Hydra, a beautiful island in the Saronic Gulf of Greece, was the perfect vacation spot.  It was so perfect that Felicity and Jerry Panas bought a home there and, about nine years ago, they began to spend two to three weeks at a stretch on the island three times a year.

Felicity describes Hydra as a ”particularly beautiful and historic island.”  There are no cars, motorcycles, or bicycles on the Island, only three or four trucks that pickup the garbage or deliver building material.  Donkeys and mules form the major mode of transport. Other than that, everyone walks the narrow marble streets of the port or the donkey trails wherever they need to go. 

Not so perfect for cats

Felicity noticed right away that Hydra, though perfect for vacationers, wasn’t so perfect for its street cats. There seemed to be so many of them, most without homes, struggling to find food and a little comfort.  And, so many were in need of medical help.  With a small group of other caring friends, she set about doing something for the cats. Their efforts have finally begun to snowball into a successful TNR program on the island.

The year-round population of Hydra is about 2,700, but this grows in the summer months to about 6,000.  In the beginning, the year-round residents weren’t really keen to have outside help taking care of their animals.  But HydraArk has worked steadily to gain the respect and trust of the people on the island.

Now, when the Hydriots hear that the vets are visiting, they will bring their cats and dogs and ask for help.  This is a big change and a wonderful step forward for the animals of Hydra.  "At first they were very cautious about our work and would hand their cats to the vets with tears in their eyes —not really sure that they were doing the right thing at all!  And, it is still very difficult for many to accept that they need to bring their male cats to be neutered!"

When she first visited Hydra, Felicity met a friend who was involved in helping the cats.  Lily is Dutch and was married to a Greek.  Lily had started the TNR program in Hydra and had, for several years, bought vets from the UK. But it wasn’t always easy for this very small group of volunteers to find help or a suitable place for the vets to work.  (Felicity herself is from New Zealand, and Jerry Panas’ father was Greek—when they’re not on Hydra, they live in Connecticut).

Felicity generously offered the use of their house for the surgeries and that’s how she became involved in helping Hydra’s cats.  For most of the last nine years, their house, which is about a twelve minute walk from the port, has been the main site for the vets’ visits.

Two years ago, this small group of dedicated volunteers, most of whom do live on Hydra, formally incorporated the charity, HydraArk. Their website is in both Greek and English, thanks to the language skills of a volunteer at the British Embassy.

Hotels eager to help

All over the island they’ve now set up managed cat colonies.  The hotels are eager to help since tourists used to wonder why nothing was being done.  Now a lot is being done, and it’s a well-managed situation.

The cats in each colony are spayed, neutered and returned.  Feeding stations are set up a little way away from a hotel or a similar site. Hydra Ark is able to supply some food, but many of these kind people make sure the cats are being fed and cared for out of their own pockets. Each of these colonies has 10 to 15 cats, and in one case, closer to 25 cats.  There’s still a lot of work to be done, and they’re planning to focus on this area in the summer.

Over the years, HydraArk has spayed/neutered around 500-600 cats.  Felicity estimates that there may be around 2,000 cats on the island.  While this isn’t a high enough percentage yet to stabilize the population, it’s a really impressive effort.  The numbers they are doing are picking up speed all the time.

Felicity said that Hydra is lucky in that "we do not have many homeless dogs—only a few who live down by the port."  Most of the bigger dogs are hunting dogs and do have owners.  Then there are the family pets. She said that their effort as far as the dogs are concerned, has been focused on offering spaying and neutering.  

Over 100 cats have been spayed/neutered within the last six months.  Carol McBeth, a veterinary nurse and the Director in Greece of the Greek Animal Welfare Fund, along with their veterinary surgeon, Dr. Amalia Kountouri,  have been making regular trips from Athens to help out Hydra Ark by doing TNR for the island cats.

Vets from far afield

Other vets from farther afield have helped a lot too.  This spring, Eleanora, one of the founders of Hydra Ark, recruited three vets from her home near Milan, Italy.  The Italian vets spent two days spaying and neutering cats, and a day visiting in the main Port of Hydra administering antibiotics and vaccines to the street cats.  They were able to point out the importance of trying to keep each colony of cats in their own area. These individual colonies had developed their own set of bacteria and if they are moved, even for the TNR sessions, they can infect another colony.  

For the last four years, two vets from Norway, with two assistants came once a year. They would get up bright and early and spay/neuter around 80 cats in three-four days of work, using the Panas’ home for their surgery, and the big, beautiful garden as the recovery space.

This month, Carol and Dr. Amalia of GAWF, will be back, and they’re planning to do between 60 to 70 cats in another area high above the main port, where the cats especially need their help.  They’ll use a different private house nearby as their clinic.  That way the cats don’t have to be transported far—which is a concern since there are no vehicles and the area is too high to transport the cats by donkey.

Help for the donkeys

For the last few years, GAWF Equine Project has held a seminar in Hydra to offer help for the donkeys and their owners.  "Several donkey-men have asked the HydraArk if we can do more to help in this area.  It is something we are very interested in promoting, but not easy to manage,"  Felicity says they hope to be able to do more for those who need help.

Tortoises and a duckling too

About 30 to 40 semi-feral cats live in the proximity of the Panas’ garden.  Each day they are fed by volunteers in the area.  And, in their garden there is always food and water--for at least 20 come in over the wall for a meal and a little peace.  They share the garden and food with ten resident cats. All who pass through the garden, and those in the neighborhood, are cared for year round—but the garden isn’t just home to cats.  It’s the home of two tortoises. 

One, Old Lady, is around 60 years of age, and her friend, Theo, is a youngster, about 5 years old. Felicity explains, “When we sit down for lunch in the garden, it’s not just the cats that come over for a treat, but Old Lady and Theo, too.”

Mischief, a little black cat with a couple of white spots was brought along last year to another location where they were doing spay/neuter. “She was the sickest little kitten,” Felicity recalls, “Barely alive.”  She was treated by the vets, and Felicity took her home that evening.  Now, happy and healthy, she spends her time playing with the tortoises.  When Theo is munching on lettuce for his lunch, Mischief tugs on it, and, when she can, pulls it out of his mouth.

All the cats in the garden survived the past winter.  It can be cold and damp on the Island with even the rare snow fall, but they had their own houses they could go into to be warm, and their care-giver, Tassia, who fed them.

One of their rescues, found down by the small port, was a duck with a broken leg.  "Brian, one of our HydraArk volunteers, pick him up and carried him down to the port in a cat cage.  The duck was put on a boat to Athens.  Brian was required to buy a ticket for 'an unaccompanied duck' traveling by boat to Athens.  Another volunteer, from Athens met the boat and took the duck to be evaluated by a vet. Next, he was put in a special cage and on a bigger boat, for an overnight trip to a sanctuary on the island of Paros, where he now has a permanent home."

Reaching a new generation

Carol McBeth, of GAWF, is visiting both elementary and high schools, showing films to the kids, and instilling in them a sense of caring for animals.  She explains to them that Hydra needs the cats just like the cats need Hydra.  There are teens now volunteering whenever the vets come for TNR days; they help with cleaning the cages.

Since last September, four three-day TNR clinics have taken place. The TNR program doesn’t continue throughout the summer because it is just too hot for the cats then, but it will resume in the fall.

Thanks to Hydra Ark’s well-executed strategy, as well as their dedication and perseverance, the cats of Hydra are finding their island home more and more an idyllic place to live.

Photos:  Hydra Ark

To visit the website of Hydra Ark, click here.

To visit the website of GAWF (Greek Animal Welfare Fund), click here.