Capalaba Cat Cottage’s calendar raises money for rescues. Photo: Supplied.
CONTRIBUTED BY ADELIA BERRIDGE, ON BEHALF OF CAPALABA CAT COTTAGE
Capalaba Cat Cottage is not just a boarding cattery. We literally have a 24/7 business, looking after people’s cats and kittens. We also work tirelessly to rescue and rehome cats and kittens.
In 2025, we rescued 348 felines! It takes huge dedication, passion, time, money and commitment to do this. Many of these are cats from North Queensland, Bundaberg, and Rockhampton pounds, and we save them from death row at the last minute.
We arrange road transport, sometimes flights, all vet work, two vaccinations, microchipping, desexing, flea and worm treatments, and offer new owners four weeks’ free pet insurance. On top of that, we need to house the darlings, feed them, bathe them, and promote them. We do this all using our own money.
Some cats and kittens come with illnesses and need medication, hospitalisation, veterinary services and even long-term treatment. This we pay ourselves. We take studio photos to advertise them, and need to continually post on social media to help find them homes. Sometimes, these cats and kittens are here for months, taking space from the boarding cattery.
Many times, we have rescued pregnant mother cats, so we need to keep them until they birth the kittens, raise the kittens (12 weeks), and sometimes bottle-feed them around the clock. We then need to give the mother cats time to recover, desex and find them homes. This takes around six to 12 months.
We never give up, and never send them to anyone else, just wait patiently until they find homes. Each year, we put together a Capalaba Cat Cottage Rescue Calendar, have it printed and sell it to help raise some funds.
Some cats and kittens are quite fearful, needing us to socialise, play with, and nurture them before they can go to homes. We had one here for two years! Other times, we have people asking to foster them, to help the cats and us. This honestly takes far more time than running a business! We even take many cats to shows to show them off and promote them, and often find homes for them that way. At each cat show we attend, each cat costs $40 to $45 to enter, so it is a sacrifice.
We supply all the cat toys and materials needed for rescuing and rehoming, and it is a far greater sacrifice than many imagine. We lose money; however, we save precious lives. It is a privilege and a joy, but it is hard work.
