I have always loved cats ever since I was small and my grandmother had a gray cat of dubious ancestry called Ti-Nou. One day, Ti-Nou unfortunately decided to cross the busy street in front of our house and that was the end of him. I cried for days and made a promise to myself that any cat I had from then on would be kept safely indoors. Over the years, I have been owned by several cats - some were purebreds but most were cats from local shelters or just cats who decided to drop by and share our lives for varying periods of time. All of them were special and much loved.

I happened upon a UK website last year while searching for anything to do with cats as I do on a regular basis. It was about cattery design and how the caring and boarding of cats had evolved over the years. It described what seemed to me to be an ideal situation, where the welfare of the cat comes first. No more cats being relegated to the back room in a dog kennel full of barking, stressed out canines. No more cats being cramped in a small cage for weeks on end… In other words, a place reserved exclusively for cats and built to suit their particular needs. The dream of the Lane Cattery was born.

I have 5 units or 'rooms' which measure 6 feet high by 3 feet wide by 4 feet deep. All have under floor heating, (especially good for older, arthritic cats), access to windows that open to let in fresh air, and shelves of various heights on which the cats can perch and observe what is going on around the cattery from a safe distance. There are also little hidey-holes where cats can go if they feel like it.

There is Mozart playing softly (Wolfgang A.'s music is known to be a potent 'de-stresser'!)… soft bedding and fun toys…covered, private litter boxes and last but not least, lots of love and cuddles.

The cats will enjoy the company of other cats through glass partitions between the units. Each unit is enclosed and separate from its neighbour so that cats from different households cannot touch each other. (We do this for health reasons.)

They will see the same caregiver every day and a familiar routine will be established. This is reassuring for cats… Mealtimes (morning and evening) will occur at the same time each day and fresh, filtered water will be on hand at all times.

Needless to say, the cats will never be let outdoors at any time.