October 18, 2023

Rosita, spayed as part of Alley Cat Allies’ work to protect cats and kittens in the Cayman Islands.

Every day is a good day to stand up for cats and kittens, but October 16 is a special—and critical—moment for lifesaving change. It’s Global Cat Day®, and yesterday was the biggest and best version yet of this annual day of action!

Global Cat Day, launched by Alley Cat Allies in 2017, is a day when advocates worldwide join us to lead the charge to protect cats and kittens. Every year on October 16, from Britain to Bhutan, people’s eyes are on the actions taken and the words spoken in defense of cats. The #GlobalCatDay hashtag on social media trended all day long, with people from all across the map engaging with Global Cat Day and celebrating the cats—both indoor cats and community cats—who enrich their lives every day.

Global Cat Day—and National Feral Cat Day®, Alley Cat Allies’ other annual day of action started in 2001 and also falling on October 16—is a time to lead by example, take action for cats, and tell the world that cats are our friends, family members, and neighbors. Because the truth is cats are not just our indoor companions who curl up next to us on the couch. They have lived in their outdoor homes alongside us for thousands of years, have a place in our communities no matter which side of the door they live on, and are beings of inherent value who deserve to be protected.

In other words—as we are reminded by the theme of Global Cat Day 2023—Cats Are CommunityTM. And for the first time, GlobalCatDay.org, Global Cat Day’s official website, was translated into Spanish, French, Japanese, Turkish, and Mandarin to reflect the global nature of love and action for cats.

But though our relationships with cats cross every border and love for cats is a universal language in itself, cats still face cruel threats to their lives every day. Global Cat Day is a day for everyone to become cat advocates, be the voice cats cannot be for themselves, and defend cats as we should any member of our community.

Alley Cat Allies is proud to be a leader in the movement to protect and improve the lives of cats and kittens, and our mission is to equip advocates worldwide with the materials, guidance, and blueprints to do the same. This Global Cat Day, we were thrilled to kick off two game-changing, lifesaving initiatives for cats—and to see people around the world take their own actions for the cats who are their community members.

Making A Stand for Cats in the Cayman Islands

The Alley Cat Allies and Cayman Islands Humane Society teams came together to kick off our work to help the islands’ cats on Global Cat Day.

On Global Cat Day, Alley Cat Allies took a critical step in our larger goal to protect cats and kittens on the Cayman Islands, where the local government is pursuing a devastating policy to round up and kill cats outdoors.

This is not the first time Alley Cat Allies has confronted a community promoting lethal policies for cats based in misinformation, and we aim to lead by example and strengthen humane, scientifically proven programs for cats on the island. No-cost spay and neuter, not killing, is the best and only approach to benefit the cats, address concerns about wildlife (no, cats are not a major cause of species loss—the blame rests entirely in human-led activities) and improve the community at large.

Starting on October 16, Alley Cat Allies was on the ground in the Cayman Islands to begin providing spay and neuter surgery for up to 100 cats on Grand Cayman Island, while also distributing hundreds of pounds of cat food to caregivers in need of assistance. We’re providing these much-needed resources in collaboration with the Cayman Islands Humane Society.

Nicky being examined before her spay surgery, all costs covered by Alley Cat Allies.

Cats like Smokey and Nicky were only the first to benefit from this new program—and 100 cats is only the beginning! Alley Cat Allies will continue working in the Cayman Islands on future initiatives to protect cats from being killed.

We were excited to connect with multiple media outlets, from Fox 5 DC to local outlets on the Cayman Islands, on Global Cat Day to start getting our message of compassion and nonlethal action widely heard. It will take many, many voices in unity to defend the Cayman Islands’ cats!

Keeping Families TogetherTM in Des Moines, Iowa

One of the the cats who will soon be enjoying no-cost cat food through Alley Cat Allies’ Keeping Families Together program.

On October 11, Alley Cat Allies and the Animal Rescue League of Iowa held our first cat food distribution event for the indoor and community cats of the greater Des Moines area—with more planned to help cats in the months of October and November. Alley Cat Allies helped cover the costs of more than 26,000 pounds of cat food (that’s 13 tons!), all to be given at no cost to Des Moines cat caregivers.

Alley Cat Allies and ARL distributing cat food to the cat caregivers of Des Moines on October 11.

Now more than ever, people need support to protect and provide for their cat community members. Alley Cat Allies created our Keeping Families Together™ program to improve access to no-cost resources for cats from spay and neuter and other veterinary care to cat food. We’re thrilled to be working in Iowa with this life-changing program—and we’re not stopping at food support.

People All Over the World Took Action on Global Cat Day

For Global Cat Day, Alley Cat Allies called on everyone to join us in taking action for cats—and that call was answered across the map!

We encouraged people to become cat advocates and take a Global Cat Day Action for cats in their community, and we saw Global Cat Day actions ranging from adopting a cat to providing food for community cats to building outdoor cat shelters, educating officials about lifesaving programs for cats, carrying out Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR), and so much more!

Here are just a few of our favorite Global Cat Day Actions from October 16:

Gainesville, Florida

University of Florida employee Ines, who runs an Instagram account to raise awareness and educate about Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) on the university’s campus, took to social media to celebrate Global Cat Day and spread the word about the lifesaving impact of TNR programs. Her goal is to “bring lasting change to how people view community cats.”

Ines and a friend also humanely trapped multiple cats and kittens for TNR on the weekend of Global Cat Day. They brought the cats for spay and neuter, eartip, and vaccination to Operation Catnip in Gainesville—which is an Alley Cat Allies Feral Friends Network® member!

Veracruz, Mexico

In honor of Global Cat Day on October 16, a lecture was given to the Faculty of Medicine of the Universidad Veracruzana on the lifesaving work of Programa Captura, Esteriliza, Marca y Suelta (CEMS)—AKA Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) on the university’s campuses! The activity “aimed to raise awareness in the university community about the respect and care that should be given to cats.”

Alley Cat Allies is proud to lead the charge to embrace TNR in cities and countries all around the world, from Mexico to the Philippines. Every day, more communities across the globe recognize TNR as the only humane and effective approach to improve cats’ lives and benefit the community as a whole.

Hampton Roads, Virginia

Every year, Feral Affairs Network organizes an event on the Sunday closest to Global Cat Day. This year, several rescue groups joined them to “display merchandise, build community cat shelters, and educate the public about the benefits of TNR.”

And on Global Cat Day, the group spayed or neutered eight community cats at two local clinics. Educating about TNR and then doing TNR—an amazing way to celebrate Global Cat Day!

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Cat advocate Ale raised funds through “Cat Tea Party,” a special event to educate the public about cat behavior and cat care. The event included a guest veterinarian to provide an expert perspective and raised funds for cats with Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP)!

Chicago, Illinois

Patricia H. donated to Alley Cat Allies on Global Cat Day in honor and memory of her cats, Lily and Aspen. “We had so much love and joy together, each of them!”, she told us.

Thank you, Patricia, for helping us save cats’ lives to celebrate the happiness your cats brought to yours!

It’s Not Too Late to Protect Cats in Honor of Global Cat Day

October 16 is behind us, but Global Cat Day is far more than just 24 hours! There’s still time to…

It has been incredible to see Global Cat Day and National Feral Cat Day rise to worldwide prominence. But there is always room to improve—especially when it comes to saving cats’ lives. Next year, we aim to make Global Cat Day and National Feral Cat Day bigger and even more impactful for cats and kittens worldwide!

And every day beyond October 16, there are ways you can carry the Global Cat Day mission forward. At the core, it’s as simple as acknowledging that Cats Are Community and asking your friends, neighbors, shelters, local officials, and veterinarians to do the same.