Testimonials

I am sending you this email regarding the adoption of my cat Bootsie from The NZ Cat Foundation in April 2021.

I had been on quite a journey to find my perfect fur baby mainly for my own personal reasons and for our potential cat to feel welcome and settled in their new environment permanently.

On my search, I came across The NZ Cat Foundation which led me to view all the Profiles of those cats who had been recently Adopted and was blown away by all the beautiful cats that had found their forever homes which was their happy beginnings for sure but I was on a quest to find my own gorgeous cat and I did and was so thrilled when I selected her profile and it was certainly meant to be! I was looking for a certain breed of cat initially, however, when I viewed Bootsies Profile, everything changed Instantly!!!

I read her profile which was one of sadness as the previous owner who was an elderly resident from a retirement village who was unable to keep her unfortunately and was brought to The NZ Cat Foundation earlier this year and spent  a few months residing therein the Sanctuary where Bootsie was extremely well cared for and looked very healthy by all the staff and volunteers and the local community where the Sanctuary is located in a very peaceful and magnificent setting for All the Cats in their Care!!

I have found Anne, Michael, and Toni, who is in charge of all the adoptions to be both professional and always willing to offer their advice and support with my post enquiries about my new status as cat mum! which I am always very appreciative of their ongoing support or helping them out when I am able to at times as they all have so much more experience and knowledge of Bootsie and her background, personality and habits as the staff have known her for a much longer time and I am able to correlate perfectly with how she responds here at home which is lovely to have this personal touch rather than ponder as the staff do not abandon their adopters as some animal welfare organisations do and I am very happy to say this and Thank you!

I would Highly Recommend The NZ Cat Foundation to anyone who is considering or wanting to Adopt a Cat into their family or current living situation.

Bootsie has given me a new lease of life and companionship and many benefits and she is well and truly settled and Queen of her yard and ultra spoilt and content!

I do send updated photos at times of her progress which they are happy to receive which is cool! I would like to continue my support in the present and future.

Thank you, Warm and Kind Regards,
Jill

Our family are huge supporters of this charity and donate as regularly as possible. 

It has been an incredible way to teach our 3 year old daughter about giving back. Because we are able to go there an physically donate Isla is able to see and understand the positive impact of her generosity. She has attachments to the rescue cats there and understand they are the ‘kitties who don’t have lovely homes like our cat’. Now because she has this understanding she often instigates the donations suggesting we buy extra cat food at the supermarket or she may have a blanket she wants to take up to keep the kitties warm.

Unlike many other rescue centers NZCF allows a hands on approach which really allowed us to teach our daughter a very valuable lesson that I believe is often missed in children these days.

Also having someone like Anne is incredible. It is not often you can have such ease of contact with someone who heads a charity like this. Her genuine love and passion for these animals is something to aspire to and something our community could really learn from. Each and every dollar and donation goes to the animals and their well-being, which makes you want to help even more.

I truly believe this a rare place that needs to be cherished in our community and supported as much as possible.
Sarah 

Where would we be if it weren’t for Anne and her amazing team at The NZ Cat Foundation?  I recently had to urgently find homes for 2 cats when their elderly human mumma was put into dementia care without warning and during a COVID Lockdown Level 4!  Unlike any of the other shelters we contacted, Anne responded almost immediately and offered refuge and care for these 2 poor kitties who urgently had to be rehomed.   At an incredibly stressful time, this whanau had one less thing to worry about thanks to Anne – they could concentrate on integrating their dear mother into care.

Annes team were all lovely and so professional, as was the environment for the cats themselves. 

I wholeheartedly recommend Anne and The NZ Cat Foundation as an essential service within our community.  Keep up the amazing mahi.

With utmost respect and gratitude
Ruth

I have been a volunteer at the cat sanctuary for nearly 2 years and during that time I have meet so many people who have the same enthusiasm and initiative as myself.  The cat sanctuary serves a very much needed community service, not only for the cats but for people like me who give time and love to such a needy cause.

My husband and I moved into a retirement village at the beginning of the year and I soon found I had a lot of spare time on my hands and energy which I can channel into this great cat community.  If you asked any of us volunteers why do we do this the answer would be “it is our happy place helping the helpless”.

Some volunteers have mental health issues, physical disabilities and stress sufferers but look forward to their contribution to this community of cats and working alongside likeminded people.
Heather

I have been volunteering at the cat rescue centre in Huapai for around 2 and a half years, as soon as I got there the first day I realised it was my “happy” place, the other volunteers are a wonderful like-minded group of people who are all there for the sole purpose of helping the cats in every way possible.

We have around 200 cats who through no fault of their own have ended up there and want nothing more than to be given a chance to be fed, patted and loved, from the wary, timid, shy, I love them all and like nothing better than getting to know them and watching them realise they are now safe and go from hiding in a corner to sitting beside me having cuddles, this gives me the most satisfaction of all, and although some of the cats are still too scared to be near I know they love the sound of my voice from a distance and that they will no longer have to miss a meal, they each have their “friends” and even though they are wary of human contact they all have their own buddy who they snuggle up with.

However bad a day I have had I turn up and instantly feel better as I get a loving hug from a cat who wants nothing more from me than a soft touch.

I also work for Spectrum Care Foundation where I manage a residential house for people with multiple physical and Intellectual disabilities, who now also volunteer with the cats, this is now one of their regular activities that they themselves have asked to do, the ladies top up biscuit and water bowls and clean out the litter trays.

This gives the people I support purpose it has meaning for them, their contribution makes them feel valued, often their mental health is not so good when they spend time at the sanctuary I can quite literally see the change in them, they get peace from sitting quietly with the cats giving something intangible to an animal who needs them, these cats reduce their stress and anxiety and have intrinsically become therapy cats which we now use as important sessions to balance their lives.

I started at the rescue centre to help the beautiful cats in need of care and have found along the way that they have helped me more, they have taught me more, and at times have given me the strength to get through another week, their beauty, resilience and unconditional love have certainly rescued me.
Ginny

I am writing to offer my support to Anne Batley and the wonderful foundation she has created. There are many many cats who need this wonderful sanctuary to live their lives where they can be safe, fed and looked after. For many the alternative just doesn't bear thinking about, considering it is not their fault they are in this situation. It is simply inhumane not to provide support.

This Foundation is also particularly special to my family and I. I have donated money for food in the past and my granddaughter and daughter have been to the sanctuary a number of times with items they have collected by promoting the foundation on their neighbourhood page and speaking to friends and family. this teaches my granddaughter the value of giving back, thinking of others who are less fortunate and to be kind. All positive values that society needs more of.

I am the owner of an Early Childhood Centre and will be speaking about the NZCF to the children and their families through our newsletters and in person when we are able to return after lockdown to raise our communities awareness to generate some more goodwill and hopefully some assistance.
Karyn

We would like to thank sincerely Anne and her awesome team for helping with kittens over the years at Carriages Cafe in Kumeu. All of them got desexed, vet checks, operations etc and well looked after which we will be forever grateful for. Without her help I wouldn't have been able to take care of so many of them. She is doing such a great job and well known in the community. Hearty thanks.
Carriages Cafe

I would just like to say we where very impressed with Michael and the foundation. On the drive in we where both bracing ourselves for a lot of sad, caged and frightened animals. The reality was a beautiful cat sanctuary with a whole lot of very happy kitty. And a team of people who obviously put a lot of time and effort into there work.
Josh

A massive shout out to The NZ Cat Foundation, I was desperate to re-home my mum's cat as she has become unwell and can no longer live at home (my mum not the cat), I tried everywhere, I contacted Anne and she immediately said she could offer Piper a place at her sanctuary in Kumeu and would try and re-home her but that if that wasn’t possible she would live out her life at the sanctuary. On dropping Piper off I was totally blown away by the special place Anne has for all the beautiful kitty cats she has there, we at the salon are all cat owners and lovers and encourage you to help this amazing animal shelter out by either giving a few dollars to the givealittle page https://givealittle.co.nz/org/straycats or more importantly giving your time to help them as they sure need it! Thank you Anne from Carmen & Piper xxx
Carmen & Piper

"I have been there and seen all the work done at the sanctuary. These cats are lucky and so loved."
Debbie

"It is the best. I feel privileged to have had them let me adopt a wonderful cat. I couldn’t be any happier."
Robyn

"Their love and care of the cats is manifest when we went to the sanctuary. There are always people who are there to show you around, they are never pushy. Great folks! I highly recommend them. You can see their respect for lives - be it people or animals - the way they structure everything speaks volume of the thought they had invested in the Cat Sanctuary. I just love the work they do. May God bless abundantly them."
Dolly

"I visited you today and I was just so blown away with what you are doing and how many lovely animals you have there. The love and compassion you are showing out there and the setup is amazing. I hope to return shortly to hopefully take one or two of these precious animals to our home. Blown away."
Amanda

"Amazing team of people dedicated to giving animals their deserving home."
Shannon 

"It gets to the point of caring for unwanted cats and finding them for ever homes to live."
Adrienne

"This group do amazing work to give kitties a home and if that's not possible then give them security for the rest of their life."
Terri