Caboodle Ranch is an inspiration! What an uplifting feeling when you run across stories that are as positive as this when it comes to the animal rescue business. Cat abuse and neglect is rampant in the United States. Feral cat colonies can be found in pretty much any city. Just close your eyes and point your finger at the map and you will find a feral cat colony. For those of you that don't know, a feral cat is the homeless, wild offspring of a domestic cat. They are usually "feral" due to pet owner abandonment of the kittens. The owner didn't spay or neuter their cat; the cat has kitten; owner doesn't want kittens; owner abandons kittens to the streets.

Well, there is actually a man who has built an entire cat sized village to house abandoned, <a href="http://www.feralcat.com/"><span style="color: #0000ff;">feral cats</span></a>. I was so amazed to run across the <a href="http://www.caboodleranch.com/Index.html"><span style="color: #0000ff;">Caboodle Ranch</span></a> website. What is so amazing about this story is that the owner, Craig Grant, didn't even like cats. He was thrust into this business out of necessity. His son moved out of their home and had to leave his pet cat behind. Mr. Grant agreed to keep the cat and take care of it for his son. Unfortunately, they did not have the cat spayed and she ended up having kittens.

Grant's cats were becoming too overwhelming for him as well as his neighbors since he was living in a condo at the time. He ended up buying 30 acres of land amid a 100 acres of wilderness. Grant has actually built a cat sized village, complete with a Wal-Mart, and plenty of houses in which the cats can roam free, nap, and live happily ever after.

He currently has over 600 cats living on about 5 out of the 30 acres. Obviously he has plenty of room for expansion! He says he has the seal of approval from the area Humane Society and makes sure all of the cats get proper veterinary care, including being "fixed."

I would be willing to bet there aren't too many birds or mice to be found in Caboodle Ranch!

Please consider donating to the sanctuary. Mr. Craig has to work a regular day job in order to support this village and I am sure he would greatly appreciate any donations people are able to provide.