WITH the RSPCA warning that the south of England faces a 'cat crisis' with and unprecedented numbers of cats in their care, Okehampton and District Cats Protection is launching an appeal to encourage people to find a place in their homes for a feline companion.

The appeal will run alongside the annual National Black Cat Day on Thursday, October 31. The charity is asking people to consider rehoming a black or black and white cat this autumn.

Nationally, Cats Protection's 257 volunteer-run branches and 30 adoption centres are looking after more than 6,200 cats. Around half of these are black or black and white, and on average these wait around a week longer than other cats to be rehomed.

The Okehampton branch has several such cats that have been in their care for a long time and need new homes. Among them are Dot and Betty, a pair of black and black and white female cats.

Branch co-ordinator Pat Sawyer siad:?'Once favoured by storytellers in tales of magic and witchcraft, black cats have developed an undeserved bad reputation that is still bubbling away.

'At Cats Protection, we are standing up for the underdog — or in this instance, under-cat — and asking people to remember that fur colour is only skin deep, and to consider taking a black cat into their home.'

Last year, the Okehampton branch saw a steep rise in the number of cats being abandoned or brought into them to be re-homed. Across the south of the country, many RSPCA branches are unable to take in any more cats, and several have more than 100 desperately waiting for new homes.

Little Valley Animal Centre, the west Devon branch, is currently full, housing 35 cats. There is a waiting list for new cats to go to the centre, and it cared for 131 in 2013.

Paul Williams, branch operations manager for the south, said: 'The RSPCA is struggling on all fronts with this cat crisis. Our inspectors are being called out constantly to deal with sick, injured, neglected or abandoned cats.

'Our hospitals are full with injured cats whose owners appear to have dumped them. We have more cats than ever that have been cruelly treated and our centres across the region are just full with cats and kittens needing new homes.

'Our staff across the region whether they are in an RSPCA centre, branch, hospital or a field officer all say the same — we are dealing with a cat crisis and it is getting worse. It is simply that more injured and abandoned cats are coming into RSPCA care than are going out into new homes.'

To find out more about the Okehampton Cats Protection campaign, or to adopt a black or black and white cat, visit http://www.okehampton.cats.org.uk">www.okehampton.cats.org.uk or call the branch on 0845 371 2751.