, and the SPCA Beersheva, along with other organizations, will be part of this major rescue contingent. CHAI will bring its mobile spay/neuter clinic, with 30 cages, many humane traps, and many volunteers. The SPCA will also bring cars, traps, and volunteers.

On Tuesday, Israel’s Army is holding a briefing for those groups participating in the rescue effort. These efforts can only begin after the settlers have departed, because of the confusion and danger (55,000 Israeli soldiers have amassed to help counter any potential violence) and because until the settlers are gone, no one knows how many animals may be left behind. In the West Bank settlements, only three stray dogs were reported seen so far, two of which were captured. The true picture for both cats and dogs will not be clear until after the disengagement.

Shelters and municipal pounds throughout Israel have volunteered to take in the animals rescued and help find homes for them. Concern for Helping Animals in Israel (CHAI) appealed to government Ministers last week to provide funds to reimburse the groups for their expenses, through a special fund in the Environment Ministry set aside for assisting animal groups. The government is providing $500,000 to settlers who leave the territories to purchase a new house, establish a new business, and for the costs of moving. CHAI’s appeal to government Ministers made the point that the animals, too, deserve help.

For further information, in the U.S., contact chai_us@cox.net. In Israel, contact the Tel Aviv headquarters of CHAI’s sister charity in Israel, Hakol Chai, at kolchai1@netvision.net.il.
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From Alley Cat Allies - August 15, 2005
TAKE ACTION: Help Protect the Cats in the Gaza Strip!

Operation Noah's Ark: Evacuating the animals
Israel 21C, CA - August 15, 2005
... activists, with the help of volunteer veterinarians, and some residents of the settlements have launched a massive operation to save the stray cats and dogs. ...

Fur flies in Samaria as 150 cats, and one blind dog, are moved out
Jerusalem Post, Israel - August 15, 2005
... and four other animal rights activists have been driving to the northern West Bank settlements of Ganim and Kadim and hauling out vanloads of stray cats. ...

Animal rights groups push to save Gush Katif's cats and dogs
Ha'aretz (registration), Israel - August 14, 2005
The Noah organization, an umbrella association representing various animal rights groups, says that hundreds of abandoned cats and dogs might starve to death ...

Cat rescue group races to save felines in evacuation areas
Ha'aretz (registration), Israel - August 12, 2005
... of the cats in the Ashgaris' yard is part of an operation to save the felines of Ganim and Kadim, initiated by the Cat Welfare Society of Israel, whose ...

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Subject: letters to rescue cats in the Gaza and Shomron disengagement areas
Date: 8/12/2005
From: ellenmoshenberg@gmail.com

The disengagement from Gaza and north Shomron has started and hundreds of cats are being abandoned as I write this.

As per their request at a meeting with animal organizations, can you please send polite letters (those are more effective) to the following government ministers to prevent the death and abandonment of the cats in the areas affected by the disengagement? CWSI volunteers went to two already evacuated settlements the last two
nights and rescued so far 83 cats but there are hundreds more that need to be rescued. Volunteers and more equipment is urgently needed. I include a sample text which can be revised. Please is feel free to contact me with any questions.

Thanks and regards,
Ellen Moshenberg
Cat Welfare Society of Israel
For more information visit us at: www.cats.org.il


Prime Minister Ariel Sharon: pm_heb@pmo.gov.il Fax: +9720226705475

Shalom Simchon, Minister of the Environment: sar@environment.gov.il
and ssimhon@knesset.gov.il Fax: +9722-6553837

Israel Katz, Minister of Agriculture: sar@moag.gov.il and
yiskatz@knesset.gov.il and http://www.moag.gov.il/english/write_us/
fax: +9722-6290166

Dear Minister ,

I was apalled to learn that the stray cats of the evacuated
settlements in Northern Samaria and the Gaza Strip are being
abandonned to die of hunger and thirst. Please provide the necessary
funds and authorization to NOAH and The Cat Welfare Society to allow
the relocation of the cats to the Marchig Trust Sanctuary in Hadera.

Sincerely,
Name
Address
email

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UPDATE: CATS--ISRAEL
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SOURCE: "Noah"
Federation of Animal Protection Organizations in Israel
10/08/05

Hundreds of stray cats will be left without any source of food and water after the disengagement in Gaza, their fate – a slow cruel death from starvation.
"Noah" – the Federation of Animal Protection Organizations in Israel is active to save these animals' lives.

"Noah" proposes the following solution: We are trying to activate a plan whereby the cats in the territories will be caught, checked by vets, spayed or neutered and transferred to the various animal protection organizations. "The Cat Welfare Society of Israel", which is under the "Noah" umbrella, is willing to receive all the strays and give them veterinary treatment. They have an area of 5 dunam which can be prepared for this purpose.

In order to implement this solution we need a minimal budget for preparing the enclosure, that is why we need urgent donations.

We have appealed for funding from different sources both private, government, and foreign organizations. So far we achieved only a quarter of the funding we hoped for. We have not abandoned hope that the Israeli government will provide at least part of the funds, So far nothing is certain.

Organizations willing to help us by donating, please contact us
by E-mail:
uri_jaffe@tzora.co.il
or tel: 972-50-2126626
"Noah" organization, Bank account: 255126 BANK HAPOALIM branch 504. TA.

Kind Regards,

Shelly Gluzman
Chairperson of "Noah".
"Noah"- Federation of Animal Protection Organizations in Israel
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UPDATE: ANIMALS & DISENGAGEMENT--ISRAEL
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Fate of animals in territories: update
SOURCE: CHAI, chai_us@cox.net.
ISRAEL: FATE OF THE ANIMALS IN THE TERRITORIES DUE TO DISENGAGEMENT

Today, Israel’s Veterinary Services hosted a meeting attended by various animal charities in Israel and by representatives of the Environment and Agriculture Ministries and the Prime Minister’s Office, to discuss whether and how the various animal protection organizations in Israel can participate in assisting with any animals who may be left behind as settlers evacuate the territories.

The SPCA in Israel had offered 4 cars and its staff to transport any animals left behind by evacuating settlers to shelters. Concern for Helping Animals in Israel (CHAI), www.chai-online.org, had offered its mobile spay/neuter clinic with 30 cages and 20 traps and staff. Other animal organizations requested funding to rent cars, or offer assistance of another kind, though given the very small number of animals it is currently known are at risk and the resources already available, this seemed unnecessary.

Representatives of the SPCA in Israel and CHAI’s sister charity in Israel, Hakol Chai, reported seeing only about 20 cats in Ganim and Kadim, the two small northern settlements being evacuated first. The small number of animals requiring assistance was confirmed by the Chief Veterinarian of the Israeli Army. No one knows how many or which animals will be left behind when Gaza is evacuated. The Vet Services representative responsible for dealing with the issue of the animals in the territories, Dganit Ben-Dov, DVM, suggested that animal groups with no specific plans come up with plans for what they would like to do, and then write to the various ministries, outlining what funds they require. Government funds were provided to assist the evacuating settlers and the issue was raised that government funds should also be made available to provide for any animals left behind.

CHAI wrote to the Ministers of the Environment, Agriculture, Finance, and to the Prime Minister, requesting that the government provide funds and means to the Veterinary Services official responsible for dealing with this issue to reimburse animal charities for any expenses they incur, as long as the activities and expenses are legitimate, and as long as reimbursement is made against valid receipts. CHAI’s letter acknowledged the fact that the number of animals expected to be left behind in the northern West Bank settlements of Ganim and Kadim upon evacuation is very small, and the number of animals who may be left behind in the Gaza is still unknown.
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Cat welfare group starts rounding up West Bank strays
Ha'aretz (registration), Israel - Aug 7, 2005
Representatives of the Cat Welfare Society of Israel spent the weekend at the northern ... disengagement plan, in order to feed and save the many cats that have ...

Fighting for the pullout's furriest victims
Jerusalem Post, Israel - Aug 2, 2005
... With disengagement set to begin August 15, Israel's animal rights groups are feverishly trying to save an estimated 600 cats and countless other animals ...

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Cat Welfare Society of Israel

Concern for Helping Animals in Israel