Terms & Conditions

Last updated: May 2026. These terms apply to your use of this website and your engagement with Orkney Cats through adoption, fostering, volunteering and donations. By using our services you agree to the terms below.

Adoption Terms

Eligibility

• You must be over 18 years of age and must not have been convicted of an animal cruelty offence.
• All information provided on your application must be truthful. Any misrepresentation may result in you losing the privilege of adopting a cat.
• If you live in rented accommodation, we require proof that your landlord agrees with your intention to adopt a pet.
• If your pre-adoption application is successful, you must agree to a home check by one of our volunteers. We expect all members of the household to be present during the visit.
• Orkney Cats reserves the right to reject any application if we feel the situation is not suitable for the cat’s welfare.

Adoption fee

• An adoption fee of £50.00 per cat or kitten must be paid in full at the time of adoption by cash, cheque or bank transfer.
• The adoption fee goes towards covering the costs of the animal while in Orkney Cats’ care, including vet checks, flea and worm treatment, microchipping and neutering.

Adopter’s agreement

By signing the adoption contract you agree to the following:

• If, for any reason, you cannot keep the cat, you will contact Orkney Cats to find another suitable home. You will not sell, abandon or give the cat away to another person.
• You will ensure that all the cat’s needs are met and have considered all aspects of pet ownership including insurance, veterinary fees and feeding costs, and accept the personal and financial responsibility of cat adoption.
• If adopting a kitten that has not yet been neutered, you agree to have the kitten neutered by the recommended date provided by Orkney Cats and to notify us when this has been done.
• You will allow an Orkney Cats volunteer to contact you or visit to check that the cat is happily settled in its new home.
• Orkney Cats reserves the right to repossess the cat if the terms of the adoption agreement are not being adhered to.

Health & insurance

• All cats and kittens are vet checked, flead, wormed, microchipped and neutered (or spayed) before they are rehomed.
• To the best of our knowledge, cats leaving our care have not shown signs of illness or injury during their time with our fosterers. Where medical information exists, it will be shared with the adopter.
• We are not responsible for any health issues that arise after the adoption has been completed.
• When you adopt from us, you will receive 5 weeks of free pet insurance registered in your name. You are under no obligation to continue with the cover after this period.

Application process

• Due to the volume of applications we receive and our limited number of volunteers, you will only be contacted if your application is being considered. If you do not hear from us, unfortunately your application was unsuccessful on this occasion.

Fostering Terms

By signing the fostering agreement you agree to the following:

• You will provide your foster cats with loving care, including food, water, shelter, medication (when required), and proper exercise and socialisation. Food and other supplies will be provided by Orkney Cats.
• Foster cats must be kept indoors at all times. You should also gradually allow your own pets to interact with the foster cat during their initial period together. Your own pets should be kept up to date on vaccinations before and while a foster cat is in your care.
• Foster cats remain the sole property of Orkney Cats. You do not have the authority to keep or place your foster cat in any other home or with other individuals.
• You agree to be provided with contact information of potential adopters in order to arrange visits to see the foster cat. You will not retain this contact information longer than necessary to facilitate the adoption.
• If a problem arises with your foster cat that you are unable to handle, the Orkney Cats welfare team is your first point of contact.
• If you need to return your foster cat for any reason (including holidays or emergencies), you will give Orkney Cats as much notice as possible to ensure space is available with another fosterer.
• You assume all risks involved with serving as a fosterer. You agree to indemnify and hold Orkney Cats and its volunteers harmless from all liability, loss, injury or damages arising from your participation as a foster carer.
• If you decide to adopt your foster cat, you agree to pay the standard adoption fee applicable at the time.
• If you live in rented accommodation, Orkney Cats will require your landlord’s written permission to foster cats in your home.

Volunteering

• By submitting a volunteer application form, you agree to Orkney Cats processing and retaining the personal information on your form for purposes connected to your application.
• Orkney Cats may contact you about future volunteering opportunities based on the information you provide.

Donations & Friends of Orkney Cats

Donations

• All donations to Orkney Cats are voluntary and non-refundable. Donations go directly towards vet bills, cat care supplies and running costs.
• Orkney Cats is a volunteer-run community group and not a registered charity. We are therefore unable to offer Gift Aid on donations or subscriptions.

Friends of Orkney Cats subscriptions

• Friends of Orkney Cats subscriptions are recurring monthly payments processed by Stripe. You can cancel or change your subscription at any time by contacting us at info@orkneycats.co.uk.
• Payments already taken are non-refundable, but you will not be charged again once your subscription is cancelled.
• Membership perks are provided on a best-efforts basis by our volunteer team and may change, be substituted or be withdrawn from time to time. We will give reasonable notice of any significant changes.
• Digital benefits (such as wallpapers, colouring books, newsletters and Christmas cards) will be sent to the email address used at sign-up. It is your responsibility to keep this address up to date.
• Physical benefits (such as handwritten postcards for Top Cat Friends) will be sent to a postal address you provide. We cannot guarantee delivery to addresses outside the UK and may need to limit some perks to UK addresses only.
• Calendar-related perks (voting on the cover photo, submitting your cat’s photo) are subject to annual deadlines communicated by email. We cannot guarantee inclusion if submissions are received after the deadline.
• The annual Friends gathering in Orkney is offered when practical. Date, format and location may vary, and attendance is at your own cost.
• We reserve the right to decline or terminate a Friends subscription in cases of abusive behaviour towards our volunteers or misuse of member benefits. In such cases the subscription will be cancelled and no further payments taken.

Data Protection & Privacy

Orkney Cats uses personal data (as defined by the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018) for the purpose of achieving its cat welfare objectives. Specifically, we may use your information for:

• Processing and managing adoption applications, fostering agreements and volunteer placements
• Managing Friends of Orkney Cats subscriptions, including processing payments through Stripe, sending membership perks, and keeping a record of your chosen name for our Wall of Thanks
• Sending Friends-related communications such as newsletters, foster diary updates, calendar voting invitations and event invitations
• Keeping administrative records
• Contacting you in relation to a cat’s adoption and subsequent wellbeing, or about volunteering opportunities
• Following up on neutering commitments for adopted cats and kittens

We store the minimum personal information needed for each purpose. Friends subscription data (name, email address, postal address where provided, subscription tier and history) is held for as long as you remain a Friend, and for a reasonable period afterwards for our records.

Your personal information will not be shared with third parties except where necessary to deliver our services. This includes:

• Stripe, who process Friends subscription payments and one-off donations on our behalf (see Stripe’s own privacy policy at stripe.com/privacy)
• Foster carers, who may receive adopter contact details to arrange visits (fosterers will not retain this information longer than necessary)

We will not sell your data, share it with marketers, or use it for any purpose unrelated to our cat welfare work.

You have the right to access the personal information we hold about you, to ask us to correct it, to ask us to delete it, or to withdraw consent for specific communications at any time. If you wish to change your communication preferences, update your details, or find out more about how we use your data, please contact us at info@orkneycats.co.uk.

Website Use

• This website is provided by Orkney Cats for informational purposes. We make every effort to keep the information accurate and up to date, but we cannot guarantee that all content is complete or error-free.
• Cat availability shown on this site is subject to change without notice. A cat being listed does not guarantee availability for adoption.
• External links on this site (including to Cognito Forms, Stripe and social media platforms) are provided for your convenience. Orkney Cats is not responsible for the content or privacy practices of third-party websites.

Limitation of Liability

• Orkney Cats is a volunteer-run organisation. While we take every reasonable step to ensure the welfare of our cats and the accuracy of information we provide, we accept no liability for losses or damages arising from the use of this website or the adoption, fostering or return of a cat.
• These terms are governed by the laws of Scotland.