Anita Signorino, a teaching assistant at The British School Al Khubairat, has been a volunteer for Feline Friends Abu Dhabi, a cat welfare charity, for more than a decade. Here she talks about what has kept her involved in the non-profit organisation for so long.
When did you first volunteer for Feline Friends?
It was 12 years ago, when I first arrived in Abu Dhabi. I came from Kuwait and I knew even before I arrived that I would be involved because I checked out one of the books about Abu Dhabi and read about Feline Friends. I came to Abu Dhabi and pretty much got in touch with them straight away.
Does Feline Friends have any paid positions?
It is completely a voluntary organisation. Nobody gets paid; we don't have premises, so everything is done in our own homes.
How many volunteers do you have?
We have a long email list but the reality is that the core people, the people that are constantly doing stuff, [number] around 20. That's not counting foster 'parents'. But I am talking about the other parts of Feline Friends, the homing and fostering team, the trapping team, the emergency and general phone team. It's not enough and we do need a lot more people. I think a lot of people think it's a huge organisation but it's not. That's why we get so many burnouts. A lot of people join up in the beginning, but when they realise the load, a lot of people walk away.
But you have remained a volunteer for 12 years. Why?
My love for cats is the biggest thing. The support from my husband is another, because I wouldn't have been able to do a lot of things if he wasn't so supportive. It has always worried me that if I walked away Feline Friends wouldn't go on, which is not true at all. I am actually moving to Dubai soon and it will go on and get stronger.
What do you do for Feline Friends?
I became a trapper [when I first joined]. That involves trapping cats to be neutered and rescuing injured ones. Four or five years ago I became the trapping coordinator and my husband became the coordinator and treasurer, so it was pretty much a family thing because the kids got involved too.
Do you foster cats as well?
I did for a little while but I have three cats of my own and as they got older they just couldn't cope. We did enough rescuing and trapping, and we did a lot of fundraising as well, so I left the fostering to others.
How much of your spare time does it take up?
For 12 years it was a lot of time, probably too much. Pretty much I used to trap at least two nights a week and once you trap you have to release the next night after the operation, so I was pretty much out four or five nights a week. But it's my passion.
* Gillian Duncan
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Fixtures
Friday Leganes v Alaves, 10.15pm; Valencia v Las Palmas, 12.15am
Saturday Celta Vigo v Real Sociedad, 8.15pm; Girona v Atletico Madrid, 10.15pm; Sevilla v Espanyol, 12.15am
Sunday Athletic Bilbao v Getafe, 8.15am; Barcelona v Real Betis, 10.15pm; Deportivo v Real Madrid, 12.15am
Monday Levante v Villarreal, 10.15pm; Malaga v Eibar, midnight
Manchester United's summer dealings
In
Victor Lindelof (Benfica) £30.7 million
Romelu Lukaku (Everton) £75 million
Nemanja Matic (Chelsea) £40 million
Out
Zlatan Ibrahimovic Released
Wayne Rooney (Everton) Free transfer
Adnan Januzaj (Real Sociedad) £9.8 million
Australia squads
ODI: Tim Paine (capt), Aaron Finch (vice-capt), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Shaun Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye.
T20: Aaron Finch (capt), Alex Carey (vice-capt), Ashton Agar, Travis Head, Nic Maddinson, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, Andrew Tye, Jack Wildermuth.
UAE v Zimbabwe A, 50 over series
Fixtures
Thursday, Nov 9 - 9.30am, ICC Academy, Dubai
Saturday, Nov 11 – 9.30am, ICC Academy, Dubai
Monday, Nov 13 – 2pm, Dubai International Stadium
Thursday, Nov 16 – 2pm, ICC Academy, Dubai
Saturday, Nov 18 – 9.30am, ICC Academy, Dubai
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
T20 WORLD CUP QUALIFIER
Results
UAE beat Nigeria by five wickets
Hong Kong beat Canada by 32 runs
Friday fixtures
10am, Tolerance Oval, Abu Dhabi – Ireland v Jersey
7.30pm, Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi – Canada v Oman
HWJN
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Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
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The biog
Name: Abeer Al Shahi
Emirate: Sharjah – Khor Fakkan
Education: Master’s degree in special education, preparing for a PhD in philosophy.
Favourite activities: Bungee jumping
Favourite quote: “My people and I will not settle for anything less than first place” – Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid.
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
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if you go
The flights
Flydubai offers three daily direct flights to Sarajevo and, from June, a daily flight from Thessaloniki from Dubai. A return flight costs from Dhs1,905 including taxes.
The trip
The Travel Scientists are the organisers of the Balkan Ride and several other rallies around the world. The 2018 running of this particular adventure will take place from August 3-11, once again starting in Sarajevo and ending a week later in Thessaloniki. If you’re driving your own vehicle, then entry start from €880 (Dhs 3,900) per person including all accommodation along the route. Contact the Travel Scientists if you wish to hire one of their vehicles.
