Inside the Lanai Cat Sanctuary – Feral Cat Rescue Hawaii

On the quiet and often-overlooked island of Lna’i, if you drive up a dirt road that doesn’t look like much, you’ll find a unique paradise for cats and their furless friends.

The Lna’i Cat Sanctuary opened in 2009 because Kathy Carroll, who lives on the island, wanted to help cats. Carroll noticed that there were a lot of stray cats, and since Lna’i didn’t have any animal shelters or vets, the number of street cats grew quickly. So, she looked for a way to make a good change: a cat sanctuary. Carroll helps to protect native and endangered Hawaiian birds that nest directly on the ground, like the ‘ua’u, Hawaiian Petrel, by giving them a place to live.

The cat entrepreneur’s idea came to life when he built an open-air shelter without cages. They got the name “Lna’i Lions” from the big cat reserves in Africa. This is now how the cats are called. The refuge is a safe place for stray animals. There are tall trees to climb, nooks to sleep in, toys to play with, and different outdoor kennels to keep them busy. Since there is still no permanent veterinarian on Lna’i, there is also a high-tech mobile veterinary clinic with trained professionals who care for the health of hundreds of rescued animals and the pets of people who live there.

Executive Director Keoni Vaughn talks about what it’s like to visit the Lna’i Cat Sanctuary, which is almost completely off the grid, so don’t expect to post any cute cat selfies until you get back to the hotel.

“People who come to see us can expect to be greeted by our friendly caretakers, who will give you a quick tour of our open-air park-like sanctuary,” Vaughn says. “They will learn about our group and what we do to save cats and protect the birds that are native to the island.”

Vaughn says that people can stay at the sanctuary for anywhere from an hour to a whole day. When you walk into the main area, about 20 of the friendliest Lna’i Lions form a “welcome committee” and greet you. Later, “you can relax and hang out with the cats in shaded areas.”

Even though it’s free to visit, the shelter is only kept going by donations from visitors and a program called “adopt-in-place,” which lets people who can’t adopt a cat pay for its care at the shelter for the rest of its life from anywhere in the world. Last year, almost 10,000 people went to the shelter. Some of them came all the way from far away to play with the cats and spend time with them. To give you an idea of how many people visit the Pineapple Isle every year, there are only a little over 3,000 people who live there year-round.

As the sanctuary gets close to its 10th anniversary, Vaughn talks about what the future holds. He says, “Our goal is to keep saving cats and native and endangered birds by moving them to our sanctuary.” “We’d love to have electricity from the sun one day, and maybe even the internet. We’re doing the best we can with the limited resources we have right now.”

A planned expansion of the sanctuary will bring the number of cats living there to 1,000 from the current 600. The Lna’i Cat Sanctuary is open from 10 am to 3 pm every day, even on holidays. It is now a very popular place to visit and a big reason why people come to the island.

Topic: Inside the Lanai Cat Sanctuary – Feral Cat Rescue Hawaii

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By: Travel Pixy