Zen Cat Sanctuary

10/19/2026

MONDAY MUST-HAVES: Finishing the Build-Out, Plumbing Our Sink, and Asking for Your Grace 🐾🙏

First, a HUGE thank you to everyone who dropped off and sent in-kind donations over the weekend! Having those food and litter supplies come in right on time took a massive weight off our shoulders. You guys always show up when the cats need it most. ❤️

I apologize for sounding like a broken record lately, but we cannot let our foot off the gas now—we have to keep pushing for renovation donations to get our new facility at 713 5th Ave across the finish line for the cats.

Take a look at this photo. This is what my sink looks like twice a day, every single day. Dozens of food bowls, water dishes, and refill bottles have to be scrubbed, sanitized, and rotated often twice daily to keep everyone healthy. Right now, at the new building, the only running water we have is a tiny half-bath vanity sink that isn't deep enough to fit a water bottle under the faucet—let alone scrub 40+ bowls twice a day, scrub litter pans, or bathe and groom cats that need medical hygiene care.

Thanks to a generous donor, we already have a farmhouse sink and our commercial grooming faucet on hand! Our #1 Monday Must-Have today is the funding to get that sink plumbed and installed, along with finishing our remaining floor and wall prep so the new building is fully operational.

A Transparent Update—And a Request for Grace:

It is never easy to share the personal side of running a rescue, and honestly, it takes a lot of vulnerability to put this out there. Because I started this sanctuary in my own home, the transition to our new commercial space has come with immense personal pressure. Right now, the pressure and timeline to vacate the home where I have lived since 2008 is closing in fast, and every ounce of my time, energy, and resources is going into making sure the cats have a safe, finished place to land before I figure out where I am going to land myself.

At the moment, I am essentially carrying the daily physical workload across two locations—running full care and sanitation shifts at the new building while feeding, caring for, and working to safely trap and transport the remaining cats at the house (our most fearful, hard-to-catch cats! Many originally brought to us through TNR efforts).

If you have called, texted, or messaged me recently and haven't heard back, please have grace with me. I am not ignoring you—I just physically do not have the bandwidth to keep up with messages while working around the clock to get every last cat safely moved. I do not have staff, employees, or volunteers during the day. Specifically, I have 2 volunteers to help with litter, cleaning, and cat care on Wednesday afternoons, 1 volunteer on Thursday mornings, 2 on Saturday afternoon, I have amazing helpers every other Sunday morning, and I am always blessed with sporadic help throughout the week as people's busy schedules permit. Otherwise, I'm scrambling every day to just keep up. So text is always best. I am always behind on messenger and voicemail and its not intentional. I appreciate your patience and understanding.

Despite the pressure, I am optimistic, staying positive, and keeping my head down because these cats don't have a Plan B. They need me to be present and a good version of myself. We are going to get them squared away, and I am trusting that my own personal path forward will come together once they are safe.

How You Can Help Us Push Forward Today:
💛Donate Toward Plumbing & Build-Out Costs: Every single dollar moves us closer to getting our sink plumbed and finishing the cats' rooms:
⭐️GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-zen-cat-sanctuarys-mission
⭐️Venmo:
⭐️Cash App: $zencatofficial
⭐️PayPal: [email protected]
⭐️Check/Credit/Debit (DonorSnap): https://forms.donorsnap.com/form?id=3A4CC371-D1B9-46AB-B511-EED047BC0D6F

⭐️In-Kind Supplies (133 Broadlawn Drive, New Kensington, PA 15068): Paper/pine pellet litter, IAMS dry adult/kitten/senior food, wet kitten food, paper towels, and 13 gallon trash bags are always needed.

🙏Patience & Prayers: Please bear with me on communication over the next week as I focus on trapping and moving the remaining cats, and keep us in your prayers!

Thank you for believing in this mission, standing by the cats, and giving me the grace to get them all safely home. 🐾❤️
— Tony
Zen Cat Sanctuary

10/15/2026

🐾 MAJOR RELOCATION UPDATE: Big Progress, Urgent Needs & What's Next 🐾

The transformation of our new facility continues to move forward thanks to an incredible community effort. While we've made major progress over the past week, there is still a tremendous amount of work ahead to turn this building into the fully functioning Zen Cat Sanctuary our cats deserve.

⚠️🐈‍⬛️TL;DR in comments!️♡☆○~

💜 A Huge Thank You 💜

Nearly 40 cats have safely transitioned to partner shelters and rescues over the past few weeks.

We're deeply grateful to Dr. Becky Morrow and Kelly at Frankie's Friends, their entire clinic team, Trooper Rousseau, Officer Tia, our rescue partners, transporters, and volunteers.

Whether you took in cats, coordinated placements, provided veterinary support, drove transport routes, or helped behind the scenes, this progress would not be possible without you.

🔨 Segregation Rooms: Almost Complete!

Our quarantine and segregation rooms are critical to bringing cats into the new facility safely, and we're excited to report that 3 of our 4 segregation rooms have their flooring complete.

Special thanks to:

• Linda, who donated tile to get us started
• Christian & Cole who installed tile in the 3 rooms
• Neil, whose expertise has helped plan the project
• Ellie, who donated eight more boxes of tile so we can finish the final room

The tile for the other rooms was made possible through general donations, GoFundMe contributions, and direct gifts from supporters responding to posts just like this one. Every donation is helping transform an empty building into safe, durable space for the cats.

🛠️ Quick Help Needed

Before we can tile the fourth room, we need a small section of concrete along one wall leveled down.

If you have an angle grinder and a little masonry experience, please send us a direct message. This small project will allow us to finish the final segregation room.

🧱 Next Steps

Once flooring is complete, we'll move straight into installing baseboards and FRP wall panels.

After that, we still have significant work ahead, including additional flooring and wall finishes throughout the facility, construction of our food preparation area, laundry area, medication and treatment space, continued build-out of the cats' living areas, and countless other details required to make this building fully operational.

Every completed room brings us closer, but there is still a long road ahead before this space becomes the Zen Cat Sanctuary we envision.

📦 Immediate Cat Supply Needs

We're running low on:

• Paper pellet litter
• Pine pellet litter
• Wet kitten food
• Dry cat food -we're out!

📍Please Continue Shipping Donations To:

133 Broadlawn Drive
New Kensington, PA 15068

**Please do not send deliveries to the new facility just yet.** We'll announce the official transition as soon as we're ready.

💙 DONATIONS URGENTLY NEEDED 💙

We're incredibly grateful for how far we've come, but we also want to be transparent: we are nowhere near done yet.

The segregation rooms are just one piece of a much larger project. We still need to complete additional flooring and wall finishes, build out our food preparation area, laundry area, and medication space, continue outfitting cat rooms, and purchase the materials needed to make this facility fully operational.

Our $45,000 GoFundMe goal wasn't picked at random. It was based on the very real costs of transforming an empty commercial building into a safe, clean, functional sanctuary for cats. As construction continues, those needs become more evident every day.

The progress you've seen in recent updates is the direct result of donations, building materials, and supporters responding to posts just like this one. Every box of flooring, wall panel, tool, and construction supply has been made possible by people who believe in this mission.

That's why we have to keep pushing.

We need continued financial support, continued sharing, and continued donations of building materials and supplies to keep this project moving forward. While we've accomplished a tremendous amount together, there is still a tremendous amount left to do.

✨️⭐️💛Every donation helps bring us one step closer to opening the doors of the new Zen Cat Sanctuary.💛⭐️✨️

• GoFundMe:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-zen-cat-sanctuarys-mission

• Venmo:
• Cash App: $zencatofficial
• PayPal: [email protected]
• Donate with Check:
https://forms.donorsnap.com/form?id=3A4CC371-D1B9-46AB-B511-EED047BC0D6F

Thank you for believing in this mission and helping build this sanctuary one room at a time. Every donation, supply shipment, share, and encouraging comment has helped get us this far.

We're making real progress, but we still need your help to finish the job.🐾❤️💪

10/09/2026

Cole, your floor passed inspection. Great job! Thank you again, brother. If anyone needs a handyman just reach out. We know a guy.

10/08/2026

UPDATE: I am completely blown away and so deeply grateful. ❤️🐾

​The response to my last post has been truly overwhelming in the best way possible. Thank you so much to everyone who reached out, commented, shared suggestions, and offered words of encouragement and support.

​A massive, heartfelt shoutout to Cole Bauman, who showed up and completely redid that tricky floor for us. Having someone step in and handle that made an indescribable difference, and we are so thankful for your time and hard work!

​Seeing the community rally around Zen Cat Sanctuary reminds me why we do this. Thank you all for listening, helping, and being in our corner—we couldn't bring this sanctuary to life without you! 🐱✨......

🚨 Calling for a little help! 🐾🛠️

​I’m hitting a wall and could really use a hand. I've spent hours trying to tackle the flooring myself and just wasted 3 boards on this single doorway. I only have 2 boxes left, and that's all I've got to finish this room—plus we still have three other segregation rooms to do before we can bring the cats in.

​Right now, it's just me doing all the work, and every hour spent struggling here is time away from caring for the cats.

​If anyone has experience with laying click-lock flooring/doorway transitions, or is willing to lend some time and know-how to help get this space ready for the rescues, please reach out! Any help would mean the world to me and the kitties. 🐱❤️

​Please comment below or send me a DM if you can assist!

10/07/2026

🐾 By request, our classic Zen Cat Sanctuary logo is back on some special tees, sweatshirts, and hoodies in colors you won't find in our regular store!

Take a look, grab your favorite, and help shape the future for our cats. 💙

Also, would you wear a white logo or stick with the classic black logo?

🤍 White
🖤 Black

Comment below! 🐾

Save Zen Cat Sanctuary!. Zen Cat Sanctuary Classic Logo Collection Our classic Zen Cat Sanctuary logo represents every rescue, every second chance, and every cat whose...

10/05/2026

🚨 MONDAY MUST HAVES: HELP US BRING OUR CATS HOME 🚨

Before we get into today's urgent needs, I want to take a moment to thank a few people who crossed our path this morning.

Rescue work is rarely perfect, especially during a major transition, and what could have easily been a stressful situation was instead met with kindness, professionalism, compassion, and grace. That understanding meant more than I can adequately express. Thank you for seeing both the challenges we are facing and the future we are working so hard to build for these cats.

Now, more than ever, we need to finish this move.

For nearly two months, our rescue cats have been living through a major transition.

Many are still waiting in temporary setups while we work around the clock to prepare their permanent sanctuary space. They don't understand construction delays. They see their space being emptied, routines disrupted. They don't understand leases, flooring, moves, or utility transfers.

They only know they're waiting.

And after everything they've already survived before rescue, they've waited long enough.

We are moving right down the street from Frankie’s Friends, and the finish line is finally in sight. Every room we complete means more cats can be safely transferred into a clean, sanitary, permanent environment.

Today's Monday Must Haves are urgent, immediate, and directly connected to getting cats moved into their new home.

❤️ SPONSOR A BOX OF FLOORING

We are installing 100% waterproof, commercial-grade vinyl plank flooring so these rooms can be properly sanitized and used for medical segregation and rescue intake.

Pergo DuraCraft LVP – Rochelle Oak
Lowe's Item #6018127
Model -930

💲 Approximately **$58 per box**

Just 8 boxes fully completes an entire segregation room and allows cats to move in immediately.

Every box donated brings us one step closer to opening another room.

❤️ SPONSOR SANITARY FRP WALL PANELS

To keep quarantine and medical spaces disease-free, we need durable washable wall panels that can be thoroughly disinfected between rescues.

Sequentia 48" x 96" White Embossed FRP Panels
Lowe's Item #8566

💲 Approximately $35-$40 per sheet

These aren't cosmetic upgrades.

They are critical infection-control materials that help keep vulnerable cats safe.

❤️ LOWE'S E-GIFT CARDS

Want the easiest way to help?

A Lowe's digital gift card allows us to purchase exactly what is needed that day, including:

✅ Trim pieces
✅ Adhesives
✅ V***r barriers
✅ Hardware
✅ Fasteners
✅ Unexpected project supplies

📧 Send digital gift cards to: [email protected]

📦 DELIVERY ADDRESS

133 Broadlawn Drive
New Kensington, PA 15068

We are here every day caring for the cats until the full transfer is complete. Supplies will be safely received and transported directly to the new sanctuary.

🐾 THE CATS HAVE WAITED LONG ENOUGH

Every box of flooring.

Every wall panel.

Every gift card.

Every volunteer hour.

It all moves another cat closer to a safe, clean, permanent room.

If you've ever celebrated an adoption, shared one of our rescue stories, donated supplies, cheered for a cat's recovery, or simply believed in what we're building, we're asking for your help today.

❤️ Sponsor a box.
❤️ Sponsor a panel.
❤️ Send a gift card.
❤️ Volunteer a few hours.
❤️ Share this post.

Together, we can finish these rooms, complete this move, and finally bring our feline family home. 🐾🏡❤️

🤚Want to help install? We also have to set up washer dryer hook ups and a food prep area. Any help is appreciated. Comment or message if you can help.

Donations can be made through the links below:
GoFundMe Relocation fund:
https://gofund.me/fba9e8b38

General Donations:
https://forms.donorsnap.com/form?id=3A4CC371-D1B9-46AB-B511-EED047BC0D6F

Venmo ✨️
Cashapp ✨️ $zencatofficial
PayPal ✨️ [email protected]

Wishlists:
https://zencatsanctuary.net/wish-lists

Thank you for your support🙏⭐️✨️👈

10/02/2026

📢 Big News!

While we're closed until further notice, we're excited to announce our new home:

📍 **713 5th Avenue**
Right down the street from Frankie's!

We couldn't be happier with this location. A huge and heartfelt thank you to Jake for making this opportunity possible. ❤️

This space is exactly what we need to continue improving care while focusing on our long-term goal of reducing our population through thoughtful placement and management. With dedicated rooms, beautiful natural light from four skylights, and a layout designed around the needs of cats, we're incredibly excited about what this move means for the future.

But while we've secured the space, the work is far from done.

We still need to build a food prep area, add washer and dryer hookups, create a utility wash station, remove carpet, install appropriate flooring, and tackle countless other projects before this can truly function as the sanctuary our cats deserve.

Our first priority is getting the HVAC system up and running before a single cat can move in. If you have HVAC experience, recommendations, or know someone who can help, please reach out. I'm making calls today and welcome any leads. 👂

We've raised just over 20% of our GoFundMe goal, but there are still substantial expenses ahead as we transform this building into a safe, functional home. Every room needs work. Every improvement costs money. Every step forward gets us closer to creating a better future for the cats in our care.

If you've been waiting for a time to help, **this is it.** Every donation, every share, and every word of encouragement makes a difference.

🐾 Please help us turn this space into a home.

To support our relocation project:
🔗 https://gofund.me/fba9e8b38

To donate toward veterinary care:
🔗 https://forms.donorsnap.com/form?id=3A4CC371-D1B9-46AB-B511-EED047BC0D6F

Venmo ⭐️✨️
Cash App ⭐️✨️ $zencatofficial
PayPal ⭐️✨️ [email protected]

🐈🐈🐈🐈🐈🐈🐈

As for supplies, let's skip the fancy wording.

✨️⭐️We're out⭐️✨️

We desperately need:

🐾 Paper pellet litter
🐾 Kitten dry food
🐾 Adult dry food
🐾 Senior dry food

The supply donations have slowed to a crawl, and with over 100 cats depending on us daily, the food bowls and litter boxes don't magically refill themselves.

We're fundraising. We're moving. We're building out a new sanctuary.

But the cats still need to eat **today**, and they still need clean litter **today**.

If you've been meaning to send something, please don't wait. We need food and litter in the building right now.

Every bag helps. Every box helps. Every share helps.

https://zencatsanctuary.net/wish-lists

❤️🐾 Thank you for helping us keep moving forward. The cats certainly haven't slowed down their eating habits. 😹

Thank you for believing in our mission and standing with us as we build the next chapter of Zen Cat Sanctuary.**

09/30/2026

Knock Knock.
Who's there?
No one. Just a carrier with three older kittens :/

Just what we needed right, Zen Fam?!

I will take them inside. Look them over. Hopefully we don't have any obvious injuries. They look good at a glance. We'll give them dewormer, flea treat them, give them an FVRCP vaccine, and get them on the spay/neuter schedule.

Please stay tuned for updates on the relocation and a summary of our week. I've been putting a post together since Monday! So big apologies for the light posts this week. We are packing up the sanctuary and preparing to move all while continuing to care for the cats here. Thank you to everyone who has stuck with us, supports us, and roots for us.

09/26/2026

🧡🐾 Happy Gotcha Day, Doug! 🐾🧡

A huge congratulations to this handsome ginger boy on finding his forever family! A heartfelt thank you to Lupe and Sergio for opening your hearts and home to sweet Doug. From the very first meeting, the connection was impossible to miss. 🥰✨

The only little plot twist? Doug made his choice pretty quickly and seemed completely smitten with Sergio... even though he was supposed to be Lupe's cat! 🤭🧡

Looks like Lupe might just have to make another trip to Zen for cat number two! 😉🐾

Wishing Doug, Lupe, and Sergio a lifetime filled with love, laughter, cozy naps, loud purrs, and countless happy adventures together. Thank you for giving this wonderful boy the forever home he deserves. 🎉🏡🧡

09/26/2026

🐾 Chester's Gotcha-Back Day 🐾

Some stories come full circle.

Four years ago, Chester was surrendered to us at 4 years old. His human, Noel, was just 15 at the time. She had spent the first half of Chester's life loving him, growing up alongside him, and then circumstances placed them on separate paths.

For the last four years, it has been our privilege to care for this special boy.

During his time with us, Chester overcame health challenges, including a full dental extraction. We watched him gain confidence with other cats, settle into sanctuary life, and truly come into his own. As his health improved, so did his spirit. He became one of our favorites and, eventually, our longest-standing adoptable resident.

Today, after four years apart, they are reunited. ❤️

Moments like this remind us that every cat has a story, and sometimes the happiest ending isn't a new beginning at all. Sometimes it's a reunion years in the making.

Thank you, Noel, for never forgetting Chester.

And thank you, Chester, for being such a wonderful part of our family while you waited for your person.

Congratulations to both of you on your Gotcha-Back Day. We couldn't be happier to see this sweet boy heading home with the person who loved him first.

❤️🐾🏡

Some cats find new homes. Chester found his way back home.