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{\creatim\yr2001\mo3\dy23\hr18\min53}{\revtim\yr2001\mo3\dy26\hr10\min12}{\version14}{\edmins53}{\nofpages3}{\nofwords832}{\nofchars4154}{\*\company SMASS}{\nofcharsws0}{\vern8269}}\paperw11909\paperh16834 
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{\*\pnseclvl7\pnlcrm\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang{\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}{\*\pnseclvl8\pnlcltr\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang{\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}{\*\pnseclvl9\pnlcrm\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang{\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}\pard\plain 
\s1\ql \li0\ri0\keepn\widctlpar\hyphpar0\faauto\outlinelevel0\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \b\fs20\ul\lang1040\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp1040\langfenp1033 {ITALIAN JOURNEY \endash  PROGRAMME 2
\par }\pard\plain \ql \li0\ri0\widctlpar\tx0\hyphpar0\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \fs20\lang2057\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp2057\langfenp1033 {\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 
\par }{\b\ul\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 
\par ROME \endash  THE CAT LADIES
\par 
\par }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 
\par }\pard\plain \s15\ql \li0\ri0\nowidctlpar\tx0\hyphpar0\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \i\fs24\lang1040\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp1040\langfenp1033 {\fs20 Many people think Rome is a special place because of its history and its ancient monuments.
\par 
\par But Rome is also special because of its people, the Romans \endash  the people who make the community interesting.
\par 
\par Paola Cigna is a cat lady, a woman who spends her time protecting the 180,000 stray cats in the city.
\par }\pard\plain \ql \li0\ri0\widctlpar\tx0\hyphpar0\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \fs20\lang2057\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp2057\langfenp1033 {\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola, what made you want to look after cats? 
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola Cigna: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 My family have always been animal lovers: dogs, cats, all animals.  We could never kill a mouse, a fly, or even an ant.  Never.  
\par Anyway, I lived near a clinic where a lot of cats were abandoned all year round.  I began taking them in, finding them homes, feeding them, and that\rquote s how\'85 
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Everything started, partly through pity.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola Cigna: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Yes, partly pity, that\rquote s right.  Pity\'85 I always think about them when it\rquote s cold, when it rains, when it\rquote 
s too hot.  Basically I identify with them.  I\rquote ve always said that I\rquote m really a cat.
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 
\par }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella:}{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040   What are the biggest problems in your job Paola? Because what you do is really a job.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola Cigna: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Yes, it\rquote s a never-ending task.  As far as I\rquote m concerned, we never have enough time to sort out all the problems we have.  And then there\rquote 
s the cost, because you need money all the time: for food, for veterinary care. 
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella:}{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040  You\rquote re a cat lady.  Don\rquote t you mind being called a cat lady?  Because it also has negative connotations.
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola Cigna: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 It used to.  But you don\rquote t say \'93cat lady\'94 any more.  A \'93cat lady\'94 was an old lady with a
 paper bag they would put on the ground near the rubbish bins.  Now a \'93cat lady\'94 is someone who also takes care of treatment and neutering, and finds home for the kittens.  So I don\rquote t think \'93cat lady\'94
 is really the right word for someone who looks after animals.
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Do you do this every day?
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola Cigna: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Yes.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 How many hours a day?
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola Cigna: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Well, I get up early and when I come home I\rquote ve got more to do because I have a lot of cats at home too.
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 How many do you have at home?
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola Cigna: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 I\rquote ve got twenty-one.
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Twenty-one at home!
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola Cigna: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Yes.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 What does you husband have to say about it?
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola Cigna: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 My husband doesn\rquote t say anything about it any more.  He\rquote s got used to it.  Look at th
is wound!  Poor kitty!  I wonder what is wrong with it, poor creature. Hi Silvia.
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Hi Paola. 
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola Cigna: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 I really need your help.  Silvia, this is Gabriella.  I found this little cat at Celimontana, and I don\rquote t know whether it has been run over or if it\rquote 
s ill.  Can you give it an injection?  And keep it somwhere warm?  Shall I go through?
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Yes.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Paola Cigna: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 I\rquote ll go though.  Thanks. 
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 You\rquote re welcome.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 This is a cat shelter.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Yes, it\rquote s a shelter for homeless cats.  It is the last resort for strays or abandoned pets.
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Did you set up this place?
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 With my colleague Lea De Quel.  We started up seven years ago.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 So people abandoned them here?
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 They abandon them here during the night.  They leave them here, mainly anonymously.
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 How many cats are there in the shelter?
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 About 250 at the moment.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Lots, then.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Of course they\rquote re not just here in the shelter, they also live in th
e ruins, where, I have to say, they lead a pretty normal life.  I must emphasise that all of the cats are neutered.
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 So the first thing is to neuter them.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 The first thing.  It\rquote s our rule, so to speak.
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Why is that?
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia:}{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040   Because in Rome there are \endash  and not only in Rome, all over the world \endash 
 there are too many strays.  The rate of reproduction is terrifying.  A female cat can have 25,000 descendants in five years.  There are 180,000 stray cats in Rome, fed by an army
 of cat ladies.  The cost is met by money from their pockets and purses.  Hardly any of them are wealthy.  Many are poor.
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 But if you don\rquote t receive funding or aid from the City Council and you rely mainly on donations from volunteers, how can you manage to run such a busy place?
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Well, I am proud to say that these cats are alive thanks to the charity of people who come here.  Our visitors, both Italian and \endash  mainly \endash 
 foreign.  We also get a lot of help from the AISPA \endash  the Anglo-Italian Society for the Protection of Animals.
\par 
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Gabriella: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 What made you want to look after cats, and what joy, what satisfaction do you get from it?
\par  
\par 
\par }{\b\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 Silvia: }{\lang1040\langfe1033\langnp1040 I fell into it by chance.  Of course you start off by taking an interest and end up being completely involved.  But I am pleased because I\rquote 
ve never felt so at peace and so \endash  I\rquote m going to use a big word \endash  so happy in all my life, since I learned how to forget myself and to work with something outside my own life.
\par 
\par }}