MARANA, Ariz. (KGUN) — The Whiskers and Wishes Cat Sanctuary started two years ago with a post on Craigslist.
“I just knew it was a lifelong dream for me to have a cat rescue,” said Emily Barratt-Shields, founder of Whiskers and Wishes.
That same day, Barratt-Shields received dozens of applications from people who could no longer take care of their cats.
"There was a huge need in the community and I didn’t even know that need was there,” Barratt-Shields said.
So Emily got to work: she bought a home in Marana and built three cat houses in her backyard. There she brought in senior and disabled cats that other shelters wouldn't accept.
“A lot of sanctuaries or rescues wont take those kind of cats because honestly it’s unlikely that they’re going to find homes,” Barratt-Shields said.
Since then, her sanctuary has adopted out a total of 203 cats.
“I’ve had so many adoptions where the stars align and these cats that have been struggling for such a long time to have homes finally get to have their very own place,” said Jaydon Cavallaro, a volunteer.
She has two other volunteers, and they all look after 25 cats on site. One volunteer comes all the way from Minnesota to help out. It all functions completely off of donations and a love of animals.
“We’re often unable to do the extensive stuff we’d like to do because of funding,” said Jolene Danner, a volunteer.
Emily says she has around 15 people a week asking her to take in cats.
To make a donation visit whiskerssanctuary.com.
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Perla Shaheen is a reporter for KGUN 9. Perla graduated in May 2020 from the University of California, Berkeley, where she majored in Political Science. Share your story ideas and important issues with Perla by emailing perla.shaheen@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
