Amsterdam has allocated up to €100,000 to install steps along city centre canals to help cats out of the water.
The tiny wooden staircases aim to save felines and other animals from drowning in areas with high walls.
According to animal welfare organisation Dierenambulance Amsterdam, 19 cats have drowned in the city’s canals in the last six months – six of them in the city centre.
Judith Krom from the Party for the Animals (PvdD) proposed that Amsterdam spend an unused €100,000 fund found in the city’s biodiversity plan to fund the wildlife exit points.
On 10 July, the Amsterdam City Council voted in favour of Krom’s motion.
Steps will then be built at the highest-risk locations later this year to help cats safely climb back onto the shore.
In June, Amersfoort, a nearby city in the Netherlands, announced the construction of around 300 cat traps along its quays and canals this year. »