Elvis the cat is lonesome tonight - can you help?

Elvis has NOT left the building - in more than six months.

The adorable black cat has been looked after by the team at the RSPCA's Felledge Animal Centre in Chester-Le-Street, but since April and is still on the lookout for a new home.

Now his story is being showcased as part of  the charity's Adoptober - celebrating the wonder of rescue pets, and highlighting the many animals the charity has waiting to find their perfect match this month.

The moggy’s search for a home comes as the RSPCA reveals that more than 80 percent of its animal centres have heard the myth from potential adopters that black cats - like Elvis - are supposedly “unlucky”, which could be making these loveable pets harder to rehome. 

Luka Atkinson, deputy centre manager at Felledge Animal Centre, said: "Elvis has been in RSPCA care since April 26, but despite his happy friendly personality he still can’t find a new home.

“Elvis was rescued as a stray and he was really in quite a state when we took him in. He arrived with a horrific cat bite abscess on the side of his face that left a huge open wound, after fighting with other male cats in the area.

"It took a good few weeks of love and care to get him back to fighting fit. He took it all in his stride and he’s such an affectionate cat, he just loves everyone.

"He’s a really happy chappy - you can see how soft he is just by looking at his face - we really want to see him find his forever home."

Elvis is looking for a home in a safe area so that he can go outdoors and explore once he is fully settled in. As he is a quiet boy he'd be best suited to a home with children of secondary school age and older.

The RSPCA’s month-long Adoptober re-homing campaign launched this month, promoting adoption and highlighting the many animals the charity has in its care waiting to find their perfect match.

Worryingly, more people are relinquishing pets than are adopting - leaving rescue centres “full to bursting” with unwanted pets. 

This follows a collapse in re-homing rates; which have fallen by 30% from three years ago - when 39,178 animals were re-homed. In 2022, only 27,535 animals were re-homed by the RSPCA.

Between 2020 and 2022, the average time it took to re-home a cat in RSPCA care was 29 days, but sadly for some animals, like Elvis, the wait is much longer. 

Dr Samantha Gaines, head of companion animals at the RSPCA, said: “Many of the common reasons people choose not to pursue adopting a rescue are based on concerns or ‘myths’ that can be easily debunked.

“This is likely due to a combination of reasons - including beliefs, often false, about particular breeds. It can also come down to things such as colour. Black cats are notoriously hard to re-home because of the common belief that black cats are unlucky; and remarkably our recent survey of RSPCA centres found that 82% of our national RSPCA centres have heard the myth ‘black cats are unlucky’ cited as a reason for not adopting a black cat.

“We would urge anyone looking for a pet to do their research especially as the reputation of a particular breed or type is often undeserved. “Every animal is an individual with its own personality, quirks and character traits. While breed can help highlight some things about an animal, it is much less important, what’s important is the personality of the individual animal. Breed is never a guarantee for behaviour. You are more likely to find the perfect match and your best friend for life if you look beyond breed and instead look for a personality that matches yours. 

“We’d urge anyone ready and able to adopt a rescue animal to fill in a perfect match form with your local RSPCA centre or branch and they’ll let you know when an animal who matches you comes into their care.”

Visit Find A Pet to see all of the animals currently in the RSPCA’s  care who are looking for their paw-fect match.