Couple Build Little Cottages For Stray Cats

Two Icelanders have taken it upon themselves to provide shelter for stray cats as the winter hardens.

“They don’t hurt anyone, they keep to themselves and don’t bother humans,” Haukur Ingi Jónsson told RÚV, referring to the stray cats that can be found in the Grandi area of Reykjavík. “When this time of year comes, you want to make a little house so they can come in from the cold.”

He, along with Hafdís Þorleifsdóttir, took the initiative and built a small cabin for the cats themselves. The two also leave out food for them, whether quality shrimp or cat food. Haukur made a point to bring up the usefulness of having stray cats wandering the town.

“There’s always been this misunderstanding about stray cats, that they’re peeing in playground sandboxes, and kids are eating cat poop, and so on,” he said. “But in this area, like in other areas, the cats are keeping things tidy. Their urine deters rats. Which do you want, rats or cats?”

Haukur and Hafdís are not alone in this efforts, either. Advocacy group Villikettir, which has fought against the culling of stray cats, have set up similar shelters in the past.