Abate Pest Management Grant Cat with FIV Outdoor Living Space

Abate Pest Management loves to work on unusual projects. Recently they have created a secure outside space for a lovely rescue cat who has FIV, allowing it to have its freedom again.

Abate has previously worked with Cats before, last time it was Big Cats at Africa Alive! where they installed a safety solution for Lions, using tensioned wires which are usually used for bird control.

Meet Konstantin a cat that lives with Karen and Phil Turner in the Suffolk Town of Eye. Sadly, he's FIV positive (feline immunodeficiency virus) and unfortunately can't come in to contact with other cats, in case he passes the virus on.

The Turners adopted Konstantin from the RSPCA two years ago and figured that their small courtyard garden would be ideal for him, as it would give access to the outdoors without the worry of him escaping due to it being fully enclosed by the walls of adjoining buildings.

FIV in cats is a condition similar to the virus that causes AIDS in people. FIV cats with the virus can obviously infect others, so it is normally recommended and responsible to keep an infected cat indoors.

Karen and Phil explain the story of how Abate designed and implemented a netting system which now allows Konstantin the freedom of his garden.

We did our best to deal with any potential escape-points, but despite our efforts he managed - with some ease! - to get on both our roof and that of the building next door. Luckily on both occasions, we managed to coax him back with some fresh roast chicken!

After his second escape, we put up some sections of garden netting on what we thought were the most likely escape routes, but as soon as we let Konstantin back into the garden it was clear they weren't going to cut it.

Having had pigeon netting fitted to the balcony of her London flat, Karen had the idea to contact bird-netting installers to see if one could help. I sent requests to several companies, Abate came back straight away reassuring us that they would be able to find us a solution.

Abate sent their Operations Manager and a Technician over to inspect and assess the garden and talk us through the options - Sam and Carl both fully understood that the netting would need to be robust and secure enough to keep a determined 8kg cat in, without being too intrusive and spoiling the look and feel of the garden. They also took great care to ensure the solution wouldn't harm Konstantin, should he attempt to escape through it.

After their visit, we were provided with a fully detailed quote and explanation of works - we were even provided with samples of the netting and fixings so we had a clear idea of how the install would look. We felt the quote was competitive given the quality of the materials and work involved.

The Abate team arrived promptly for the install and again talked us through what they would be doing to make sure we were happy. They worked quickly and courteously, with minimum disturbance to us and the garden.

They took great care to affix only to suitable points on our property and weather-proofed around fixings where necessary, to guard against any future issues. They also took care to leave easy access to areas like guttering and downspouts.

Once finished the team cleared away all left-over fixings and netting, so as not to leave anything that could potentially harm Konstantin.

We're absolutely delighted with the netting install. The solution Abate came up with for us is secure enough to keep Konstantin in, without spoiling the look and feel of the garden; the fixings were kept to a minimum and the netting itself isn't at all intrusive - it doesn't affect light in garden at all and is installed a height so as to be hardly noticeable when using the space.

It gives us the confidence to let him roam free in the garden and has made it easier for us to use the space too - we no longer have to keep doors and windows closed when going in and out to work and relax outside.

We're also confident the install will last too, the main fixtures and fittings are stainless steel and the netting a really high quality. Abate has also reassured us that if encounter any problems we shouldn't hesitate to call them.

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Abate Pest Management are delighted with the outcome of this project which may lead to others. It is reported that Feline immunodeficiency virus affects cats worldwide, with 2.5% to 4.4% of being infected.

If Abate can help your feline friend, please email sales@abateltd.co.uk.