'My grandma is a cat hoarder': Grandchild is worried about the pack of cats living in grandma's trailer, asking the wholesome online feline family for advice and receives the support they need

Author image for Ayala Sorotsky
Ayala Sorotsky • Writer and Editor
Jul 9, 2025 3:00 PM EDT

Being a cat lover can mean a lot of things. For some, it's spoiling one or two floofy companions with treats and toys. For others, it's having a whole litter of kitties running between your feet - and earning the title of "Crazy Cat Lady" with pride. But for every cat pawrent, no matter how many meows fill the room, one thing should always come first: the well-being of the cats themselves.

That's why this story from a loving grandchild hit so close to home. Their grandma started out with good intentions - feeding strays, giving them shelter - but things have spiraled out of control. Now, more than 30 sick outdoor cats and several indoor ones are living in cramped conditions, with new litters constantly arriving. The grandchild is doing their best, taking their own cats with them to a new place, but their heart is breaking watching the other cats on their grandmother's property.

Many of us in the online feline family know how easy it is for care to turn into overwhelm, especially when you have a soft spot for every stray paw that wanders by. But loving cats also means making hard choices - like asking for help, finding shelters, or setting up TNR (trap-neuter-return) programs. If you've been through something similar, have resources to share, or just want to offer words of kindness, let's come together to help both this family and their overwhelmed cat colony find a healthier path.

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    r/CATHELP. 19 hr. ago Oatey Rito My grandma is a cat hoarder and it's gotten out of hand Kitten Help
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    My grandma started feeding strays years ago, they naturally started producing more kittens. They live under my grandma's house (she lives in a trailer) and they have gotten to an unhealthy amount of cats. There are
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    consistently 30 cats living in my grandma's property, and we have 3 new litters. I don't have the money to take all of them in and my grandma is not on board with putting in the effort to capture all of the kittens at least and taking them
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    to a shelter. She also has 9 indoor cats, not including my two cats which I'm taking with me to my new place in a couple days.
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  • This is such a rare incident. Sure, there are many cat feeders who are very compassionate, and they feed a large number of cats, but this is something else. The description of this story screams of worry for this fluffy band of cats, and we can definitely understand where it comes from.

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    She says she's going to call shelters. She's been saying that for 2 years and never does. Just need advice if anyone knows of a place I could take the kittens without having to pay 100s of dollars. They are so sick it breaks my heart to see them.
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    BASIN disposal
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    Interesting_Play_578 • 19h ago Nobody knows where you are. Try searching for TNR (trap/neuter/release) programs in your area to see if one can help you. 446 Reply द
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    Soothing-Escape • 18h ago A situation like this that took time to create will take time to fix...
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    1. You can't clean up the flood until the faucets are turned off... This means that you need to reach out to your TNR groups and start the process of Spay and Neuter. Typically this costs around $50 per cat, but a TNR resource/rescue may be able to help fundraise to get all these guys taken care of.
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    2. Your grandma might be telling the truth that she's called shelters... depending on where you live, most shelters have limited resources and taking on this many cats may be impossible. I would focus on just getting the kittens into. rescues/fosters/shelters. Most organizations are more willing to take kittens because they are more adoptable than full grown cats.
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    3. Make friends and remain involved with TNR groups. This colony's best chance is to remain in this territory, outdoors, and cared for by your grandma. This isn't a bad life, but they NEED to by spayed and neutered. Additionally, many TNR groups will have access to low cost vet services.
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    millicent08 18h ago Top 1% Commenter TNR is the best way to handle this unless they are critically ill. If they are feral, they don't have much chance of surviving in a shelter.
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    One cat can produce multiple litters per year, so next year your grandma might have 100 cats to feed. Some will get sick and eventually di . This all can be prevented, she just has to make some effort and call organizations, search for help. 209 > Reply -3
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    OateyRito OP • 18h ago Omg thank you so much everyone I love cats so much and wanna get them help as does my grandma too. It's just so much, thank yall for actual advice Tnr I'm hearing is the way to go.
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    My grandma hates people being in her house and in her yard. Calling people to take care of the cats would be crossing her boundaries. Should I still go ahead and call and ask? She's a sweetheart just so difficult to work with ↑ 35 ○ Reply
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  • It sounds extra difficult to deal with the situation, especially since the grandma isn't cooperating. Sometimes, when you love someone, you need to let them go - and we're not talking about the grandma. We think this grandmother needs to let the cats go, despite her love for them. The cats' well-being should come first.

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    Icy_Yesterday8265 • 18h ago Edited 18h ago Definitely call and ask. If you find a place that offers free TNR near you, I would strongly recommend buying your own trap to start on it yourself. It should be easy in the beginning to trap as you have so many potential trapees.
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    Hopefully, after the first couple get fixed, she'll be on board for it. If you give a general area, some folks may be able to recommend TNR services in your area. Whenever I go to my TNR clinic the line is filled mostly with older women trapping for other people throughout their neighborhoods and beyond! Maybe seeing the good it does will really activate her to start TNRing herself!
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    Also if the kittens are sick, they can be examined by a TNR clinic before/during surgery. She can keep her hoard of cats outside and care for them but at least prevent them from multiplying and make them overall healthier getting fixed and vaccinated. 18 > Reply -€ ...
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