Failsworth woman joins army of volunteers campaigning to end the disposal of deceased cats

Gizmo's Army member Nicola Brown, from Failsworth, has joined a 1,000-strong volunteer group which is making a new cross-party bid to get Gizmo's Law passed.

The bid is aimed at marking the five-year anniversary of the Gizmo's Legacy campaign, which is looking to bring an end to the unnecessary disposal of deceased cats. 

Gizmo's Army is a network of over 1,000 volunteers, across the UK, who search the streets, day and night, to check dead cats for microchips before they are disposed of.

With cross-party support from Bury North MP James Daly and Luke Pollard, the Labour (Co-op) MP for Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport, along with Gizmo's Army of volunteers and founder Helena Abrahams, they are campaigning for the Private Members Bill to be heard in Parliament, before being passed into law.

Nicola, aged 47, first started looking to reunite deceased cats with their owners two years ago. 

She said: “I joined Gizmo's over two years ago to help deceased cats get home to their owners.

"It means everything to me, that owners will get the closure, respect and dignity the cats deserve, as they are family members too.”

The campaign for the new law started five years ago when Helena Abrahams' beloved cat Gizmo was disposed of, after being hit by a car, with no attempt made to reunite her with her beloved pet.

Helena said: “This law can’t come quickly enough so that our pets are shown the respect they deserve and owners are able to have closure.

"I want to give a massive thanks to our volunteers like Nicola for the work they have been doing, tirelessly for the past five years, to make sure that deceased cats are reunited with their owners.”

Bury North MP Mr Daly said: “Gizmo's Legacy is an important animal welfare provision and I am grateful that I have had the opportunity to support in Parliament the many years of tireless campaigning by Helena Abrahams, the driving force behind Gizmo's Legacy.

"I wish to pay tribute not only to Helena but to the whole team, like Nicola, who are dedicated to reuniting much-loved pets with their owners and I will continue to fight until Gizmo's Legacy is on the statute book.”

Currently, drivers are not obliged to report running over a cat, and council road sweepers do not have to check for a microchip containing the owner’s details before disposing of the body.

Some councils do scan for microchips to inform owners, but it is not a legal obligation.

Pet Food company Encore is backing the campaign and have pledged to donate scanners to scan deceased animals for microchips to all councils.  

To join Gizmo's Legacy or to find out more about the campaign, visit the Facebook page Gizmo's Legacy here

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