How ordinary cats saved the village from desolation

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

There are plenty of dying villages all over the world - young people do not want to stay in the countryside, they leave for the city, and so small settlements are gradually left unattended and eventually disappear from the maps altogether. Perhaps the same fate could befall the village of Houtong in Taiwan, where coal was once mined, if not for ordinary domestic cats …

Once Houtong was on the territory of the Japanese colony and an excellent railway connection was built here - with the help of this railway, coal was exported from this area. In the best years, the mines of Houtong produced 220,000 coal a year, and 6,000 people lived in the houses of Houtong, which is a very decent figure for a Taiwanese village.

But already in the 1990s, the coal industry began to decline, and the youth of Houtong began to leave their native lands. Only a few hundred inhabitants remained in the village, the mines stopped, and the notorious railway was used less and less. It is possible that over time, Houtong would have completely turned into an abandoned place if one of its residents had not been worried about the fate of abandoned pets, namely cats. Without people, cats ran wild and multiplied, but just as often they died, not having enough opportunity to feed themselves.

In 2008, several local residents decided to change the situation. They photographed local cats and posted an advertisement on the Internet inviting everyone from all over Taiwan to come to Houtong and pet the cats, feed them and show that people can be considerate and affectionate. Suddenly this invitation was answered.

Since that announcement, more and more people have come to Houtong each time. Word of mouth went off. People came, chatted with cats, took photos, posted photos on social networks - and even more people learned about this place. Soon, amateur photographers began to come here regularly, wanting to take a picture with each kitten, as well as animal lovers who wanted to stroke all the lonely purrs.

Today, there are fewer cats in Houtong than the people living here, but they are definitely more famous. Arrogant ginger cats, affectionate black-and-white cats, and simple-minded tabby cats - all meet new visitors, seeking them either for a treat, or for their portion of affection.

The locals are happy for such attention - they organized the sale of cat-themed souvenirs, made sweets in the shape of cats, here and there they attached various images of seals - and even a large tunnel leading from the station to the city got ears and a tail.

Earlier, when this village was just being formed, both cats and monkeys lived here. On the emblem of the village, you can see all the symbols that this area was then proud of - a cat, a miner and a monkey are standing next to it. However, only the purrs have passed the test of time. Now everything in Houtong is tailored for them and for the tourists who come here. Souvenir shops meet visitors immediately at the railway station. And also everywhere you can find a set of rules of conduct. According to this list, visitors cannot chase cats and scare them, you cannot use a flash when photographing animals, you cannot leave food on the street and feed the cats with homemade food, but you need to wash your hands after communicating with animals and take all the garbage brought back with you together.

In our article [URL = "Animal Republics"/ Url] we talk about five places on the planet where animals have become the main ones.