The Cat Protection Society of Victoria

About the shelter

As one of Australia’s largest cat welfare organisations, Cat Protection Society of Victoria (CPS) has been promoting and improving the welfare and lives of domestic cats since its establishment in 1947. Since undergoing a major renovation in 1989, the society has had improvements to its physical shelter and added its own veterinary clinic on the premises.

The organisation has been active in promoting its campaigns on recognising domestic cats as part of the wider community since 1989. CPS was previously involved in the Victorian Government’s very effective “Who’s for Cats” campaign in 2007, which mainly discouraged people from feeding strays unless they are desexed. It is currently involved in the Victorian Government’s Domestic Animals Act, particularly in legislation pertaining to these creatures.

CPS welcomes assistance from all cat lovers, as the work that they do can get overwhelming at times without the support of volunteers, foster carers, and donations. The organisation has recently restructured its volunteering program which has opened more opportunities for people to get involved in a variety of ways. All volunteers are required to firstly attend information sessions, then prospective volunteers are interviewed by the volunteer coordinator.

The CPS has hundreds of cats and kittens available for adoption on their premises. They regularly feature profiles of these adoptable animals on their Facebook account and website. Adopting is a fairly straightforward process. However, the organisation does ask that potential adopters allot a few hours of their day to the process. All adoption fees include microchipping, desexing, up-to-date vaccinations, deworming, defleaing, a cat carrier box, and health cover for two weeks.

The CPS is also keen on foster carers, particularly to look after very young or ill kittens, or adult cats with special needs. In mid-2018, the shelter changed its adoption policy, allowing aged care facilities and its residents to adopt its own “senior citizens” (cats older than five years old). This policy has been welcomed by both parties with the CPS finding forever homes for their senior cats, and aged care facility residents receiving the benefits of pet ownership. For facilities that are unable to adopt, CPS now also offers a community program involving monthly cat visitations to partner facilities.

Mission

• Every day of every week, we care about cats – is the motto of the Cat Protection Society of Victoria.
• It champions the welfare and population management of cats, with a mission to find suitable homes for stray, surrendered, and impounded cats and kittens in the State of Victoria.

How you can help

The Cat Protection Society of Victoria welcomes helps from cat and animal lovers alike! Visit their Get Involved page to find out the different ways to help. The organisation is very active in the community, holding and joining local events to promote their cause. You too can join in promoting CPS by downloading their Facebook Friendly banner or sending them an email to receive a poster that you can put up on a community organisation notice board.