Our Athenian Alley Cat… Olympia

Since our return to Athens, after the Christmas break in the UK, we started feeding the stray cats of Athens. There was a particular spot where all the stray cats in the area gathered, and there was evidence that other Athenians also fed them at this spot. It was a short distance from the Temple of Olympian Zeus in an area which is situated in the middle of three main roads. So it is basically a park with ruins, surrounded by main roads.
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The first time we fed the cats we noticed a little black kitten, old enough to have been abandoned by its mother but too young to get near the food that was scoffed continuously and finished off by the adult cats. We came back day after day and each day was the same, the kitten would hang at the back of the group of cats, hoping that there would be some scraps left. Between the fifteen or so cats that we fed, there was never much food left and we assumed it went hungry most days.

On Sunday, we went again to feed the cats and the situation was the same, this time we noticed a scratch on her forehead, which we assume was from another cat. For anyone that knows me, it doesn’t take much to persuade me to get a pet and this was the moment I decided we would take the kitten under our wing. Being a Sunday, there weren’t many shops open to get the supplies we needed for the kitten but we got to work. I tried to make a litter tray from a cardboard box and tissue paper but realised we had run out of toilet paper. Luckily on the way to the corner shop, I walked past a pet shop, it was closed but the door was open. I called in asking if they were open and got back a reply “No”, however, as the door was open I thought I would press them and asked if I could buy some cat litter. The shop keeper must have felt sorry for me, knowing that all the shops were closed and welcomed me in. I ended up walking alway with a litter tray, litter, kitten food and a poop scoop. I was thrilled at this point as it was all coming together.

The next task was to get the kitten from, practically, the middle of a roundabout to our house half a mile away. I thought of putting it in my suitcase but realised this would not be comfortable for the kitten and I didn’t want to have a meowing bag on the walk home. I had also cut up the box that would have been perfect size to use as a litter tray. After a little search around the apartment, I found an Iron box, stuck some air holes into it and set off with a cup full of cat food to rescue the kitten.

As usual, we put down the food and all the cats come rushing round. Elly continued to feed them and I spotted the kitten in the background watching all the other cats feed. As she is an alley cat she wasn’t too thrilled at being put in the box or being picked up but after two minutes she settled down and we walked back to the apartment with our new family member.
Having found her near the Temple of Olympian Zeus, we named her Olympia. She adjusted quickly to living with humans and we are still trying to fatten her up. When it comes to food, she reverts back to her stray habits and hisses at us even though two seconds before she was cuddling with us.
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She is a lovely addition to our family here in Athens, and the next challenge is to get her to the vets. Yesterday we bought a cat basket as we didn’t think it would look great taking Olympia to the vets in a box for an Iron. Keep an eye on the blog for updates on our little new friend and if you have any question/ suggestions, feel free to get in touch or comment below.   ​

This video and article was written by Alex Hood (@Alexjohnhood)