The Community Cats Podcast

Interview! Karen Hollish, Director of Development and Marketing, Pima Animal Care Center “The community cats project has not only helped us save outdoor community cats; it’s helped us provide a better experience for the cats inside our shelters.” Karen Hollish is the director of development and marketing at Pima Animal Care Center. In March 2014, she started a development program for the government-run, open-admission shelter in Pima County, Arizona. The program was hugely successful: she raised millions of dollars through fundraising initiatives, and the shelter started to take in about 24,000 pets per year with a save rate of around 70%! In a state like Arizona where pet overpopulation is a big problem and kitten season lasts virtually all year round, this is a huge accomplishment. Pima Animal Care Center has managed to raise its save rate to 90% thanks to its community cat program, and it also has a unique kitten program for people with dementia and other memory issues. While the kitten is socialized, the