Cats tend to push people to the outer limits of response; very few people I know can simply take ’em or leave ’em.
The Missus and I are squarely in the cat-loving circle. Except that she developed severe respiratory allergies to cat fur and dander in recent years, we’d probably still be hosting nine or ten of the little beasts instead of letting the supply, well, dwindle. (We’re down to two now.)
The current issue of a local magazine, though, has a story (not yet online) about someone who really cares about cats. His name is Craig Grant, and he’s the proprietor of something called Caboodle Ranch: a 30-acre chunk of the North Florida woods functioning as a sanctuary for feral or otherwise unwanted cats.
Grant is a retired builder who’s turned his talents and, well, pretty much his whole life over to several hundred cats. (The photo above is the so-called Gingerbread Lane — a street of cat-scale houses, picket fences, and so on. More photos of the ranch’s facility are available at its LiveJournal photo gallery.)
One thing that really got to me was a quote from Grant at the very end of the article, comparing his pre-Caboodle life to what his 14-hour seven days a week are like now — when he owns nothing which isn’t cat-related:
I had the biggest house on the street when I was raising my family… All show. I had a Corvette. My wife drove a Volvo. I had a new truck for the business. I had everything, but I was miserable. Now I’ve got nothing, and I’m happier than I’ve ever been. Isn’t it amazing?
I think I was too busy trying to make it perfect with money, thinking I could buy my happiness — and all of a sudden it showed up.
(This is seriously reminiscent of a post at literary agent Janet Reid’s blog a couple days ago.)
Among the other gems available at the Caboodle Ranch Web site is this video, of Grant doing one of his big feedings. (Every couple days he loads up a wheelbarrow with cans of cat food and makes deliveries all around the ranch. While providing nourishment for the cats, these rounds also enable him to do an informal head count, to see who’s injured or outright missing.)
As an aside, note that it costs around $6,000 a month to run Caboodle Ranch. And it’s pretty much a one-man show; no telling what will become of it — and its non-human majority population — when he’s gone.
Tessa says
You can number me among the cat lovers also. I’ve mixed thoughts on Caboodle Ranch. When I was in Greece a few years ago, I shared all my meals with the stray cats that abound in the Greek Islands. One of my travelling companions pointed out that I was wasting my time, as most of them die of starvation when the tourist season ends. I found myself remembering that as I read your post, and wondering what will become of these animals when this obviously well-intentioned man can no longer look after them. Perhaps the article you mention will raise enough public awareness to lead to some kind of charitable trust being set up? One can only hope.
Querulous Squirrel says
Both astonishing and very sad that so many very beautiful animals are homeless and their future so grim. When you have one, you love it so much, it’s hard to imagine…
John says
Tessa: A couple months ago I read about a farm/ranch for homeless cats in, I think, North Carolina. That place was fairly well-established, as I recall, with a staff on hand and so on. Like many (most?) non-profits, it never did NOT need money, but it struck me in retrospect as being better off than Caboodle Ranch.
That said, I don’t want to bang the “donate please!” drum too loudly. So many worthy causes — counting one’s own family — and such limited means these days, spread among far too many people.
Whole thing breaks my heart. No easy answers, eh?
Squirrel: Absolutely know what you mean. When The Missus and I moved to our present home in 2001, we managed to transport about a half-dozen ferals we’d “adopted” (including shots, neutering/spaying, all that). I’ll have to tell that story here someday — it’s pretty entertaining in its own right.
The best/worst thing about getting attached to feral cats is that you so seldom know what actually becomes of them; after 7+ years of feeding them, eventually winning a limited sort of trust, all the rest, actually to have one die (as opposed to simply disappearing) is wrenching. That happened with one — the last — and I think it convinced us never to adopt another stray.
(Otoh, haha, they don’t always wait to be adopted — it’s kind of confusing, who’s adopting whom. :)
marta says
I like cats and have shared living space with a few, but I’m a dog lover through and through. But with any animal (or person for that matter), taking care of the unwanted, the doomed, or what have you may be wasted time or prolonging their suffering or many other complicated things.
But I read something in His Dark Materials which sort of captured my thoughts on the matter. The gist–every life has value for its owner. Maybe these cats will be lost later. Maybe not. But I figure I’ve got here and now to do something to ease that life, so that’s what I ought to do.
In this scene in Pullman’s novel the boy wants to put an animal out of its misery and Lyra tells him not to. She says something else to the effect that the animal may prefer his suffering to death. We can never know. I’m not sure who I even agree with in their argument, but it has stayed with me all this time.
Good for crazy cat man.
John says
marta: All the so-called “controversy” over Pullman’s trilogy struck me as so much bunk. (Sad to say, predictable bunk.) But the world he created — specifically in this case, what he expressed about the bonds between people and animals — was exquisite. I mean, the bit about daemons, companions symbiotically bound to his characters: he could have done lots of things instead… assigned guardian angels to everyone, say, or little personal pixies. He could have anthropomorphized the notion.
But nope. He chose animals as his daemons. Brilliant.
The Animal Planet cable channel often shows documentary clips in which, say, a pack of wolves attack a struggling elk. The Missus identifies with animals so strongly that she can’t watch such scenes, and I know it sometimes occurs to me, too, How can the film crews just watch this stuff without intervening?
The thing is, we’ve gotta pick and choose our battles. Life is only so long, so on and so forth. We can’t do everything but we can do some things. And although, as I said in a comment above, I worry about the fate of Caboodle Ranch in the future, in the here-and-now I can’t help thinking, y’know, I’m glad that thanks to this guy, these cats of this generation have something a little extra.
Messy dilemmas.
Sarah says
Messy dilemna, yes- but a perfect setting and premise for a short story or a novel, yes?
John says
Sarah: Oh great, just what I need — another writing project to distract me!
(Kidding, of course. You’re right, and I can see all sorts of twists on the story in question — from raw genre stuff, a la King’s Pet Sematary, to the more literary.)
Nanette says
Okay folks, I am here to put everyone’s mind at ease about Caboodle Ranch. I have worked side by side with Craig Grant for the past 2 years and he has been training me to run the ranch in case of emergency, illness etc. I know the cats like they are my own, I know what chores need to be done, which cats need special attention.
I became his assistant 2 years ago when I brought him 30 abandoned cats from North Carolina. He was the only person who would take them in after pleading with several states, sanctuaries or shelters. Since then, I have dedicated my time to being a lifetime Caboodle Volunteer. My husband and I build the gingerbread houses for the kitties as well.
I recently got a good taste of tending to the ranch when he was severely ill from a cat bite. I was at the ranch at all day, but as well as midnight to 3am tending to hungry newborns and topping off feeders. He was able to rest and know that everything was taken care of as if he did it himself. I am fully prepared to watch over the ranch when the time arises.
We talk several times a day and he keeps me updated on newcomers, missing cats, special needs kitties etc, so that I know where to step in at a moments notice.
The sacrafices Craig has made trying to make a difference is not only heroic but beautiful. It’s a shame so many people turn their backs when they too CAN make a difference. Anyone can buy some land (extremely affordable in his area) and start a ranch and save lives. He dreamed it, believed in it and achieved it. And those precious beautiful cats have a second chance to live out their lives in a natural environment.
Animals don’t have the option like you and I do to go to McDonalds and get a burger when they are hungry. They have been “thrown away”, and are now called feral or stray. Their little bellies rumble and they hope someone will care enough to turn their life around. All too many walk away and try to assure themselves that ‘someone’ else will help them. Well, Craig took it upon himslef to try and change all that. One cat at a time. Sure it can be overwhelming, but he’s got 500 pairs of beautiful eyes that look at him and thank him every day , when otherwise they would have been suffering.
It does take alot of money to run the ranch and donations are needed, but rest assured, EVERY single penny goes to the care, feeding and shelters for those cats. Thank you John for posting the story about Craig that just came out. If I can answer any questions please email me. Nanette
John says
Nanette: THANK YOU for that information, full of reassurance as it is! (And I apologize if I overlooked any mention of you in the magazine article… it really did give the impression that this was a one-person show. :)
Nanette says
Actually, it IS a one person show. Craig does everything himself, 24/7. I drive down from North Carolina once a month, and spend 7-10 days at the ranch working with Craig. Sometimes I bring him newly built Gingerbread houses for the kitties (or this last trip it was their very own Wal-Mart!), and often times I have rescued kitties coming to “Camp Caboodle” to live from NC or Virginia.
For the last 2 years its the best I can do until my husband and I are able to relocate to the area. It is extremely hard to find reliable local help for the ranch. Volunteers are very few. Most complain that the drive is too far (an hour or hour and half), then I tell them I just drove thru the night from NC, 13 hours. LOL So Craig relies on Craig. His babies rely on him completely. He lives onsight, and is never away from the ranch for more than a handful of hours to get supplies. I enjoy being able to watch over things and give him a MUCH deserved day off when I am down there.
It will be wonderful when that day comes, when a few more wonderful souls will come to the ranch and decide to give a few days a week, or a month. Our newest committed volunteer is from New York! She comes down once every 3 months for a week! Times are tough though and Craig understands that. It will happen when it happens.
So in the meantime, he’s got the crazy cat lady from North Carolina who is also crazy for the oodles of Cabooldes :-)
Jasmer says
I cannot find anything that proves Caboodle Ranch really exists, other than the website. I have called several times, but no answer. My friend and I would like very much to donate supplies and maybe even some time, but we have to know that this is legitimate. We were in Live Oak yesterday and no one seemed to know where Caboodle Ranch is. I live in Tallahassee and my friend lives in Jacksonville. We met in Live Oak wanting to visit the ranch, but have no idea where it is. Please help. Thank you.
John says
Jasmer: On the other hand, I can’t find anything that proves it DOESN’T exist. :)
Seriously, though… For starters, check this page (including the comments). You could probably contact one or more of them, some of whom have actually worked there. (I’ve never been to it myself.)
I also found a reference to it at Google Maps, which seems to indicate that it’s actually located in or near Lee, rather than Live Oak. Here’s a link to that map — it’s place marker “C”. The marker was placed by someone/some agency or other organization named “Lee News,” which may be the name of a local newspaper.
Let me know if you find out more specifics.
Hope that helps!
Bella says
Unfortunately, things have gone downhill at Caboodle Ranch. One person can’t take care of so many cats. I was there a couple months ago and witnessed mass suffering and filth. Many people want to help but the owner, Craig, doesn’t want volunteers. He doesn’t think anyone can handle the cats like he does. Sadly, during my time at the ranch and after many long conversations, I learned this man is a hoarder. I know he started with good intentions but hoarding is a sickness and he can’t see the filth and suffering like normal people do. He doesn’t even adopt out the cats. He told me he wants all the cats in the world. He is totally out of reality. You can read about some sad experiences at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Caboodle-Ranch-Save-the-kitties/105068689556781
John says
I’m so sorry to hear this about Caboodle Ranch, Bella. Thank you for the report nevertheless; I can’t get to the FB page while here at work, but will be sure to visit when I can from home.