A village head in the western province of Bolu province works hard to ensure the survival of the area's stray cats, who have been having difficulty finding food due to a dramatically reduced number of people on the streets following the coronavirus outbreak.Cengiz Aydoğan, head of Bolu’s Karaçayır neighborhood, noticed that the amount of food offered to street animals had decreased due to the epidemic. And so Aydoğan, who goes out wearing his mask as a measure against the disease, has started to leave food bought with the support of the locals and the municipality out for Karaçayır's furry friends.

Reporting that he was doing all he could to provide for the animals, Cengiz Aydoğan said, "Our locals are not enabled to give them food as they are at home. So we are doing our best (to feed them),” the village head said.

Caring for needy animals is an integral part of the Turkish culture, with local municipalities and ministries shoring up efforts to look after the country's feline and canine citizens suffering from a lack of food in light of the coronavirus outbreak.

Last week, Interior Ministry issued a circular letter regarding the protection and feeding of stray animals, urging local administrations to leave food at the designated locations on a regular basis so that the animals would not starve.

Many municipalities began providing food and water to street animals to prevent starvation and dehydration before the circular letter though. Stray animals are also vaccinated by local municipalities' veterinarians and are regularly fed.