An animal charity has been inundated with calls from Winshill residents seeking homes for stray and feral cats following a 'staggering' increase in cats on the streets.

Staff at Burton’s RSPCA branch have told the Burton Mail the issue has been ongoing for 'quite some time now' but has become noticeably worse in Winshill over the past year.

Lizzie Topliss, cattery supervisor, said volunteers were "in a real struggle" with the sheer number of cats who need to come into the centre for re-homing, which leaves them invariably full to capacity.

Miss Topliss said: "Each day we are inundated with calls from members of the public with both stray and owned cats who are in need of rehoming. I am currently working with a lady who has a growing group of feral cats, and touch wood, we are trapping and neutering at a decent rate to help solve the problem.

"Feral and stray colonies is something we are coming across more and more often and unfortunately due to our restricted capacity getting them in for rehoming is a long process.

"We always try to prioritise cases where the cats' welfare might be in jeopardy."

Cattery supervisor Lizzie Topliss has said the lack of neutering is the reason behind the growing problem

Only last month, the animal home in Hillfield Lane, Stretton saw a staggering 23 cats put on the waiting list in just one day.

Miss Topliss said: "As with most of the issues with cats, it comes back to the importance of neutering.

Feral colonies such as the one I am dealing with essentially begin because cats are not neutered.

One un-spayed female can lead to up to 20,000 descendants if all of these kittens are then un-neutered and follow in their mother’s footsteps, so it is so, so important to encourage neutering.

"The main difficulty we face then is the issue of what to do with the cats once they have been neutered.

"We are absolutely desperate to find places for them on farms/small holdings where they can live an independent lifestyle but still have the home comforts of shelter and regular feeding.

"Unfortunately circumstances mean it is not always possible to release them back where they came from, so that is when we really face difficulty.

"The welfare of the cats is our main priority, and enclosing them in a pod here at the cattery causes an incredible level of stress for them and is just not appropriate for such wild natured cats."

Staff at Burton's RSPCA branch have been left stunned at the number of calls they have received about stray and feral cats in the town

So what can be done to prevent the problem?

Miss Topliss said: "Firstly we would advise anyone who thinks they have found a stray cat to take it to their local vets, where they can be scanned for a microchip in the hope of reuniting with their owner.

"Failing that, we would urge anyone in a similar position to contact both ourselves and the Cats Protection League, who can also offer assistance in trapping, neutering and rehoming cats.

"We would also like to urge people to please neuter their much loved pets as it really helps to avoid similar situations.

"For those genuinely unable to afford neutering we can offer a level of assistance through our welfare system and the Cats Protection League also run a scheme offering vouchers for £10 neutering for those eligible.

"It is a huge problem and we need to do what we can to stop it getting worse."