Man who builds a custom home for a family of wildcats melts hearts

A man has garnered viral attention online after sharing how he built a miniature home for a family of wild cats near his Los Angeles home.

The user, named OJ, shared an image on Reddit and wrote, “Setting up a cat house for a wildlife family,” alongside a shot of an animal curled up.

With more than 47,000 upvotes on Reddit and hundreds of comments, the kind act melted hearts online.

AB tells news week: “I noticed weeks ago that these cats (a mother and two male kittens – I’m guessing they are a few months old) appeared in the garden. They would scurry at me from afar at first sight. I started feeding them because I was feeling down and I wanted to befriend them too.”

As the weather changed and the days grew rainy and cold, OJ became more concerned about the cats.

“I noticed they were huddled in the backyard and I felt so bad so I decided to build them a shelter. It took a week for them to start using it, and I was so happy when they did that I wanted to share it,” he said.

Using a large storage tub and adding layers of cardboard, mylar and straw, OJ created a space with two L-shaped openings to prevent the space from getting too much wind.

“I also put clear flaps on the openings that act as doors to keep the cold air out. It took me about a couple of hours to gather all the materials,” OJ said.

Animal lovers online were delighted with the man’s creation and rushed to share their thoughts and thanks.

“Thanks,” wrote one commenter on Reddit. “You really need some security and comfort,” while another wrote, “Awww Lucky Kitties.”

For now, the two kittens seem to be enjoying the space, but the mother cat hasn’t spent much time in the purpose-built shelter.

“There’s enough room for all three, so I don’t know why and I have no idea where she sleeps at night,” OJ said.

The plan for the future is to try to catch the cats and have them examined by a vet.

“If I could try to get her to socialize, I would try to rescue her and find her a home,” OJ said. “I recently signed up with a local TNR (Trap, Neuter, Release) program that does the repair for free and lets you borrow traps, but I haven’t heard from them.

“A friendly Redditor offered to cover the cost of spaying or neutering, so I could reach out to them.”

Another commenter on the viral post wrote: “My uncle did this, he built a cat apartment and fed the neighborhood cats, they would go to their cabin to sleep for the night and wait to be let out in the morning , protected them all from the coyotes.”

OJ is taking videos and pictures of the little cats, continues to monitor their progress and is pleased they have found a safe place to stay.

“I didn’t expect the post to go viral and I was surprised it did,” OJ said. “I’m really happy because there has been great discussion in the comments about the plight of wild cats and also their impact on the ecosystem and how to help them. It has also spurred others to build shelters for their wildcats for the future cold months.”