Rescue cats for adoption and rehoming in and around Preston

Cats are easier to find close to home than dogs. Lancashire Cat Rescue, a volunteer charity in Penwortham, about 2 miles from the centre, mostly homes locally, and Woodlands Animal Sanctuary has a rehoming cattery at Holmeswood, about 10 miles south-west. English Barn Cats Rescue fosters cats around Darwen, about 11 miles east, and Cats Paws Sanctuary has its own sanctuary on School Road in Blackpool, about 15 miles west. Click a cat to reach its rescue, which takes your application.

Lancashire Cat Rescue asks a minimum donation of £70 a cat and £60 a kitten. English Barn Cats Rescue charges £95 for a cat or kitten, £170 for a bonded pair, and Woodlands Animal Sanctuary £95 for one cat or £180 for two.

Cats Paws Sanctuary asks at least £120 a cat, with four weeks' Petplan cover, and Carla Lane Animals in Need at Melling usually £135 for an adult cat.

Each rescue sets its own adoption fee. Cats Protection says you can expect to pay £80 to £120 on average for an adult cat and £100 to £120 for a kitten, varying between its branches, and Blue Cross fees start from £150 for cats aged 4 months to 7 years. The fee usually covers neutering, microchipping and first vaccinations, and each rescue confirms its own fee.

All of them want an appointment or an application first, and several have firm house rules, so read them before you fall for a cat (Lancashire Cat Rescue says visits are by appointment only).

• Penwortham: in at night. Lancashire Cat Rescue homes a cat only if it is kept in at night with a litter tray, prefers homes away from busy roads, and wants kittens neutered at about five months.
• Holmeswood: a three-stage process. At Woodlands you book a 30 to 45 minute visit to the cattery, a home checker follows up, and collection is usually 7 to 10 days after that first visit.
• Darwen: no busy roads. English Barn Cats Rescue won't home a cat within 200 metres of a busy road or railway, and homes kittens in pairs unless you already have pets.
• Blackpool: appointment only. Cats Paws Sanctuary sees adopters by appointment, and tenants must show a tenancy agreement that allows pets.

The RSPCA Preston & District Branch rehomes cats from its Longridge Road centre after a form and a home visit, and the RSPCA Blackpool & North Lancs Branch from Stalmine. We don't list RSPCA cats; look on the branches' own websites.

Pet cats in England have to be microchipped now, so a vet's scanner is the first stop before deciding a cat has no home. The council stray services are for dogs only.

Our guide to Preston cat rescues compares them, and our rescue kittens guide covers kittens, including the "for sale" searches. The kittens, older cats and bonded pairs pages list what is near Preston today.

Giving up a cat? Our Preston rehoming page lists who can help.