There are probably hundreds of stray cats and other animals that wander the area seeking food, shelter, and love. Some of the shelters that these animals may end up in, perhaps after a fixed period of time may be euthanized, the Meow House at 214 Deckman Hollow in the Cogan Station area is not one of them. It is a no-kill shelter.

Judy Steinbacher operates the Meow House at an approximately 18.5-acre farm, and she has a fierce love of animals and does everything she can to help make life easier and more humane for them.

“I got my start in caring for stray animals by assisting with veterinarian, Dr. Robert Lewis, and LAPS,” Steinbacher told Webb Weekly. “The numbers at LAPS started getting greater and greater than they could probably handle, so I started to handle the overflow in order to help with this, and it has become what is now the Meow House. We started out with cats, but it has evolved into animals, including goats and even a horse.”

Steinbacher said she and others have engaged in all kinds of ways to finance their shelter, including raffles, bake sales, and any other imaginative means they could find to raise money.

“It costs money for us to do this, already for this year, we have already had more than $2,000 in vet bills,” Steinbacher said. “It is also expensive to have various types of food on hand for the different animals we care for.”

She said they take cats other shelters would not because they were injured. They also buy special food for their older animals, a lot of their cats are in their teens, and the horses are in their 20s. They have never turned an injured animal away, and she said they never would. The Meow House has rescued any animal with four legs and some with less. They have had goats, sheep, rabbits, donkeys, chickens, and roosters pass through there at some point. They are not just a cat shelter. They have heat for the cat shelter in the winter and air conditioning and fans in the summer.

“I, and the other people who help out here, get a lot of satisfaction out of helping these animals in need and of course, there is the occasional heartbreak that you feel when some of the animals pass away since you get so attached to them,” Steinbacher said. “But in the long run, it is worth it.”

Steinbacher said they spay and neuter each of the cats that come into the shelter. She said lack of that procedure is one of the reasons why there are many strays on the loose that may be in a position where they could suffer. She believes that spaying and neutering are very important and that everyone who owns a cat should have this done.

“One of our biggest needs here at Meow House are volunteers,” Steinbacher said. “We could use people to do all kinds of tasks including cleaning cages, feeding, and doing various tasks that help with the animals.”

If you are interested in either contributing to or volunteering with the Meow House, you can contact Steinbacher at 570-494-0550.