CavyRescue was started ‘by accident’ in 1998 by us – husband and wife team Stella and Jason Hulott - when people we came in to contact with in everyday life saw how devoted we were to our six pet guinea pigs and cat.

Word spread about us and people started asking if we could take in their guinea pig or rabbit from them for one reason or another. It came somewhat as a shock as to just how many unwanted, abandoned and ill-treated animals there are and we decided to set up CavyRescue as a small animal shelter.

By 2002 we realised that there were many other independent – and registered – animal rescues that would not take in rats. Those that we knew who did take in rats, we felt did not give the rats the time and care they need. Rats are very sociable creatures who need lots of stimulation and interaction. Plus, some that had been ill-treated would obviously be prone to biting anyone that came near them and, understandably, some other rescuers were scared to go near them.

DID YOU KNOW?

To feed and house just ONE healthy rat costs an average of £118 every year. This is without treats; the cost of a cage or toys; or visits to the vet.

We decided to focus on rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming rats as there is a real need. The rescue is primarily self-funded (our annual costs for food, bedding and vets bills average around £15,000). As we both work fulltime from home it means we are on call for the animals virtually 24 hours a day. There are still just the two of us running the rescue as it is a bit awkward to have volunteers helping out in our house.

We deal with questions from the general public via our website and also via the telephone. The website has lots of information and FAQS on there to help people, but we never profess to be vets.

Rats come to us via: the general public; vets (eg .where they have been dumped); pet shops (eg. where they have been returned and are too old to sell; deemed ‘aggressive’; or a pregnant rat has been sold; other rescues

Depending on their health and temperament, we will find them a new home, or they will remain with us. We do not rehome sick animals or animals with ongoing health or aggression problems.

We actively encourage people to stay in touch and many of our rehomers are now onto their ‘second’ or even ‘third’ rescue rats from us. We also have a small number of ‘foster families’ (people who have rehomed rats from us before and who we are 100% thoroughly confident of) who help out when we are bursting at the seams.

Having this hands-on experience with rats in particular, we have seen many health problems. Some are genetic, some are bad husbandry. We have built strong relationships with several vets who empathise with rats in an attempt to help find cures – or at least control mechanisms – for diseases such as respiratory disease, or mammary tumours.

We have seen success in curing/controlling/treating some diseases but what we have achieved is just the tip of the iceberg.

DID YOU KNOW?

To feed, care for and house just ONE rat with ongoing respiratory disease – such as the 27 currently at the Rescue - costs an average of £330 every year. This is without treats; the cost of a cage or toys; or visits to the vet.

We are also passionate about encouraging the usage of correct bedding – sawdust and shavings can cause respiratory problems leading to death - and are pushing pet stores to action this.

They have also agreed our input for their new, updated Rat, Hamster, Chinchilla and Rabbit Care Sheets.

We also campaign for various animal related issues via our website, in a bid to outlaw cruelty to all animals – especially the ones views as expendable such as rat costing £6.50 from a pet shop. Our aim is to educate people that rats are intelligent, loyal, companions who are aware of their own being.

We help other rescues with their rehoming via our website as well as doing volunteer fund raising work for the Animal Welfare Charity (which is a registered charity that rescues and rehomes cats in Kent).

While we are now 95% a rat rescue, we have retained the name CavyRescue as it is widely recognised by people.

Our charitable aims:

In October 2005 we acquired registered charity status – we did this so that we could have more credibility when educating individuals and organisations about the needs of rats and all small animals.

Our charitable aims are:

To promote humane behaviour towards domesticated rats bred or owed as pets by providing appropriate care, protection, treatment and security for those which are in need of care and attention by reason of sickness, maltreatment, poor circumstances or ill usage and to educate the public (including those who breed and / or trade in domesticated rats) in matters pertaining to animal welfare in general and the prevention of cruelty and suffering among animals.

We also have a five year plan whereby we want to set up a dedicated, fully staffed Rat Sanctuary with an on-site vet and the facility to take in more rodents.

How you can help

There are plenty of ways you can help us to help the animals!

At CavyRescue we rescue, rehabilitate and rehome small animals - specialising in rats - and we also aim to educate people on animal healthcare and welfare. In the last six years we have rehomed over 2,300 furries via the shelter and our website.

The basic costs of caring for our permanent residents averages at around £200 a month, but that is without vet bills. Our annual vet bill averages out at around £15,000 a year and these costs are all paid for by ourselves and from donations, so every donation, however small, is very much appreciated.

RECYCLE YOUR OLD MOBILE PHONES AND USED PRINTER CARTRIDGES

First of all, we can recycle your used printer cartridges and mobile ‘phones. By posting your used printer cartridges and/or old mobile ‘phones in a supplied freepost envelope, you can help us to help the animals. We can earn money by recycling these (around 50p for a cartridge and £5 for a mobile 'phone), so please encourage your friends, school mates or work colleagues to save these for us.

DONATIONS

Donations are always gratefully received, whether financial or a bag of rat food! One off donations can be made via cheque or direct into our bank account. (Please email us for these details).

If you are in the Kent area and want to donate food, then please email us!

SPONSORSHIPS

We have a number of animals at CavyRescue who, sadly, we will never be able to rehome. You can sponsor one of these by making a small donation to CavyRescue (email here for more details how). This will help pay for their care and ensure they get a comfortable, happy retirement.