An outdoor cat house commissioned by Cindy Santwani. Photo courtesy of Cindy Santwani 

These "outdoor cat houses," which provide temporary shelters for stray cats in a subdivision in Parañaque, went viral over the weekend, after carpenter Reginald Payos, known as John Wood Works on Facebook, shared these photos on May 11.

Payos thanked a subdivision resident who commissioned him to build the houses, which he said are different compared to his usual commissioned projects.

“Nag-inquire 'yun sa akin sa ma'am Cindy (Santwani ) na kung kaya ko daw ba gumawa ng pang-outdoor (na cat house). Indoor kasi ang mga cat house ko. ‘Yung kahoy kasi, di ba kapag naulanan o naarawan, kahit solid wood naman is nasisira siya. Then sabi ko sa kanya, gagawan ko ng paraan. Sinabi ko kay client na give me two days para makausap ‘yung mga tao ko, 'yung mga nag-finish kung paano ba namin siya gagawin na mas matibay,” he said.

After looking for the right materials to ensure that these are durable enough to be placed outdoors, Payos, together with his helpers, finished the cat houses in less than a week.

“Wood pa rin naman siya, dinuco finish lang namin siya. Nilagyan namin siya ng sealer para kahit mabasa, maarawan, hindi siya agad-agad masisira,” he added.

Santwani, who commissioned the outdoor cat houses, is an animal lover who has been rescuing strays since 2020.

In 2021, she decided to establish her own veterinary clinic in Makati, The Fur Project Clinic, with the help of the vet doctor of her fur-babies.

During the pandemic, the number of her rescued cats grew because there were little to no clinics that could have them all neutered, resulting in her becoming a fur-mom of more than 200 stray cats and 20 stray dogs as of the moment.

“Kasi hindi talaga lahat sila nakakapasok sa bahay ko. So ‘yung iba, andun lang sa may pinto, sa may gate. Sabi ko, gawan ko sila ng cat house,” she said.

Santwani also noted that the other purpose of the commissioned outdoor cat houses was for the food of the cats. 

“Ayaw ko kasi kung saan-saan lang nilalagay (ang pagkain). Tapos nilalanggam, naaarawan, at nauulanan. Kung sa ilalim naman ang kotse ilalagay, minsan delikado sa kanila. So gusto ko may lugar talaga na may bubong ‘yung pagkain para doon sila pupunta,” she said.

With these outdoor cat houses, Santwani hopes to inspire more people to show kindness and compassion to stray animals. 

“Kahit ‘yung mga little acts lang din, pagpapa-stray feed, pagpapakain, at saka ‘yung huwag manakit, malaking bagay na 'yun,” she said.

She also encouraged people to take initiatives within their communities to build shelters for stray animals.