Are all the cats at The Feral Farmhouse actually feral?

Most of our cats are pretty tame now, but the majority of them either started out feral or were kittens of a feral momma cat. If those kittens were born outside, then they started out feral, too. We've been lucky enough on several occasions to be able to befriend the momma cats before they give birth, in which case the kittens are born here. And some of the mommas have come from other kind-hearted cat-loving people who don't know what to do with this very pregnant cat they've been feeding! We've also had several instances of lone kittens showing up in our yard, or a house nearby, screaming their tiny heads off. Of course we catch them, bring them to our vet to get checked out, and then adopt them into the sanctuary. (And don't worry - we know all our neighbors pretty well and they know us and are aware of what we do, so we're quite certain we're not stealing anyone's kittens - they'd know where to look if we did!)
 

Did all of those cats come from your neighborhood?

While many of them have either chosen to live here or been born here over the years, we increased our population by quite a bit last year when Devon's mother came to live at The Feral Farmhouse. She'd been doing basically the same thing that we do, but down in Miami where she lived. So we now have her cats integrated into our sanctuary. Luckily the transition has been a smooth one for them. They truly love it here with their extended family!
 

Do you really take care of all those cats yourselves?

Yes! We really do! We know it may sound crazy, but for us, it's just easier this way. We've had people volunteer (even beg) to come and help and while we very much appreciate it, we also both suffer from varying degrees of anxiety, and that can make it more stressful to have someone else here than just doing it all ourselves.


 My goodness! Do all the cats live in the house with you?

Thankfully, although we don't live on an actual farm, our property is big enough to hold not only our house, but also several tiny-house quality sheds with porches, as well as both free-standing and connected catios and shelters. We're always updating and making  improvements, and we're currently working on extending our catio system so all of the cats will have more outdoor space to explore.
 

How long does it take you to feed 50+ cats?

Generally about two hours, twice a day. And that includes any clean-ups, scooping of litter, and cuddles/scritches as needed.
 

How many cans of cat food do you go through on a daily basis?

Our resident felines consume an average of 20 to 25 cans for each feeding, so, between 40 and 50 cans per day. Nobody goes hungry!


How much do you spend each week on cat food?

It varies, but usually somewhere around $500 a week. That includes dry food and litter.


Dare I ask, how much are your vet bills?

Funny you should ask that! We recently requested a tally from our vet to see how much we've spent since we've been enjoying this crazy adventure. The answer: An average of $9,000 per year. And that's just at our home vet and doesn't include the trips to any emergency veterinary facilities. That also doesn't include all the flea control, since we look for deals on that wherever we can get it, so it doesn't all always come from our vet.
 

You said you're not wealthy. How on earth do you afford all that?

Short answer: We don't. At this point, we honestly couldn't tell you how we've managed to feed and care for these guys, but somehow we just do. Perhaps it's easier to say what we don't do. We rarely go out to dinner, movies, things of that ilk. We don't buy one another expensive birthday gifts or go shopping for new clothes. We haven't taken a vacation for over two years now. We have one vehicle, a van that we share, which doubles as veterinary transport and helps with Feral Flowers delivery and markets, etc. We spend a lot of time looking for cashback deals and take advantage of those whenever possible. It all really helps! And, most importantly, we have some wonderful friends and family members who chip in to help with costs and give donations whenever they're able.


That sounds like way too much taking care of all those cats, even with a little help! Why don't you find other homes for them?

Because we're crazy. Please see our What is BNSA? section for more info. Or just suffice it to say that we love them like family and couldn't bear to part with any of them!
 

Okay, you're crazy, but I get it. What can I do to help?

Wow, thank you for asking! We've been lucky enough to be able to join forces with a wonderful organization called Chappy & Friends. They work as an umbrella for smaller animal rescue operations that don't have the time, energy, etc. to form their own nonprofit/501C3. You can make donations for The Feral Farmhouse through Chappy & Friends and get a tax deduction for your efforts. If you live near us and want to drop off any donations of food, litter, cat toys, treats, cat trees, etc., just let us know so we can arrange it. Once we have everything up and running, you'll also be able to purchase our merch. And if you're local, you can order your next bouquet or floral arrangement from Feral Flowers. Best of all, as we entirely understand the overwhelming desire to meet our cats in person, one day you'll be able to stop by for a scheduled visit at The Feral Farmhouse where you can hang out with the cats in the cat garden and shop at the Feral Flowers Acorn Cottage! It'll be a little while in the making, and until we make that dream a reality, we can really use those donations to help us build it. So, we thank you from the bottom of our feral hearts for anything you can give! For more information on what we call The Feral Farmhouse Project, take a look at our The Project/The Dream page.


That all sounds really awesome! I'd love to meet the cats someday! Um...this may be a silly question, but why do all the cats have more than one name?

We get this question a lot, and the employees at our vet's office love to tease us about it while they ask how to pronounce the new ones! For more information, please get ahold of a copy of The Naming of Cats by T.S. Eliot, and don't put it down until you've read it through at least a dozen times. That should explain everything. Well, most of it, anyway. Sometimes we just can't decide on one name, so they end up with several. The majority of the cats know and respond to their full names and enjoy any nicknames we hang on them as well.


Is The Feral Farmhouse Haunted?

Not by any scary ghosts or ghoulies, but we have encountered the spirits of most of the cats that lived here and passed on at one time or another. When we see them, it makes us happy because we know they're coming to visit. We talk to them all the time and they must know we miss them terribly. But we're honored to have been the ones who cared for them while they lived here. Feel free to ask us for stories when you visit. We're always happy to talk about our lovies on the other side!