Leia very quickly decided that she likes some creature comforts and moved into the house.

End of an era for animals in the mining industry

Four feral cats from a coal mine in Yorkshire have been re-homed by Cats Protection, marking the end of a long history of working animals in the industry.

Betty, Leia, Solo, and Florence had been kept at Kellingley colliery in Beal - the UK's last deep coat pit - where they caught vermin in exchange for food and shelter.

When the pit closed for the final time last month, concerned miners contacted Cats Protection's York Adoption Centre to ask for help in finding them a new home.

Now, all four cats are making themselves comfortable in their new homes - and jobs - after being moved in pairs to nearby farms.

James Hodgkinson, Cats Protection's York Adoption Centre manager said: “Feral cats are those which never received sufficient human contact as kittens and as such are not tame. While they are not domesticated, they are highly valued by farmers, smallholders or industrial settings like collieries as they provide an excellent rodent control service.



“The four cats at the Kellingley Colliery were very much valued by workers for keeping rodents in check. They had been well cared for by the miners who had provided food, water and shelter, and they were in great condition.”

The mining industry has a long association with animals, calling on the services of canary birds and pit ponies.  Originally cats were brought in to mines to keep pony stables clear of rats and mice.

Betty and Florence - named after miners’ wives Florence Anderson and Betty Cook, who took a prominent role in the 1984 strikes – were re-homed to Karen Scholey at her family's farm near Green Hammerton, Yorkshire.

Leia and Solo have also settled in to their new home at Amanda Beal’s livery farm in Beverley, Yorkshire.

“It is a true privilege for us to give them a home as they represent so much about the important mining history in the area," said Karen. "It was a very sad day for Yorkshire when the pit closed, and I’m just happy we’ve been able to at least help these two cats."



Amanda Beal added that both Solo and Leia (pictured) are settling in well. “Solo is most definitely very feral and we don’t see much of her – she’s busy keeping the mice under control," she said.

"But Leia very quickly decided that she likes some creature comforts and moved into the house. She is very nervous but enjoys human company so she must have been well looked after during her time at the pit.”

Image (C) Cats Protection