Vacation Ideas to Help Animals
No time to volunteer during your visit?
There are always small things that we need but can’t get in Montenegro, and we would be thrilled to have them brought by travelers with a bit of room to spare! Please see our wish list for shoppers to get some ideas for helpful things to bring.
Even if you have no room to spare but want to help in tangible ways, you could go on a shopping spree while you are in Montenegro. See our shopping spree wish list for other ideas.
No advance planning or extra time is needed to:
Take an awesome picture of cats you meet in your travels. We love to see them and may be able to use them to help with fundraising or education. Who knows, it might even be featured in our annual Kotor Kitties Calendar!
If there are homeless cats around the hotel, guest house, or vacation rental you’re staying in, take note of whether they have water and a regular feeding schedule. If they do, take time to thank the manager or host, and tell them how nice it is to see that they’re cared for! Be sure to follow up in any review you leave, and send us a picture of the feeding station, name of facility, etc. so we can also thank them.
If the cats are not being fed and have no fresh water, talk to the management about how much you enjoy seeing the cats, but how much nicer it would be to see them well cared for! And be sure they understand how simple and cost-effective sterilization is, to keep the situation around their business pleasant.
Be sure to point out the benefits of a well-cared-for group of cats:
- They help control rodents year-round, even when they’re fed.
- They will discourage new cats from moving into the territory.
- They are much healthier once spayed or neutered and treated; problem behaviors like fighting and spraying to mark territory will decrease and usually disappear.
- Tourists are charmed by visiting with healthy cats and dogs; they frequently miss their pets at home, and enjoy cuddling them when they’re healthy and well cared for.
- There will be less build-up of garbage from left-over food left by well-meaning tourists if there is an identified food-water-shelter space.
Remember that your voice − whether you are a tourist or a guest − is very important to the host and you will be listened to!
Post information about spaying and neutering,
and the many benefits for pets, their owners and their neighborhood when an animal is sterilized or neutered. Kotor Kitties wants spay/neuter to become a normal and expected “fact of life” in Montenegro. Kotor Kitties produced a great flyer and infographic you can download here, print, and carry with you to hang in shop windows throughout Montenegro. You can usually find an English speaker in a shop to help with your request. Be sure to take a roll of tape!
Feel free to ask the shops for this. There will be those who refuse, but there will also be those who allow you to do this, and you will feel joy that you did it. The next time you will be more confident and persuasive. If you have a friend in Montenegro, ask them to help you with communication. But even if you don’t, you’ll be surprised at how far you’ll get with a big smile, some pantomime, and the help of google translate!
Spay a Kotor Kitty − anywhere in Montenegro!
If you have the good fortune to make a feline friend during your visit to Montenegro, don’t just feed it! Many vets, not just the ones we use, will let you borrow a carrier and bring the cat to them for a spay or neuter. Don’t forget to ask for an “ear tip” on the kitty!
You’ll want to call ahead for an appointment, and be prepared to pay cash, because most clinics don’t take credit/debit cards. If you send us a picture afterwards, we’ll post “your” special kitty with “Luka’s pals,” in honor of the first Kotor Kitty sterilized by the tourists who founded Kotor Kitties.
Walk and/or brush dogs at a municipal shelter!
A number of municipalities have dog shelters, and with prior arrangement most will allow visitors to walk dogs, brush them, or work on training (if you’re staying in an area for several weeks). These dogs get very little attention, and are typically undersocialized, untrained, and a mess to look at. It’s no wonder that few of them are adopted! Despite their neglect, these dogs adore having visitors and attention.
- Be prepared to take a leash, collar, and brush/comb.
- Most shelters are located out of the city, and will involve a cab ride if you don’t have a car. Alternatively, you could find a local volunteer to ride with.
Municipal shelters and local contacts are listed on our Resources page.
Ideas that require some advance planning:
Distribute flyers for TNR
When a trapping activity is planned for an apartment building or community, you could pass out the flyers explaining what will happen, how it will help, and requesting that the cats not be fed before they are trapped.
Transportation
There is frequent need to transport cats (and dogs), medicines and equipment from area to area. This is usually ad hoc, and not predictable. It could be a cat going to a new home, or taking medicine to a feeder. This is a variable job and one that can be rewarding. Please contact us in advance if you will have a rental car and some flexibility to drive if needed.
Trapping Cats
There is a constant need to trap cats for sterilization, transport them to the vet for surgery, and return them to their “home territory” when they are recovered. Cat traps are held in various locations around Montenegro. Contact us here to find out where you might be of help.
It is not as difficult to trap cats as it might seem from the beginning. You just need to be patient. The traps are safe and non-traumatic for the animal. As soon as the trap is closed, you need to cover it with a sheet or large towel to keep the cat calm. We recommend that you watch YouTube videos by “The Kitten Lady” before you trap cats and see our section on trapping cats here.
Donation Cannisters
There is a small but growing collection of Kotor Kitties donation canisters in shops and restaurants. If you see a spot that is relatively safe (i.e. in a shop, hotel, or restaurant) and that you think will attract people interested in cats, please send us the location and a “contact” name so that we can follow up.