55 cats live in Turkish parliament’s compound

ANKARA

The Turkish parliament’s compound is home to 55 cats, who are fed by the team established upon the parliamentary speaker’s office instruction.

“They are our little monsters bringing a different atmosphere to our parliament. This is their home, too,” said Nur Küçük, one of the staff who takes care of the cats.

One of the cats gave birth last month, Küçük said. “Our cat named Çiçek [flower] gave birth to triplets. We named our three kittens Menekşe [violet], Gül [rose] and Kasımpatı [chrysanthemum]. We look after them in a special room here.”

Noting that they buy different foods for kittens and adult cats, Küçük said they also stored pre-winter food for them.

The visitors to the parliament stroke the cats they encounter in the compound and take their photos, Küçük stated.

The parliamentary speaker’s office instructed the establishment of a team to feed the cats in the parliament compound.

In line with the instruction given by Parliament Speaker Mustafa Şentop to the parliament’s general secretariat, feeding points were determined for all cats in the compound and they started to be fed three meals a day.

The treatment of injured and sick cats is carried out by Ankara University’s Faculty of Veterinary Medicine within the scope of a protocol between the two.

Very serious support for the supply of all kinds of vehicles, the treatment and food of our injured cats is provided, according to Küçük.

“In addition, we supplied a container to establish a rehabilitation unit for our cats who were treated at the university and came back but are still in the recovery phase.”