STAFF and volunteers at Cats Protection’s St Helens Adoption Centre have successfully rehomed their landmark 500th cat of the year.

Combo - a particular favourite with everyone at the centre after they fell in love with her bat-like ears – came in to care with five other cats after their owner struggled to cope with them all.

The black-and-white kitten was snapped up by new owner Paul Ruddy and his family, who had been pestering him for months to get a cat.

The adoption was arranged through the charity’s Hands-Free Homing scheme, which virtually pairs cats with potential adopters, with a contact-free handover when a match is made.

Paul said: “We wanted to get a rescue kitten so we could help a kitten that needed it instead of buying one privately. We saw Combo on the St Helens website and the kids fell in love with her straight away, and within three days she was home with us.

“After a couple of days we introduced Combo to our dog, Charlie, and neither of them knew what to make of each other, Charlie seemed confused and Combo was really nervous. It’s now over a week and they are beginning to get on really well.

“She’s a lovely, funny, confident cat and the kids are smitten with her! We are really pleased we went to Cats Protection for our kitten as they do a fantastic job in what must be very difficult circumstances sometimes.”

This year, fundraising has been massively disrupted as all face-to-face activities have had to be postponed.

The centre is hoping for a final push to raise vital funds for its work with an online raffle, with prizes including bumper hampers for both humans and cats, as well as gift vouchers and feline-related gifts.

Tickets are £2 each and can be bought via justgiving.com/fundraising/st-helens-adoption-centre or by calling the centre on 01744 817718, with the draw taking place on December 12.

Centre manager Kerry Kendrick said: ”While the pandemic has really tested us, here at the centre we were committed to being able to continue helping cats and kittens in need, firstly ensuring they were well-cared for during their stay, and then finding them the perfect homes where they will become much-loved pets.”

For more information on St Helen’s Adoption Centre in Chester Lane, and to see cats available for homing, visit cats.org.uk/sthelens