Monday night, 13 cats have a new home in Louisa County, but they've had a rough time along the way.
Carol Roar thought she was doing a good thing when she saved the cats the day before they were scheduled to be euthanize at a Georgia shelter. She arranged for them to be sent to a home in Minnesota, but it turns out their fate at this new home was not much better. It was owned by a hoarder who treated the cats poorly.
When Carol went to check on the cats in Minnesota, they were all sick. They had lost weight, had respiratory problems, and some were even so ill they could barely keep their eyes opened. One cat, named Wendy, even died. So Carol began searching online, again, for anyone who would take them.
She finally found a home for her cats at a 225 acre animal shelter in Louisa County called Love for Animals Sanctuary. The shelter owner agreed to house the cats forever, if necessary, but for a cost of $500 per cat. That's when Carol set up an online auction for jewelry, with the funds going towards the cats' new home.
The Love Animals Sanctuary even set up a new program to help other cats in similar situations called "Home Fur Life," and named a new cat house after Wendy, the cat who died.
Debra Shindler, who founded the Love Animals Sanctuary, says that she will personally set up other online auctions for people who would like to raise the funds to send rescue cats to her shelter as well.
"That fee would actually go towards building our kitty houses and more kitty fences so that we can expand our cat facilities," she said.
The cats who narrowly escaped death twice, now have a bright future, and have even added to the bunch, with one of the cats delivering four kittens that are now two weeks old.
"There can be a happy ending for every animal just stay with it...keep trying," Shindler said.
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