Patty Guthrie has been a faithful Town Cats volunteer since October of 2003. Back in Chicago, Patty had a cat in her cradle and she grew up loving cats and dogs with a wonderful, loving mom who taught her early on about giving back, fostering animals and volunteering in the community. Thanks to the blizzard of ’99 and 22” of snow, Patty and Dave migrated to California with their four cats, including their beloved cat Myriah. Patty was tired of the snow.
Patty believes, “It is sort of my job to give back if I can.” For years Patty has volunteered at the Town Cats’ shelter on Wednesday nights. She has also worked as a Town Cats ambassador, doing outreach at public events and festivals. She has fostered and adopted cats from Town Cats, she has served on the board of directors, she managed our web site in years past and she continues to this day to be a loyal, generous donor who donates every month without fail.
Patty loves working with the shyer cats. She says, “Never overlook the shy cats. They are easier to add to your household because they are more cat-focused than people-focused. If you are patient with them, you might be surprised. They could be your best friend.”
She has always loved animals and that is why she volunteers at Town Cats; she wants to help cats. Patty is also very active in pet therapy with two of her cats and one of her dogs. She wants to help people too.
Back in 2007, a litter of kittens was born to a feral mom cat at Thomas Kruse Winery, in Gilroy. One of those kittens, Zinfandel, worked his way into Patty’s heart and home forever. Patty fostered him and adopted him from Town Cats; he is now called Mokey and he is a certified therapy cat. Mokey is a calm, tolerant, trustworthy cat who travels in a pet stroller and helps Patty bring joy to people in need of love and cat companionship. Of her three certified therapy pets, Mokey, her Town Cats’ cat, goes out on love missions the most often – six to nine visits a month. Back when Patty was a little girl living in Chicago, she saw how much joy a visit from the therapy cat brought her grandmother, who was living in a nursing home. She says animals are a really good tool. They give you something to talk about and they are warm and fuzzy. Patty is an easy-going, kindhearted, compassionate person who makes a difference each and every day. She is good at many things but she says she doesn’t cook. “I can cook frozen pizzas and spaghetti,” she says with a laugh. Lucky for her fur babies, she can open cans and bags of kibble with perfect ease.
Patty socializing RiffRaff who was adopted earlier this year.