David Ruffley MP has this week praised the hard work of volunteers at Bury's Stray Cat Fund and highlighted the importance of getting domestic cats neutered.

At this time of year 'kitten season' sees animal sanctuaries, such as Bury's Stray Cat Fund, full to capacity.

As with animal homes across the country, Bury's Stray Cat Fund finds it hard to find homes for cats at this time of year due to the combination of an influx of new animals and many families being away on their annual holiday.

David Ruffley is a member of Bury's Stray Cat Fund and sponsor of 'Nelson' who turns 9 years old this year. Nelson came to the Fund as a stray, he only has one eye, suffers from arthritis in his hind legs and requires injections every six weeks. Nelson is one of a number of cats in foster homes with their upkeep funded by the Stray Cat Fund.

A Spokesperson from Bury's Stray Cat Fund said:

'We are very grateful to Mr Ruffley for highlighting this important issue. Too many people think that it is still OK to let their cat have 'just one' litter of kittens, but in fact they are helping to perpetuate the vast overpopulation of cats in this country which leads to approximately 1,000 healthy cats and kittens being put to sleep every day. While we never have a healthy animal put down, people who let their cats breed use up the homes we could draw on to place unwanted cats already in our care, preventing us rescuing more cats and kittens which desperately need our help.'

David said:

'Bury's Stray Cat Fund, and other animal homes, find themselves full to capacity at this time of year due to 'kitten season'. A combination of an influx of new animals and many families being away on holiday make this a testing time for the hard working volunteers at Bury's Stray Cat Fund.

'I would urge local residents to get your pets neutered. This is a relatively simple operation and can make all the difference to the quality of life your cat enjoys.

'A neutered cat is less susceptible to some illnesses and ailments in later life. In particular, unneutered male cats can be great wanderers and fighters which can lead to injury and infected wounds. An unneutered female cat can have three pregnancies a year and five or six kittens per litter- that is a huge number of animals to find homes for. It is best to get your pet neutered as early as possible- the RSPCA suggest doing so at between four and five months old.

'Bury's Stray Cat Fund do a fantastic job finding new homes for unwanted animals and I am delighted to be able to support the work they do.'