A Nottingham woman has opened a shelter in her own home for disabled and elderly cats who struggle to find a home. Holly Brockwell who is based in West Bridgford currently has seven cats with various disabilities including four with wobbly cat syndrome.
Holly was inspired to create the shelter after she adopted an elderly cat called Maud. She said seeing the difference that love, care and affection made to Maud in the final months of her life inspired her to create Holly's Merry Moggies.
"I have always wanted to do this especially after I adopted an old cat who I nicknamed Furious Maud. She just looked so angry all the time and like she hated everything which was quite funny. She was in a real state when I got her as she looked as if she had been neglected and needed a lot of dental work," she said.
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"I sorted her health out and she was doing much better but then she was diagnosed with aggressive bowel cancer. I didn't think she had ever been loved so I wanted to give her that. We had about six more months with each other before she passed."
Maud developed a following on social media along with other cats at the shelter such as Smol Paul. Paul, a black and white cat, came to Holly when he was just six months old. Holly said he had come from a home where he had been exposed to heavy smoking so he stank of cigarette smoke. Despite his young age, he was coughing as his lungs tried to cope.
Holly took on Duck, a female cat with arthritis and several other cats with wobbly cat syndrome. Cerebellar hypoplasia is a developmental condition that affects the part of the brain that controls motor skills such as balance or coordination causing animals to wobble as they try to walk. It is not painful although it can cause animals to fall over more.
Despite their disability, the cats are incredibly playful and run up and down cat trees without causing themselves any injury. The house does a range of litter trays, food bowls, and water fountains that are placed at different heights so the cats can reach them despite their conditions.
"The disabled cats need a lot of accommodations in terms of their conditions and it's nice for them to be in a little group. They have created a little army between the four of them. They are always up to shenanigans in the house," Holly explained.
Everyday life of caring for seven cats with different conditions is difficult. Holly currently has 14 litterboxes that need changing, multiple feeding trays and also boxes of toys for the cats to play with. While the cats are not on medication, it does mean meticulous planning of special foods and knowing when the last flea treatment was.
Holly has a few chronic conditions such as fibromyalgia, endometriosis and hyperthyroidism which makes caring for the cats difficult. It also means handling some of the cat's medications with care as it may affect her own health.
"I have a lot of conditions too so I can relate to these guys quite a lot. I have fibromyalgia which causes a lot of pain for no reason so I have days where I can't get a lot done other than feeding and caring for them. I struggle to make sure I am looking after myself and forget to eat a lot," she said.
Another difficulty of running the shelter is cost as vet bills can mount up into the hundreds. Holly has opened a Patreon where cat fans can sign up and donate to the cat's care in order to get regular updates on them.
"My own health is a bit rubbish at the moment so I haven't been working as much as I normally do. It's less than ideal financially but we have a Patreon page where people are brilliant. There are people who subscribe every month and all they want is updates on how the cats are doing. They don't mind if I don't post for a month as they know the care is a lot of work," she said.
"We also have an Amazon Wishlist which has Feliway and litter on there which costs a fortune. We spend around £50 a month on Feliway hormone sprays to keep them happy. There are things you don't even realise like needing to run the dishwasher multiple times or the washing machine. People donate things like if their own cat doesn't like the food or old towels for bathing them."
Despite the difficulties, Holly says the change in the cats makes it all worthwhile. "When you can see the difference in them and say that is something you did. Some of them are so different now like Duck and her arthritis treatment. She is totally different and snuggles into my neck like a scarf at night while purring."
She added: "It's when they fall asleep in some ridiculous pose and you know they must feel safe to do that. That's what makes me happy as I can see they are much better off than they were and that makes me feel good. It's what keeps me going and getting out of bed on a bad day."
