No Kennels, Just Comfort at Cat Care Durango

Looking for a furry feline friend to join your family? You can find one at Cat Care Durango, a cat rescue boarding facility and cat sanctuary. You’re watching the Local News Network brought to you by Sky Ute Casino and Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steak Burgers. I am Sadie Smith. Since opening in March, 2023, Cat Care Durango has provided a free roaming home-like environment for cats in need, while carefully matching them with adopters. Unlike traditional shelters, the nonprofit takes in fewer cats to ensure that they receive individualized care and medical and behavioral assessments before they’re placed in their forever homes.

Before we actually like to even discuss any particular cat with anybody, we do have an application, so we ask that anybody that’s interested in adopting, whether they know which cat they’re interested in, or if they just are interested in a adopting a cat, we will have them go in and actually fill out the application first. Once that application has been approved, we can then start matching them with a cat that fits what they’re looking for.

One thing you won’t find are kennels. All cats roam freely throughout the establishment.

Why we are different is because we are a free realm. We don’t use kennels here unless it’s absolutely necessary. So our cats all just kind of have the run of the place. This place is, the whole facility is actually built for cats.

Cat Care Durango is also a sanctuary. While all cats are available for adoption, some may be overlooked because of terminal illness or medical conditions that require lifelong care. These special felines, lovingly called sanctuary cats, have a permanent home with Cat Care, so they can receive the love, comfort, and medical attention they deserve for the rest of their lives.

Upon intake of all cats, we do an assessment. We do a medical assessment, we do a behavior assessment, and anything that’s medical we definitely take to our veterinarians.

In 2023, during the Maui wildfires, Cat Care Durango rescued several cats displaced by the disaster. Some Maui cats still need homes.

Our founder, Peggy Cammack, she funded a trip for several of us employees to go to Maui and bring back 12 kitties that had been displaced from the Lahaina fires. That was in 2023 when those happened, and so we brought back 12 cats. That was quite a challenge for sure, to bring them via, you know, the airplane. And we each had one as a carry on, and then we did have to put some down in cargo. We still have four of those cats, so we have adopted out several of them.

If you’re not looking to adopt, but would love to spend time with the cats, Cat Care Durango offers cat yoga where you can stretch your muscles surrounded by furry friends. Sessions are free, but donations are encouraged to cover operating costs. Additional details on adopting, donating, or volunteering may be found on the Cat Care website. For more information about this and other stories visit Durangolocal.news. Thank you for watching this edition of The Local News Network. I’m Sadie Smith.