March 15, 2017 we received our tax exempt status from the IRS for “Nine Lives Cat Sanctuary, Inc.” We have been operating a cat rescue operation of sorts since 2002. It started in Key Largo, Florida, where the street we lived on seemed to be the drop zone for unwanted cats and kittens. Our outside cat, Gremlin, soon found her food dish being shared by feral kittens and stray cats.

The Director of Humane Animal Care Coalition, Marsha Garrettson, a super lady and dedicated animal lover held free spay and neuter clinics one day each month in Key Largo. To avoid being overrun by feline critters, we started trapping the kittens and getting them “fixed” thanks to Marsha. One or two would hang around while others moved on. One kitten was hit by a vehicle in front of our home and Wendy brought it in, wrapped it in a cloth and put it in a box. It was in a coma for two days. When it woke, it appeared to be blind. We bottle fed him every four hours night and day for about a month. He became an inside cat we named “Booger”.

The time came to leave the Keys and move to our get-a-way home we had been giving a total makeover in Ocklawaha which is in north central Florida. Ocklawaha’s claim to fame is because “Ma Barker” and her son Fred were gunned down by the FBI in a famous gun battle in the 1930’s. Monty arrived in Ocklawaha with his van stuffed full of cat cages and carriers containing 13 cats. It took several weeks for the smell to leave his van as one cat, “Momma Cat” had been in her cage over four days and was badly in need of being in a cleaner place. Monty prepared a 10 x 10 screened cage with plenty of hiding places for privacy next to our new home. Several of the cats were mortal enemies in Key Largo but adapted well during the sixteen days they were penned together. When he opened the cage, they slowly wandered out to get a better look and become comfortable with their new location. Only one, a small gray kitten we had named “Smokey” disappeared. We suspect he was nabbed by a family close by as an older and larger version of Smokey stopped by for a short visit eight months later to let us know he was okay and to say “Hi”.

Due to our new county’s regulations on cats, we constructed a pole barn style cage 40 x 16 x 10 that encompassed a large oak tree. We made ten individual "condos" which are heated during cold weather, several feeding stations and several hundred feet of planked cat runs up high, low and across which they chase around on and just hang out. We made two isolation rooms for new or injured cats to recover or adapt. Gustav, one of our Keys cats who had been badly chewed up by a dog or fox, had two broken legs and just got out of isolation. He gets around almost like new. We make improvements as we can. Recently we installed a metal roof replacing the construction tarp we had put over the plywood roof two years ago. A few leaks had started appearing and the rainy season was soon to come.

Our non-profit tax exempt company became necessary when our cat food and veterinary bills started exceeding our budget. We hope to be able to further our cat rescue and help others in need through the generosity of the public by donations to Nine Lives Cat Sanctuary, Inc. Your donations are tax deductible. Thank Mew.

Monty & Wendy Davis