Checks can be mailed to:  Shanti's House, POB 651, La Jolla, CA 92038
In-kind donations, Fed Ex, UPS, USPS shipments to:  Shanti's House, 1140 Wall Street, #651, La Jolla, CA 92038 

Shanti’s House

A Program of the Spay-Neuter Action Project

Saving Feral Cats from euthanasia, while supporting the community requires innovative approaches. We have completely raised the bar to what’s possible. We are the first to create and build a feral cat Pet Therapy & Comfort Pavilion on the grounds of a senior living facility.

With hopes others will emulate our business model, and with the goal of helping to control and care for the thousands of feral cat colonies that exist, we will provide free instruction, education, and A-Z hands-on mentoring for other organizations, senior living facilities, or individuals who may wish to create a similar pet pavilion on retirement facility campuses or other secure locations. 

Although our focus and immediate expertise is California - having successfully navigated and mastered the intricacies of licensing and code requirements here locally - the fundamentals of this unique feral rescue facility can be applied anywhere and we stand ready as a resource to provide assistance in any state. Given the increasingly interconnectedness of the world through the internet, we could easily help animal welfare groups in other countries as well, with start-up fundamentals unique to feral needs. 

Sad truth:

There are an estimated 60-100 million feral and abandoned cats in the U.S.

San Diego alone has an approximate 3000 + feral cat colonies.

Through no fault of their own, feral cats are forced to live a tragic existence and forced to endure:

• dog attacks
• disease
• starvation
• severe weather
• anemia - blood loss
• severe flea infestations
• abscesses and battle injuries
• predation from wild animals
• abuse and torture from cruel people
• bodily injuries from vehicle trauma 
• Feral cats typically live a brutal life of 2-5 years if they have a regular feeder
• some were once pets
• too expensive to care for
• placed inside plastic bags
• ditched and discarded like trash
• thrown out of a car window
• abandoned in foreclosed homes
   

Solution:

Now, imagine this alternative to abandonment and euthanasia: A multidimensional enclosed Feral Cat Pavilion with beautiful green gardens, trees, grass, lush plants, water fountains, solar lighting, and wind chimes. Most importantly: safety, shelter, food, water, medical care, and love. 

Accomplishment:

This isn’t a dream! It actually exists! In just two and a half years, we designed and built an extraordinary oasis for one of our cat colonies in San Diego, located on the site of a senior living facility. Previously the 50+ cats were living on the grounds and asphalt parking lot of this property and the adjacent strip mall. The cats were walking skeletons slowly starving to death, covered in fleas, anemic, injured, frightened, and un-fixed. They would timidly approach the senior residents desperate for food or scavenge in dumpsters where they sometimes incurred injury from razor blades and needles. Their future was animal control and euthanasia. 

Our immediate, urgent imperative was to secure the safety and well-being of the colony. We spayed or neutered every cat, one by one, and administered any necessary medical treatment. Remarkably our entire colony has tested FeLV/FIV negative. We then began construction on their new home.

Enrichment for senior citizens:

The Pet Therapy & Comfort Pavilion is entirely separate from the resident area and the cats live in their own compound with their own caregivers. They have five cottages of varied sizes, a secret garden, and multiple play areas which include a huge Podocarpus tree to climb, and a tree house. Except for the indoor cottages, the entire habitat is open on one side for resident viewing, with a large plexiglass wall providing unobstructed views of the central pavilion. Every morning, afternoon, and evening the seniors enjoy watching the kitties play. It’s a win-win for the senior residents who love the cats, many of them having known these cats since they were kittens.

First time experience:

Our ferals, like millions more, had never seen the indoors of anything before. They had never experienced a soft pillow or warm blanky under their bodies. Or felt a cozy kitty bed to curl up into. They never experienced toys or balls to play with. They couldn’t escape the hot sun or shivering cold that made their bones brittle. The cats never experienced a safe and quiet place to lay their head, never experienced not having to sleep with one eye open. And they never knew where their next meal was coming from. But now, for the first time in their lives they know what this feels like!! 

Results:

The pet pavilion is designed to live up to the principles of its namesake and has proven to be a place of “peace, rest, calmness, and tranquility” for the felines that are lucky enough to call “Shanti’s House” their home! 

Incredibly, since this endeavor began two and a half years ago, many of our ferals have become tame and crave human touch and companionship. They love being spoken to and have truly healed and thrived, resulting in over a dozen successful adoptions into forever homes. It takes a lot of patience and perseverance to build trust from ferals. We will continue on with this path and for every cat we adopt out we will connect with animal welfare organizations to take in older, sick, needy, or crippled ferals needing a safe, beautiful, and gentle environment.