When planning our trip to Asheville, NC, I happened to come across the Catman2 Shelter online. After reading more about who they are and what they’re about, I knew we were going to have to stop by for a tour. The shelter is actually about an hour outside of Asheville in a town called Cullowhee and happened to be “on our way.” It was the perfect way start to a wonderful trip!
So what is Catman2?
Let me tell you some fun facts about it…
- Catman2 Shelter is a no-kill shelter that was started by Dr. Harold Sims, a retired college biology professor and his wife, Kay
- It is located adjacent to the Sims’ home in Cullowhee, North Carolina
- They house 60-80 cats at most times of the year
- There are three large cat rooms, each with a large screened and fenced outside porch that the cats can freely come and go to through a cat door
- In the center of the shelter is a kitten play room, complete with a slide, climbing apparatuses and hiding places
- The shelter has one employee – the amazing shelter manager, Kaleb. They also have a few volunteers and fosters
- They offer a range of services to their community, such as low cost & free spay/neuter and vaccines, adoption services, rescue services when space is available, pet food assistance, resources for pet owners, Trap/Neuter/Return (TNR) services, and more
Is the shelter really as good as it sounds? No…
It’s even better!!!
Our Catman2 Tour
When Bobby and I arrived for our tour, we were immediately greeted by Sampson (one of the resident cats) in the driveway. Not too far behind Sampson was Kaleb, the shelter manager. Kaleb welcomed us to the shelter and took us inside. We chitchatted for a few minutes about our cats, only to find out that we both have CH kitties! So of course we bonded over that, sharing photos and swapping wobbly stories. 🙂
Then Kaleb took us around the shelter, introducing us to all of the cats who currently call Catman2 “home.” Something that stood out to me was the fact that Kaleb knew each cat by name. That is no small thing, considering there were roughly 75 cats there at the time! Kaleb knew each one’s name and was able to tell us about their backgrounds and personalities. I was impressed for sure!
Within the shelter there are several different cat rooms, each with their own platforms, multitudes of toys and beds, and access to a catio. There was the kitten room, a couple adult cat rooms, a special-needs room… each full of cats of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Catman2 is home to a wide range of cats, after all – young, old, healthy, special-needs, black, orange, spotted, striped, you name it. To Kaleb, Dr. Sims, and the volunteers of Catman2, they are all the same though. Just cats who need and deserve love and a forever home.
Where do the Catman2 cats come from?
Catman2 pulls cats from the Jackson County Animal Shelter. They would love to be able to help every cat they are asked to take, but they simply do not have the room, the people power, or the funds to be able to do so. They will always listen and offer advice though.
This last year, they achieved an amazing accomplishment! ZERO adoptable cats were euthanized at the Jackson County Animal Shelter this year due to the efforts of Catman2! WOW!
Wondering how you can help the cats of Catman2?
- Sponsor a cat! There are many residents of Catman2 who are considered “sanctuary cats” because they either have medical or behavioral issues that make them “less-adoptable.” Being a no-kill shelter, Catman2 would never euthanize a cat because he or she is old or unadoptable. However, these sanctuary cats still incur expenses that the shelter could use your help covering.You can choose a particular cat to sponsor for a month, six months, or an entire year. Read their stories and find out more about sponsoring a cat here.
- Donate! You can donate financially via check or Paypal through the shelter website. You can also donate specific items from their Amazon wishlist, which includes things like litter, deodorizer, cleaning products, etc. Find out more about how to donate here.
- Comment on this blog post! I will be holding a commentathon to help Catman2, so I will donate $0.50 for every comment left on this blog post (up to $50) between now and January 15, 2018.
Lone Star Cats says
Sounds like a pawsome place!
Summer says
OMC, Catman2 is SUCH an awesome find! Thank you for letting everyone know about this cat rescue!
Kelly Jewell says
Thanks for visiting Catman’s shelter & Museum!
Jessica says
What a wonderful place!
Catherine King says
I am glad you were able to visit the Catman2 Shelter. Dr. Sims and Kaleb have put their life into the shelter and I hope many more will visit.
Eastside Cats says
Impressive! Catman2 sounds like a classy operation. I hope that they discourage declawing too.
Emily says
They do NOT support declawing, thankfully!
Kimberly says
So glad you were able to connect with #Kaleb and tour the #Shelter while visiting the Asheville area. The Catman2 Sheler is near and dear to my heart as I adopted Abbriella from the Catman. Harold, has been rescuing Cats since the mid 1990’s and is now bringing his message of #CatsWithoutCages into the museum world as he opened the American Museum of the House Cat located in Sylva in 2017.
Random Felines says
That is amazing. We love hearing about small grass roots groups doing great things for cats!!
Teri says
We stumbled upon the house cat museum in August and it is fascinating. Monies raised through entries there in excess of costs go towards the Catman2 shelter.
The J-Cats says
We think that is wonderful! We hope all those kitties are adopted soon, but if they can’t be, it seems they are at least not only well cared for physically, but also loved.
The manager Kaleb sounds like a pawsome purrson. We were furry amused at his name, because in Hebrew, it means D-O-G (mol)!
Gretchen says
What a positive difference this couple is making in their community! Thank you for letting us in on their neat cat sanctuary!
Delaney Garris says
I love Catman2! I am a student at the nearby university, and I have to say Kaleb is great about letting students come to volunteer or just to de-stress by having playtime hours!
Harry Varnis says
Thanks for the write-up! I hope spreading the word will elicit more support for the shelter. BTW, I’m glad you were able to meet Rory the shoulder-clinging tabby kitten.:) Such a sweetheart. When I visited I had a hard time leaving without him, sigh.
Kitties Blue says
Sounds like a great place, but is hard to believe that just one person can manage that many kitties. Hope volunteers come daily. Thanks for sharing this with us.Astrid sends Sampy bushels of love and a kiss equal to the number of cats in the world. XOCK, angel Lily Olivia, Mauricio, Misty May, Giulietta, angel Fiona, Astrid, Lisbeth, Calista Jo, Cooper Murphy and Sawyer
Sandy says
What a neat place for a KCC adventure – sending good thoughts for adoptions and donations!
The Island Cats says
What a great shelter! We wish they were all like this. Thanks for having this fun commentathon to support it!
Chris Morrison says
I used to volunteer at the shelter years ago when I lived in Asheville, and of course I adopted a few cats along the way. The last of them, Boots, just passed away in March. Harold Sims has been an angel to homeless cats and I am glad more attention is being directed to the shelter lately as a result of publicity from the cat museum.
Karen says
Sounds like a great place! Love the fact #Kaleb knows each and every cat’s name and can readily tell each of their stories. That’s the mark of someone that truly cares about them!
Ellen Pilch says
That looks like an amazing place. How kind of you to do a commentathon.
Joyce says
Wow, this is a great article. The museum was already on my bucket list. I’ll need to add the shelter itself as well. Thanks!
Edie Chase says
That sounds like a great place. Thanks for having this commentathon.
The Swiss Cats says
What a wonderful place ! We hope all those kitties find a forever home soon ! Purrs
da tabbies o trout towne says
guyz….how total lee awesum that mom N dad R givin up green paperz ta help out Catman2
we send best best fishes that ewe all find yur for everz home by..ground hogs day !!
Catman2 rocks…984 paws up two ewe Kaleb N blessingz az well ~~~~ ♥♥♥
Connie - Tails from the Foster Kittens says
sounds like a lovely shelter. thank you for sharing it with us
Meezer's Mews & Terrieristical Woofs says
What a wonderful place for kitties to be in. They can all breathe a sigh of relief there and enjoy their days in comfort and in surroundings that would make even some kitties with real homes a bit envious…though there is nothing that can replace the love of having your own forever-peeps.
Thanks, Dr Sims and Kaleb for all you do!