A Wildly Different Xmas Tail charity vote: Forgotten Felines

By partnering with this charity, we’re not just supporting a cause—we’re joining a movement to give these special cats the second chance they deserve. We believe in the power of being different, and supporting the forgotten, and the ones who need us most. Through our Wildly Different Xmas Tail, we can all help make a real difference to the lives of cats who have yet to experience the warmth of human trust and affection. Together, we can help them find their forever homes and ensure they’re never forgotten again. 

To us we have already won £10,000 by just being nominated, an unbelievably huge amount for our rescue. I started Forgotten Felines back in 2018 and I never ever imagined there would be so many likeminded cat lovers out there who would support us and our special needs cats and kittens. Thank you so much from all the fur babies with FF. – Bev Hibbert, Founder.  

More about Forgotten Felines… in their own words 

“Our story began in 2018 with the aim of rehoming the "unhomeable" cats, and since then we have found forever homes for over 500 of these cats! We believe that every cat deserves a happy and healthy life, and work to provide a lifeline for those who have been forgotten or mistreated.

“We specialise in finding homes for hard to rehome cats, especially those who need extra help. Many of our cats come to us terrified of humans, having often had rough experiences in the past, leaving them scared and alone.  

“Our dedicated fosterers work tirelessly to help these cats overcome their fear and learn to trust again. With patience, love, and gentle care, they create safe and nurturing environments where these cats can slowly begin to open up and be themselves.  

“With time, many of these cats become loving animals who adore human affection and are given a second chance at the life they deserve.” 

How your vote could help Forgotten Felines 

“As a small rescue with a huge following, we are mostly funded by our supporters. This year has been particularly difficult for us and a monthly vet bill over £15,000 in the month of August meant we had to close our doors to admissions temporarily. We are now back open and trickling in our special needs cats as promised. All our fundraising goes on food, litter, but mostly vet bills.  

“The donation of £50,000 would enable us to help more special need cats and open up our doors again fully for admissions. Our average vets bill is £6,000 per month and to sustain this requires a lot of fundraising by my volunteers who work tirelessly. The donation would ensure continuity of care of our palliative cats that are in long term foster. £10,000 would also have an impact and give us a little breathing space from the constant worry of covering vet bills. 

“We are also the only rescue in South Wales that trap, neuter, and rehome. We believe that colony cats should also have a chance of a happy domestic life. They did not ask to be born outside. We bring colonies in, treat them medically, and socialise them. The whole process is a lengthy one and disease and viruses are rife in colonies. We have a 100% success rate in rehoming FIV cats, and we have never put one feral cat back outside, they have all been rehomed.” 

Helping cats like Mariano 

“Marianno was born with deformed back legs and struggled to walk around without dragging his bum and legs which caused him sores and pain. He was only nine months old, so we wanted to try and help him have a better quality of life. However, our vet deemed him a welfare case and wanted to euthanise.  

“We could see that Marianno was a happy cat and if we could find a way of elevating his back end, he would have an amazing quality of life. We tried contacting a well-known vet and send them X-rays. We knew the operation would be around £10,000 but we were all prepared to fundraise until the cows come home! Unfortunately, the vet refused and said Marianno was not suitable for the fused prosthetic due to lack of bone and muscle. We then approached a vet in Germany who said that he could possibly attach a portable prosthetic. This seemed like an option, but we had already tried Mariano with a specialist wheelchair, and he did not accept it.  

“We Googled and found a lovely lady in Liverpool, and she had five double amputee cats. We arranged a visit to meet her and her cats as we needed to be sure this was the kindest option for Marianno. We could see her cats balanced on their front legs and were very mobile, no dragging, just balancing! 

“Fast forward seven weeks and Mariano had both back legs removed. His recovery was unbelievable, he was a fighter! Then things fell into place when an adopter stepped forward to rehome him. 

He now has the most amazing home and is navigating stairs, chairs and has some brothers and sisters to play with!”