Heart of Egypt Cat Care

13/04/2025

A new visitor, healthy but hungry and I suspect although she is very young she may be pregnant. Watching her carefully to ensure that if she is, she will have enough to eat and not be struggling to scavenge from the community bins.

I wish it was possible to TNR them all, but even if that were possible we still get people moving into the area who don't want to neuter their pets, and sure enough that means more kittens 🥲

05/02/2025

Each city in Egypt has a population of street cats. Here's a short visual story about Cairo cats.

In many ways, the stray cats of Cairo mirror Egypt’s rapidly growing human population, resilient, adaptable, and constantly maneuvering through an ever-expanding metropolis.

26/01/2025

I have not posted much recently, Winter has been concentrated on caring for several cats that were sick and an orphaned kitten that followed my cats and other street cats to my courtyard.
The kitten is temporarily living with me, until he is large enough to be safe in street life and the nights are warmer, then he will rejoin the street cat community.

Here are some of the many larger cats who scavenge in the big community bins but also get a little food assistance from me, and I check their eyes and for any other wounds or infections that need attention.

As you can see, these are strong and healthy cats. The only problem with this is that any new kittens also scavenging have to stand back while these big ones eat, and hope something will be left for them.
This is why I try to pass by the three main bins twice a day at different times, to try to see the kittens when the big cats aren't around and ensure they get the food they need.

26/01/2025

Taking care of these two scavenging at the bins. Unfortunately unable to save one eye of the smaller kitten.

Sometimes kittens are hidden by mother cat until they are old enough to venture into the street, and by then if there has been an eye infection too much damage may already be done for any medication to help. Those kittens I find early get eye drops and their eyes cleaned daily, as soon as they get to know me and allow me to get close enough to help them.

These two don't seem to have a mother now, I have been watching them for about a week and gradually they get used to me as I bring food. Little one is a bit thin but now it is brave enough to come to me to eat when the bigger cats aren't around I hope it will gain weight and strength soon.

I wish I could do more for them and take them off the streets, as cars and bikes often don't see a kitten, small cat or puppy. Two kittens in my street were killed by cars or bikes this Winter. Sadly cannot protect them all.

01/11/2024

The page has been quiet in recent months due to health challenges, but that does not mean the daily work of caring for street cats stopped. I will post updates soon and introduce you to some of the cats recently and currently in care.

01/11/2024

Welcoming in November, and adding December as many are already planning for end of year. Updates on 2025 calendars soon...

17/08/2024

Although I had many neutered over the years, there are still new kittens in the neighbourhood.
I check this mum and babies every day, fortunately no eye infections and mum cat is taking good care of them.
They stay under bushes during the heat of the day and enjoy the cool of the tiles outside this home when the sun isn't directly on them.

17/06/2024

New arrival this morning, apparently dumped and struggling to find food in the street.
Dirty and thin, and won't let me touch him.

Hopefully after some food and water he will feel safe and I can clean him or he will clean himself. He was clearly a beauty before suffering in the street.

03/06/2024

Special request:
Please share the Heart of Egypt page or any posts from it if you can.

May was a challenging month and although I was away for surgery the street cats continued to come for water and food, with a kind neighbour looking after them during this time. I am happy to be back and see them doing well.

I continue to care for them every day of course, but following surgery trip my personal funds have less to spare for their feeding, and I was still hoping to neuter several more cats in the second half of this year.
That's why your sharing of the page or posts matters, as it may bring even a little support from others who wish to make life better for these Egyptian street cats.

Thanks for following and continuing to care.

19/05/2024

I've been offline for a while due to eye surgery. I just wanted to reassure everyone that the cats who visit regularly are being well cared for in my absence.
I hope to be back home this week and will do update photos then, so you can see how the courtyard crew are doing.

Photo: A tale of Egyptian cats, published in 1890, London.

23/03/2024

Happy to report I made my first sale of products featuring my photos, all to benefit the street cats, on RedBubble.
Someone in Austria bought a Sekhmet pillow.

It is a perfect circle that my photo of an ancient Egyptian goddess with lioness features is now helping to feed Egyptian street cats.

Small profits on each product sold, but every $ or € helps provide food and medical care for the cats.

More designs available at https://www.redbubble.com/people/egyptoasislove/shop

16/03/2024

Wherever I walk there are cats in need of a little assistance.

Local shopping area this morning a tiny kitten ran towards me mewing loudly. As soon as I approached it the mother cat appeared, hoping for some food. While I patted the mum cat, her kitten ran under a parked car. My cat immediately left me to retrieve her kitten.

My container of dry food was already empty and the pet shop is not open until afternoon, so I got some cheese from the supermarket and returned to give it to them.

While these two were eating there was more kitten crying from inside the shopping mall. Mum cat ran inside with a piece of cheese and I followed to see two more of her kittens, neither as adventurous as this little one. I put out some cheese for them to share and left them to it.

12/03/2024

How neutering transforms the life of a street cat.
This cat had multiple litters of kittens over several years until we were at last able to catch her between pregnancies.

My adopted nearly blind cat Fullah was a kitten of this cat, but was abandoned in the street when her eyes became infected. She was fortunate I found her and she wasn't hit by a car or bike.
We knew then that getting this cat neutered should be a priority, she should not be struggling more with kittens.

For more than a year the mother cat hissed at Fullah whenever she visited the courtyard, and she was often aggressive with other cats that approached her and also sometimes aggressive with humans.

After my neighbour paid for neutering and we caught her, this previously thin, worn out mum cat has become calm, healthy and even affectionate with the other cats, both the street cats that visit and my adopted street cats, seen in these photos.

Aside from ending her constant struggle with pregnancy and care of new kittens, neutering has given her a gentle personality and better social interaction with other cats and with humans.

Seeing her like this brings tears of happiness to my eyes.

03/03/2024

Although I can't ensure a great life for every street cat, I try to assist all those that I can. Even if this is only with medical help, patching them up after bin scavenging injuries, or giving them some assistance food, I will give what is possible.

Ever rising costs and the neverending number of cats mean every donation is deeply appreciated. This old boy likely will never have a home, but today was an easier day for him as he got some food given to him instead of having to scavenge for hours for it among plastic bags and broken glass.

That's thanks to a very generous donation from Belinda Landsberry who also donated last year. Her donation will again provide assist feeding for some time for multiple cats who visit a nearby community bin, and also neutering for one cat.

It will change the lives of these cats, and if they could speak they would send a big THANK YOU to Belinda. I add my own "Thank you" from the heart, for the relief this brings me in knowing I can continue to care for them thanks to this donation.

24/02/2024

This street kitten is shy and didn't keep still for photos, but let me pat and check it is healthy. Every week I meet new kittens in the streets and although they are sweet I wish there were less of them.

The only way to stop the struggle for many of the street cats and decrease the number of kittens is TNR (trap, neuter, release).

For that we need funds. Please share this post if you can. Donation numbers are low and the cats and I are thankful for every $ that gives them a healthy start in life through assisted feeding and medical care, and can help fund neutering and decrease the numbers of kittens.

09/02/2024

A few locals enjoying the late afternoon near one of the community bins. They know that after dark when people have eaten there will likely be meal remainders added to the bin, so they will stay close to get first chance at any food. These cats get a little dry food from me at least three times a week, more often if I see any of them looking thin.

28/01/2024

Abandoned ginger kitten is doing well. He is healthy and eats as much as an adult cat 🙀 He is extremely affectionate, and now housetrained. Adventurous and curious about everything, he is quickly learning to socialise with my cats.

He has some outside time daily to explore the garden and get to know the street cats.
After two months, when he is big enough to be seen by drivers of cars and riders of bikes, I will let him begin to stay outside a few hours each day without me. He needs to then learn to scavenge with the big cats, unless someone can give him a permanent home.

28/01/2024

Sometimes I really dislike humans. It seems someone dumped this injured cat or it has run away from mistreatment 😿

It came to the courtyard probably following the other street cats, it has probably been trying to scavenge but has become hungry enough to look beyond the rubbish in the community bins. With the injured paw it probably struggles to jump up and into the bins.

Its fur has started to become matted, and it mostly just looks miserable and disoriented. It was sharing the water bowls I keep filled for the street cats and also accepted some food, but at first it wouldn't come to me or let me touch it to check for other injuries.

After watching me pat and talk to the other cats it soon understood I would not hurt it and let me pat it a little. Still it is frightened, possibly abused and so is wary of humans.

I'll check on it again later today and see if it will let me examine the leg and paw. Sometimes a cat gets a paw cut on glass or tins in the rubbish and I can treat the wound, hopefully it isn't a car, human or dog inflicted injury that I can't fix.

The street cats are wary of it and their hissing makes it nervous, but it doesn't trust me enough to come into the apartment to have some rest and comfort.
I also want to give it a bath, but a lot more trust is needed before it will let that happen. I'm hoping after some food it will try to clean itself.

I know times are tough, I know many are struggling, but I despair when I see what has clearly been someone's pet left to struggle in the street.