FAQ - Frequently asked questions
Please, PLEASE, read this FAQ. We honestly get these questions asked over and over and over again. So before sending us an email or message, check if your question is already answered here.
Seriously, no kidding, read the FAQ!
Cats and cat clinics
Why do the cats in Gili islands have weird tails?
The cats are born with the weird tails. It's a genetic mutation they have. Nobody is going around chopping off their tails.
I found a sick cat. What should I do? Can you come pick it up?
Please bring the cat to visit our cat shop. We have basic medication available and can help with many things and also have a tiny cat hospital.
Please understand that we are a very very small project, in practise this is a one crazy cat lady show. We do not have people who have time or possibility go around picking up or checking on sick cats, so we really need people to help out and bring the cats to us or take them to see a vet in Lombok. Another issue is that sick animals tend to go hiding and by the time you send us email and we find someone to go look for it, the cat might have moved on or gone hiding and we cannot find it.
And please: NEVER leave a sick cat or orphan kittens or any animals in front of our shop if it is closed!
I got bitten/scratched/touched by a cat. I am worried I have rabies now!
We do not have rabies on Gili islands. If the situation changes, I will update it here.
But as always: if you are worried about your health, go see a doctor, instead of searching answers on the internet. Also, if you were bitten by a cat, cat bites get easily infected, so you may need antibiotics. So: go see a doctor!
We were there on a holiday a while ago and we fell in love with this cat that hang around there-and-there. It's a ginger male with short tail. Can you please go check how he is doing? Maybe send us pictures too!
Cats Of Gili is a tiny, tiny project. We do not have time or resources to go around and look for cats someone saw somewhere days/weeks/months/lifetimes ago. Sorry about that. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of cats on each island, and finding one is pretty much impossible.
Try contacting the hotel/resort/bar where the cat love of your life was living at the time you met, maybe the workers there will know how your feline friend is doing?
I'm in Bali/Lombok/Sumatra/Malaysia/Mexico/Uranus and there is this sick kitten here. Can you please help?
No, I am sorry but I cannot help. Cats Of Gili is in Gili Trawangan, Indonesia and we concentrate our efforts to helping the cats on the Gili islands.
Do NOT bring sick cats or kittens here from Bali or Lombok. There are several animal welfare organizations in Bali, contact them for help (Again: please, Google!). Loads of vet clinics too. Cats get better help in Bali than here. Also, there are several veterinarians in Lombok, in case you find a cat needing help in Lombok. We do not have a vet on any of the Gili islands at the moment so that is one more reason for not to bring sick animals here.
When is the next cat clinic?
Please check our Facebook page for any upcoming events. If there is no cat clinic events, that just means we have not decided the dates for the next clinic yet. We do not keep the clinic dates secret, we publish the clinic info as soon as we have set the dates.
Is there a vet clinic in any Gili islands?
No there is not. Closest vet clinics are in Lombok.
Horses and everything else
What about the island horses?
I don't know much about horses, so please Google Horses Of Gili -project for information about our island ponies. Horses Of Gili is a project that organizes free horse clinics, they have rescue stables, they educate the local horse drivers and do a lot of good stuff for the island ponies.
Gili Eco Trust is also a good source of information. Not only about horses, but any environmental issues you need info about. Go visit their office and shop for more info. They also have loads of projects that need volunteers.
We'd like to book a room for 2 people then-and-then.
Right. Awesome. No problem. I can give you guys a cage, a bowl of water and whiskas daily and a sand box for toilet. Deworming tablets come with an extra charge and if your husbands wants his balls chopped off, we can organize that too.
Seriously! We are an animal welfare project for cats, not a holiday resort for humans!
(And this is not a joke, we receive these messages all the time)
That said, we hope that we will soon be able to offer special "Cat lovers"-deals for some hotels and homestays that love cats and share our passion. Stay tuned!
Volunteering, donating, helping
I'm coming there for a holiday and would like to spend some days volunteering with cats. How can I do that?
We mostly need volunteers during our big spay/neuter clinics, which we organize at least 2 times a year. If you are on the island when we have our clinic ongoing, please do come and help.
But it is rewarding. You provide better life for each and every cat that you bring to the clinic.
I am a vet/vet nurse. Can I come volunteer on your spay/neuter clinics?
Maybe. Keep on eye on our Facebook feed, we will post there if we need more vet volunteers. However, in the past few years our vet/vet nurse volunteer positions are usually filled without us having to look for new volunteers. We prioritize vets and vet nurses who have been here before, and we have some vets that come here at least for one clinic per year.
We cannot take every volunteer vet who wants to come, as there is just no space for too many people to work at the same time.
I'm a vet and I'm coming there for a holiday. Would you need help with anything?
Yes, quite often we do. The islands have no permanent vet here at the moment. In case you are a vet and are here on a holiday, please message us to let you know that you are here and you are willing to help in case there is an emergency.
How can I donate?
You can donate online via Transferwise or PayPal. If you are here on a holiday, find one of our donation boxes and leave a donation there.
See more info here.
I'm coming there for a visit and I could bring you some supplies. What do you need?
We always need these medicines:
- Antibiotics for cats (such as Clavamox/Clavubactin)
- Dewormers. Especially dewormers suitable for tiny kittens.
We also always need feeding bottles/syringes and milk formula for tiny orphan kittens.
Cat shop
Where is the cat shop and is it open now?
Our charity shop is in Gili Trawangan, Indonesia. We are located in Jalan Nautilus, right next to Gili Golf. You can find us in Google Maps.
Shop is open 10am-4pm every day, except Sundays when we are closed and the crazy cat lady rests.
Do you sell cat food or do you have this-and-this medicine? And my cat needs some toys, do you have any?
Yes, we sell cat food at the cat shop. Bisquits, cans, sachets, kitten food. Big bags, small bags, everything in between. Buy your cat food from us, please, because then you also help us to continue our work.
We also have basic medication (flea treatments, dewormers and such) available. We have toys, collars, litter boxes. Everything you need for your cat.
Also, we sell souveniers/gifts. Tote bags, T-shirts, notebooks, all kind of cat stuff.
And any money spent on our charity shop will go to cats!
I'm coming there for a holiday soon. Can I come and visit and meet your cats and kittens?
Yes, you can visit our shop when the shop is open. No need to book in advance.
Our outside cats usually hang in front of our shop and you can meet them there whenever. They love cuddles and happily pose for photos too.
Our shop is tiny. There are no "tours" or such for visitors. You walk in and you see everything right away.
My kids love cats. Can they come spend a day playing with your cats?
Children can come visit, as long as they treat cats nicely and gently, which most children do. But we have zero tolerance for rough playing or other bad behaviour. Cats, just like any other animals, need to be treated with love and care. Any rough actions and we will not tolerate it!
And children must be superrvised by parents or other responsible adults while they visit our shop. Please understand we are not a day care center for tiny humans so no, you cannot drop off your kids to our shop and go have a massage. No. Your children are your responsibilty, not mine.
Can you send us some of your merchandise?
Sorry, no. We do not even have a post office on our island, so sending anything from here would require a trip to Lombok to visit a post office. Too much hassle and takes a whole day to go there.
But we do have an online shop at Teespring where you can order some of our designs. Click here.
Please note that the product selection at our online store differs from what we have available at our shop in Gili Trawangan. The online store is... well, online. We upload the designs, they make the products, collect the payments and send the products to you... and money to our cats!