Why Dubai expat rescues and heals stray cats, rehomes them

THERESIA GOLLNER HAS SAVED OVER 500, FOUND 60 OF THEM HOMES ABROAD

- BY LAKSHANA PALAT

When Theresia Gollner cheerfully showed me all the cats she had saved over the past few years, the first few minutes of our conversation was a series of excited squeals

Gollner’s excitement is infectious, and so are the stories behind every feline face. Most of these cats have found a safe home, in the UAE and abroad, thanks to Gollner’s efforts.

“I think I get it from my parents,” she says. Gollner grew up in Austria, practically on a farm, with a pony, two donkeys, sheep and an overwhelming love for animals. That love only grew when she moved to a small island in Indonesia in 2015.

“There was only one small charity organisation,” she recalls. Moved by the plight of abandoned animals, she began bringing them to rescue centres, getting them treated, or arranging for TNR (trap, neuter, and return).

This determination to help animals continued as she moved to Dubai in 2020 during the pandemic, while fostering a mother and kittens. Since then, she has been rescuing and fostering cats, and sending some of them overseas to safe homes.

Till date, Gollner has sent over 60 cats overseas. “I have spayed and neutered at least 500 cats since 2020 and treated them if required. I have around 60 cats overseas and around 10 in the UAE,” she says.