Cats galore.
Everywhere you look, there are cats.
They meet you at the door, lounge in the sun, rest in their beds, or scamper across the floor.
This is life at The Hermitage.
Volunteers help socialize the cats so they are better prepared for adoption.
You can often find cats lounging in the sun on the outdoor cat-ios, curled up on a bed, prancing across the front desk, or hanging out with a volunteer.
“Our volunteers might look like they’re just playing with the cats – which they are – but they’re actually helping prepare them for adoption,” development and communications coordinator Diane Siefkes said on a recent Monday afternoon as a volunteer was surrounded by a few purring cats.
In the last year, Hermitage has had 185 volunteers log 26,701 hours.
They could use even more.
“Volunteers are such a huge part of our success here,” Siefkes said. “We have such a great team.”
The Hermitage No-Kill Cat Shelter and Sanctuary on East 21st Street, originally opened in 1969, is the only accredited cat sanctuary in Arizona. It focuses on providing shelter, medical attention and love to cats, some with special needs, chronic illness, or other medical issues.
The sanctuary has over 200 cats, ranging from kittens to seniors. The shelter is cage free; cats can be found wandering around, always rubbing up against the legs of visitors and volunteers..
The open-roam policy helps socialize the cats, making them more suitable for adoption. Constant interaction with the volunteers helps them open up, increasing the likelihood of finding their forever home.
Since it is warm year-round, there is no defined kitten season in Arizona. However, there is an increase of kittens during the especially warm summer months.
“We call June our Kitten Shower month followed by July as Kitten Monsoon,” said Siefkes. “Of course, we get kittens every month, so we’ve taken in 563 kittens since January first.”
Since The Hermitage is constantly receiving kittens, volunteers are vital in properly caring for these felines.
The Hermitage has brought in 563 kittens since the beginning of the year, and they will continue to save more.
In addition to playing with the cats, volunteers help scrub the floors, clean litter boxes, wash blankets and feed the cats.
“Working with animals, especially cats, is so fulfilling, so we really try to reach a variety of people,” said volunteer outreach coordinator Shi Hammar.
The Hermitage reaches out to retirement communities, college campuses and everyone in between looking for volunteers. They also host events on-site, including their Craft Fair, held several times a year.
“We host events here so we can get people to actually come out to the shelter,” said Siefkes. “Most people who have lived here forever had no idea about us.”
The more exposure for a place like The Hermitage, the better. Volunteers and donors help keep the shelter operational.
The Hermitage has many volunteer opportunities, such as playing with cats and cleaning the facility.
Donations can range anywhere from cat toys to food. Its Cans for Cats program, where people donate clean aluminum cans that the center returns for cash, has so far added $4,000 to the shelter’s coffers in the past year.
The sanctuary also accepts food donations that they can add to their on-site Food for People’s Pets community pantry.
This pantry has both cat and dog food and helps provide pet food to low income families as well as colony feeders, those people who feed neighborhood strays.
“We have volunteers from all walks of life, and people volunteering in so many ways,” said Hammar. “There are so many ways that The Hermitage can help fill your void.”
The Hermitage, located at 5278 E. 21st St., is open from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Visit hermitagecatshelter.org.
Over 200 cats are available for adoption at The Hermitage.
Arizona Sonoran News is a news service of the University of Arizona School of Journalism.
