Su Pallosu: gatti al mare – cats on the beach
La storica colonia felina di Su Pallosu
risalente al 1920
Historic colony feline in Pallosu
dating
back to 1920
Video
http://greenholidayitaly.com/
There is
a tiny beautiful seaside village in Sardinia called Su Pallosu. In fact, it is
the smallest fishing hamlet in Italy: only eight people and 54 cats live there.
Human beings have settled in this area since the Bronze age, the felines took
up residence here almost 90 years ago, in the 1920s. They were brought by the
fishermen from the nearby tuna fishery to keep mice away from houses. Although the workers’ barracks were
demolished in the early 80s, the cats stayed and a few locals continued to feed
them. Today Su Pallosu cat colony is one of the oldest in Italy. Su Pallosu is
a stunning unspoilt corner of western Sardinia: rocky beaches, turquoise
waters, graceful flamingos and loud seagulls are rarely disturbed by tourists.
In 2007 two volunteers, Andrea and Irina, decided to take care of the feline
residents. They established an official cat colony, made arrangements with a
nearby veterinary clinic that looks after the cats’ health, sterilised them. In
all these years, the volunteers have not received any money from the state.
They get by on private donations and selling some cats’ merchandise to
visitors. The cats spend a lot of time on the beach by the sea, basking in the
sun, playing with the waves or collecting cuddles from the visitors who come
here for “cat watching”. The colony has its Facebook page, a blog, as well as
each cat has a following online: the lovely black Agata, for instance, has 258
fans; fluffy grey Spettinato (“dishevelled” in Italian) – 168 friends, and
Trilulilu a whopping 339! There is even a book written about Su Pallosu
felines! Visits to Su Pallosu cat colony are free, although any donation would
be hugely appreciated. The volunteers will also show you the local
archaeological site and a small geology museum.
...continua...
