We have our usual three items plus lagniappe today. Read on:
First, click below to see a recent Guardian story about how a mean local council tried to ban this British woman from feeding feral cats, and how the neighbors (and a charity) stepped up to help her.
An excerpt:
“Two ladies from York have just been in,” said Collette Boler at the till of her small cafe in Thurnscoe, near Barnsley. Her voice began to choke up.
“They came in with a box of chocolates and a card, a box of cat food, a bag of cat biscuits and just said ‘carry on doing what you’re doing, you’re absolutely fabulous’. And a man’s just given me a tenner for cat food. It’s been incredible.”
The grandmother of seven has become an unlikely icon for cat lovers everywhere after finding herself banned from feeding a colony of feral felines she has looked after for 20 years.
She had been visiting them twice a day, including Christmas Day, even spending her own money on vet bills and having some neutered, which she admitted cost “a fortune”.
But two weeks ago Boler – affectionately known as the “crazy cat lady” – was subject to what some of her supporters see as a heavy-handed and overzealous ban, after a neighbouring business complained to the council over cat faeces on its premises.
Now if Boler continues to feed the cats, she will be issued with a community protection notice – a type of antisocial behaviour order – which could result in a fine of up to £2,500.
But she has been overwhelmed with support after others stepped in to help, including neighbours, strangers and a national cat charity.
. . .The Cat Action Trust 1977 has stepped in by writing to Barnsley council to urge it to repeal Boler’s b
“Feeders like Collette actually play a really important role,” said Alice Ostapjuk-Wise, a volunteer for the national charity which advocates for the “invisible issue” of cats that have never had contact with humans. “[Feeders] can alert us when a new cat arrives that might not be neutered.” The charity carries out neutering to control their numbers.
The Cat Action Trust 1977 has collected food for the Barnsley cats, which are frightened of humans and mostly stay out of sight, though the council has not made clear whether it too will face consequences for feeding them.
Ostapjuk-Wise said: “We just want to do what we can because some councils actually choose to exterminate feral cat colonies, and that’s the last thing we want.
“The path they seem to be taking so far appears to be very inhumane, basically starving the cats. That’s not going to solve the problem.”
. . .Barnsley council did not respond to a request for comment but previously told local media it recognised Boler’s “good intentions” but the community protection warning was “an early step to prevent the situation from getting worse”.
“We always aim to protect public health and safety, and we encourage anyone concerned about stray animals to work with recognised animal welfare organisations, so support can be provided safely.”
Boler said she had “never expected” so much attention. “I just wish they’d let me feed my cats,” she said. “That’s all I want. That’s all I’ve ever wanted.”
The Barnsley council sucks. Just because they don’t like feral cat feces, they’re starving the cats to death. There is a change.org petition with nearly 4,000 signatures that you can sign, and I just signed it. Please join me; it costs you nothing and may help save the Barnsley cats from the meanies.
And here’s a FB video with an interview of Boler, who seems very nice.
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This is a wonderful 14-minute video of the cats of Istanbul and how the locals care for them. I love that city–not just for the fact that it harbors “strays” who are effectively pets, but also because it’s beautiful and has lots of attractions.
This is really what it’s like to be in Istanbul. If you want a good commercial movie about Istanbul’s cats, do watch the movie “Kedi” (the Turkis words for cats), made in 2016. It has a 98% critics’ rating rating on Rotten Tomatoes, a rating that only the very best movies get.
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The World’s Best Cat Litter site answers a recurring question among cat owners:
There are a variety of answers. Some condensed answers:
It’s in their nature
Kneading is an instinctual trait that begins in kittenhood. When kittens are feeding from their mother, they push on her mammary glands with their paws to help stimulate milk flow. For the mother, this releases oxytocin, also known as the bonding hormone.
You might notice your cat dribbling a little when they are kneading. This is natural too! Some cats go into “milking mode” even though they are older and fully weaned. They just get in the zone and subconsciously expect the milk that would have come from their mother.
They’re claiming their territory
Did you know that cats have scent glands in their paw pads? Scent glands are a way for cats (and other animals) to mark their territory, a trait that is especially important in the wild.
Cats tend to make biscuits on their favorite human, other pets in the home, and their favorite blankets. As a cat kneads, they release their scent to mark something as theirs. So if your cat has a habit of kneading on your stomach, congratulations! You are officially their property.
They’re making their bed
In the wild, felines knead tall grass to create a comfortable space for sleeping.
At home, your cat might like to make biscuits on your blankets, clothes, or even your body. This just means they are trying to get cozy and snuggly for a long cat nap.
They love you!
Kneading is typically a behavior that happens when a cat feels happy and secure, but they aren’t necessarily expecting milk from the process.
They’re going into heat
Female, unspayed cats are known to knead their paws before “estrus,” or going into heat. The act of kneading is a sign to male cats that the feline wants and is able to mate.
There’s further information about whether you should prevent them from kneading (no!), and advice to trim their nails so they don’t do damage when they make biscuits.
Or you can watch this explanatory video:
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Lagniappe: An appropriate tweet showing a street sign in Istanbul asking people to be attentive for road cats:
Street Cat Sign in Istanbul pic.twitter.com/ecxZeMny17
— DaVinci (@BiancoDavinci) March 18, 2026
. . . and an educational FB meme from Debra:
h/t: Matthew, Ginger K.
Signed the petition. Found out additional reasons cats make biscuits! Have been to Istanbul once briefly, the cats were one of the great things about this remarkable city.
I signed petition and sent around to some cat lovers.
I loved the cats of Istanbul. So nice to see they are well taken care of. I went to a wedding in Istanbul and the cats really helped welcome the guests. It truly added a wonderful element to the wedding.
Thanks for those video tips. I love cats, and will look up the Kedi movie!
[IIRC, my first ever comment on Caturday Felids]
I am not a cat person, nor a dog person for that matter. But I am somewhat of a bird person, and a fed cat is much less a threat to birds than a hungry cat, feral or otherwise. I doubt there are useful stats, but it’s plausible that underfed domestic cats kill more birds than feral cats do. So IMO Collette is on the right side of this.
And regarding urban shit, are feral cats really the big problem? In my limited experience I’ve had no encounters with catshit, but many with dogshit. And speaking of which, if Collette is willing to embrace her appellation as “crazy cat lady”, how about the Council embrace “officious dogshit”?
Wonderful Caturday, as usual! I did sign the petition and contribute because I’m also a “Crazy Cat Lady.” I hope the response to the petition plus the input from the locals proves too much for the neighboring business and the Council.
Louis Camuti’s “All My Patients Are Under the Bed” is a wonderful book–I’ve read it several times. Camuti had an exceptional way of dealing with his patients and their staff. Most of his stories are humorous, though there are also sad ones.
Anyone interested in the relationships between people and animals should see “Kedi.” My immediate impression when I saw the video you posted a day or two ago was that it must have come from Istanbul. It is the one where a man and a cat sitting on a vegetable stand were having a discussion about something. Like some of my cats, that one clearly knew the concept behind a conversation/argument.
I just signed the petition. That business should be boycotted.
I’ve been to Antalya and Ankara in Turkey, and I don’t remember seeing that many cats. I have not been to Istanbul, so maybe the cat lovers all congregate there. Great videos, though. Thanks for sharing all the feline stuff for all of us cat staff members.
I must take issue with the FixNation tweet’s assertion: “Before his work in promoting cats as pets they were seen as nuisance or working animals only.”
Don’t believe it! History remembers the anonymous monk’s Pangur Bán, Christopher Smart’s Jeoffry, Samuel Johnson’s Hodge, Edward Lear’s Foss — cats have been beloved companions to the discerning for centuries.
I want to read Dr. Camuti’s book.
Cat poop a problem? Dogs are worse—or they were until poop laws came into effect. In Cambridge (Massachusetts) when I was in grad school, people would walk their beloved poopers up and down Kirkland Street. In winter, dog poop would freeze into the snow along the sidewalk, sometimes forming sedimentary layers: snow, poop, snow, more poop, etc. In spring, well, you know what happened.
It’s too bad the cat lady and the business owner couldn’t reach an accommodation.
Happy Caturday to all!
What an enjoyable Caturday. I was feeling glum but after reading the interesting items I feel bright and entertained. Thank you Jerry
We adopted a kitten from a feral cat. We still have it, but it is not a kitten anymore. Eventually, the mother died of natural causes. Very sad. We are feeding feral cats right now (or at least I think so).