Cruces Cool Cats nonprofit helps with feral cat population

Cruces Cool Cats (CCC) nonprofit officially opened Feb. 4 “to assist with the homeless and feral (cat) population,” said CCC founder Selina Cardoza.

As of early April, CCC has acquired nearly 60 cats, found homes for two and assisted with trap-neuter-release (TNR) for two others, Cardoza said.

Cardoza said she and CCC Board Vice President Nadine Armijo “talked for many years of doing something like this, starting an animal sanctuary. I told Nadine one day, ‘Why don’t we just do it? We are passionate enough.’”

 Cardoza bought a house in central Las Cruces “specifically to start this nonprofit and fund it,” Cardoza said.

The nonprofit accepts cash donations through its website, CrucesCoolCats.org, and Facebook page: Cruces Cool Cats. It also accepts donations of cat food, kitty litter and other supplies, she said.

“Our adoption process is simple,” Cardoza said. “We have an adoption form, a simple interview and home check. We are looking for good and forever homes for our cats. Our plans are to educate our community about feral (cats) and how we can help our homeless cat population. We also want to help homes with overcrowded cat conditions. Saving cats and helping people’s situations is a primary goal of ours,” she said.

Cardoza’s son, Joseph Lucero, is CCC’s caretaker.

Cardoza is an educational assistant at Zia Middle School. Joseph, 19, is a graduate of Centennial High School and a freshman at New Mexico State University.

CCC is open by appointment only.

Call CCC at 575-644-0869 and email crucescoolcats@gmail.com. Visit http://CrucesCoolCats.org.