As part of our new drive to support local charities, each week we are highlighting the vital work they do and the difference they make to the lives of people in our communities.

The first Charity Focus concentrates on a cat sanctuary in South Norfolk, their purpose and how they have been impacted by the pandemic.

About Us

Feline Care is a small local independent charity based near East Harling, Norfolk.

We specialise in helping elderly, poorly and problem cats that are less likely to find a home due to their less conventional needs.

We can have up to 150 cats living or staying on site at any one time, many looking to find their forever homes and many more calling Feline Care their home forever. We believe euthanasia should only exist to take away suffering and only when there's no hope of recovery so many cats live out their days at Feline Care, knowing love when they most need it.

Our nearly four-acre cat-safe site has over 60 cats living free, the majority of which will grow to become our friends over time and we hold out hope many of them will one day know a sofa or duvet with people of their own! Loving and understanding homes are always needed.

Our main cattery comprises underfloor heated bedrooms, a couple of larger communal areas for groups of cats, an ICU, two quarantines and an un-heated area for cats who are temporarily staying with as and can’t afford to lose their winter coat condition. This is primarily used for our TNR scheme, neutering farm and feral cats to stop over-population of cats in both rural and industrial environments. Neutering is the single biggest way to reduce suffering and increase life span and quality for any and every cat.


Feline Care is funded by members of the public, our kind supporters and donors, who care about the cats that society has given up on.

There are many ways you and your family can help support Feline Care Cats, whether it’s donating unwanted items for our charity shop, Pop Up Shop or eBay shop, volunteering at events, joining our monthly lottery, having one of our collection tins in your shop or sharing our posts on Facebook. Everything helps raise awareness for Feline Care and what we do.

Please email felinecaresells@gmail.com for more information on how to help.


Impact of Covid-19

As a small charity we only had two shops pre-Covid, sadly, we lost our largest shop that was based in Diss in May 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our Attleborough shop was also shut for 8 months until we re opened with a click and collect service which proved very popular with our customers. We have now returned to normal trade and are open Monday – Saturday 9am - 5pm.

Covid-19 has also stopped us having our open days at the sanctuary. These are fun filled days with music, stalls, tombola, food and cat cuddles with some of our braver feral residents.

It wasn’t only our shops that are affected by COVID-19 our sanctuary is run mainly by volunteers, pre-Covid we had teams of amazing volunteers that were coming in to clean out the cats bedrooms. During COVID, to keep everyone as safe as possible we had to dramatically reduce the amount of people on site, teams of four or five people were reduced to teams of two, who worked in shifts, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

Lockdowns also meant ever changing policies and processes, with doorstep adoptions becoming part of our routine. Many adopters took on cats without even meeting them first!

An unexpected bonus of the first lockdown was that adoptions sky rocketed, though sadly cat breeding also rose as kitten prices rose and vets were advised to stop neutering for a short period by the BVA. The knock on effect has been high numbers of cats with behavioural problems such as 'single kitten aggression' and toileting issues and lots more strays expected in the coming months/years.

Donations can be accepted now and dropped off at the Sanctuary in East Harling on Wednesday, Friday or Sundays between 10am - 2pm. Please visit our website to see what we can/can’t accept, www.furball.org.uk or follow our shop page on Facebook, Feline Care Charity Shop.

Thank you to everyone who has and continues to support us through this very difficult time, we couldn’t do it without you.

Adopt a cat

If you're thinking about adopting please visit our website or complete our Adoption Application form here: https://forms.gle/hJ7pUP2cFWirjA7S9

Good homes are always needed, as are special people who are willing to take on our very special pussy cats. Taking on a cat who has been through past trauma or never known a proper home is an immensely rewarding experience for the right person.

Once we receive your application we go through it to match against the cats in our care who are ready for new homes. Sadly some of our cats can wait months for that perfect person but the right home is always worth waiting for! Plus for every cat that finds their sofa, we have room to help another lost soul.

If you know anyone looking to adopt a cat, please encourage them to rescue so they can save lives!

If you would like to suggest a charity for us to feature, contact sarah.ravencroft@archant.co.uk.