Of the 22 people who attended the London-based course for people running animal rescue and shelter organisations, half were from outside the United Kingdom. The Battersea Academy provides grants to shelter representatives around the world, so they can come together for learning, guidance, and support.
As the only New Zealand representative, Mrs Foster had travelled the farthest to be there, using a Battersea grant. Even so, she found a local connection, meeting former Dunedin woman Bettina Vine, who now lives in Portugal and runs rescue The Kitten Connection.
"It was great to meet people from all around the world at the Battersea Academy and to hear about how things work at their rescues and shelters," Mrs Foster said.
"And it was a lovely bonus to meet someone like Bettina, with a connection to home, who is doing great work on the other side of the world."
Visiting the "massive" and well resourced Battersea Cats and Dogs Home in central London was an "incredible experience".
"It is absolutely huge, they have three centres, an office building, a swimming pool for dogs, a building especially for cats, and a new dog centre at Windsor.
"There also have teams of staff working on everything from animal care to animal behaviour — it is very impressive.
"The wonderful thing is, Battersea use their resources to share knowledge in the belief that rescue organisations can achieve more together than we can alone," Mrs Foster said.
During last month’s five-day residential course, Mrs Foster studied a broad range of topics, from managing shelter staff and volunteers, policies, procedures and fundraising, to dealing with "unsocial" cats.
"We looked closely at animal welfare — feeding, diseases, dealing with stress in cats, and also the ins and outs of re-homing.
"We also brainstormed around the growing need to balance pet ownership with protecting native species," she said.
Networking was also an important aspect of the course, with those running shelters around the world keen to share knowledge.
"Others on the course were impressed that Cat Rescue Dunedin have our own volunteer vet and that we do microchipping.
"It was nice to feel that we are doing good work with our very limited resources," she said.
Hearing that Cat Rescue Dunedin was doing well in many areas was a welcome boost in the midst of a tough year for the organisation.
Mrs Foster said the "rising cost of everything" was putting huge pressure on the organisation to make ends meet, and had severely eaten into a small nest egg of funds it had.
"The price of absolutely everything has gone up massively — especially cat food and vet supplies."
Having a volunteer vet and vet nurse working in the on-site clinic one day a week was vital to the organisation, and very much appreciated, she said.
Even so, Cat Rescue Dunedin was facing financial challenges and urgently needed to up its fundraising and social media game.
"We are looking for help with both of those aspects of our work," Mrs Foster said.
At present there were 17 cats at the Caversham intake centre, and a further 88 cats in the care of fosterers — many of them shy and needing special homes.
"And, of course, we are bracing for the onslaught of kitten season, which is starting now.
"Lately, we have taken in quite a few colony cats who are pregnant, quite wild, and difficult to manage with kittens.
"It is a constant juggle to manage it all."
The organisation received good support from the community, including a recent project by Otago Polytechnic engineering students to refurbish some cat cages, which were donated by Vets on St Clair.
"We are very grateful for any support we receive, and it would be wonderful if people could spare us the cost of a cup of coffee each week, or donate some food.
"Also, donations of clothing for our shop in North Rd would also be very welcome."
As its regular cohort of student volunteers tended to depart Dunedin over Christmas, volunteers were also needed over the Christmas holiday season.
For more information, or to donate, visit www.catrescuedunedin.org.nz, or email info@catrescuedunedin.org.nz
