For decades, the term ‘crazy cat lady’ has come to define a stock character we see on screen. Referring to a spinster, who takes comfort as a recluse, with only the company of her feline pals, the trope has now gone full circle, with the crazy cat ladies in sitcoms and movies often mock and celebrated in equal measure.
Whether it’s Eleanor Abernathy, the shopping cart-pushing dame from The Simpsons or Angela from The Office, the love of cats is played for laughs. But the truth is often stranger than fiction and to that end no one can compare to the ultimate cat lady, Lynea Lattanzio, who lives with 800 adult cats and 300 kittens.
On her 400 sq/m property in California, the 67-year-old animal rights supporter has run the 'Cat House of the Kings' since 1992, the state’s largest cat sanctuary. Offering shelter to feral and abandoned cats, Lynea and her team of volunteers rise at 4am to start their run of feedings throughout the day, working tirelessly so a healthy cat is never put down.
You can see her and her team, along with the 1100 cats, at work in the video below:
