Tango (above), closely supervising Shauna as she cleans.

Desi (above) hitching a ride on Ranie's shoulder.

Shauna (above) mopping in Uptown Sun Room.

In her spare time, Ranie is also a Shadow Cats volunteer.

Shauna (above) cleaning Outback with power sprayer.

behind the scenes
at the sanctuary

Have you ever felt a little overwhelmed by all the work it takes to care for your cats at home – scooping, cleaning, feeding, and all the other things you have to keep up with every day? Well, multiply that by a whole bunch and you can imagine what’s involved in doing that for the Shadow Cats Sanctuary.

Every day the entire sanctuary is cleaned from top to bottom – swept, vacuumed, mopped, and scrubbed. And it’s probably a little messier here than in your home, since a number of our residents have…well…less than perfect litter box manners. We buy litter a thousand pounds at a time, which translates into a lot of scooping. All the food and water bowls in each room have to be cleaned and refilled, and the kitty beds and blankets washed. If this sounds like an awful lot of work, you’re right. What’s amazing is that most days it’s done by just one person!

We have a position at the sanctuary called “Kitty Nanny” that’s a much tougher job than the name implies, and is in fact the only paid staff position at Shadow Cats. Over the years we’ve had a number of wonderful Kitty Nannies whose hard work and dedication has kept the sanctuary running and ensured that our kitties have a clean and safe environment. Shauna is our current fulltime Kitty Nanny, and on her day off and for special extra cleaning projects Ranie fills in. How in the world does one person get all this done? If you’ve ever watched the KittyCam early in the morning you’ve probably seen Shauna in Cookie’s Place cleaning--- it’s the first stop on her daily rounds. And if so, you’ve probably noticed that on the Kitty Cam she’s always kind of a blur of motion because she NEVER STOPS…she hardly ever slows down from the moment she arrives until she leaves in the afternoon.

With so many cats, and quite a few with health issues, there are always a number of cats who need daily medications. That’s yet another one of Shauna’s many responsibilities. And when a kitty looks ill and needs to go to the vet, Shauna is usually the one to notice and take them to Central Texas Cat Hospital.

You might think that the most important qualification for Shauna and Ranie would be that they are hard workers. But what matters most, and is the reason they would both tell you that they work at the sanctuary, is that they really, really love the kitties. With all the work they have to get done, they still manage to notice when someone’s not looking quite right, or isn’t eating well, and find the time to give an extra treat or special feeding to an ailing cat who really needs it. And after all that work, you’d think Shauna and Ranie would be worn out…but they often stay extra hours and volunteer in order to spend even more time with the kitties!

So, Shauna and Ranie, from all of us at Shadow Cats…and especially from all the kitties…THANKS FOR ALL YOU DO!!!

Click on photos for larger image.