When Courtney Gustafson moved into her cottage in Poets Square of Tucson, she had no idea she would also have so many neighbors.
Human neighbors, yes. But she did not expect 30 cats on any given day. Thus began a new journey, one that held many difficult life lessons. She shares them in her new memoir, “Poets Square: A Memoir in 30 Cats.” She will sign copies of her book on Saturday, April 26, at Bookmans, 4841 N. Stone Avenue.
The biggest lesson learned: “Even if you love cats and even if those cats don’t love you back necessarily, (like) pet cats who will sit in your lap and purr and play with you, those cats still need the same kind of care that friendly cats do,” Gustafson said.
“They show love in their own ways and are just as rewarding to love and care for from a distance.”
The first lesson learned: The difference between helping a beloved pet over the “Rainbow Bridge” and watching a feral cat die alone from infected wounds, starvation or on the road.
“During the height of the pandemic, I was mostly working from home,” she said. “I had just moved into this new home and because of quarantine, I was really home most of the time and there were 30 cats at my window. It was a very natural progression that I was constantly watching out my window to see what they were doing and once I started realizing that many of them were not doing well, they were hungry, they were sick, they were reproducing, it did become a sadder obsession trying to figure out how to help them.”
Learning to care for feral cats was the most interesting lesson learned.
“The way I grew up with cats, I always was a cat lover,” she said. “I would have called myself a cat person, but I really only had experience with cats as they lived in my house. I knew how to pet a cat, brush a cat and buy cute toys for a cat and pick up a cat and put it on my bed with me.
“It’s the same animal living outside but I really had no frame of reference for how to properly care for a cat that doesn’t want that type of life.”
There’s also a misconception about feral cats, that they can be “scooped up and adopted out,” Gustafson said. They cannot. There simply are not enough resources and it’s not always best for some cats.
“Cats who have been feral their whole lives and have their outdoor homes, that’s not necessarily what’s best for them,” she added.
According to Gustafson, Tucson has “an enormous population of feral cats and community cats,” but the problem can be handled.
“Tucson has some of the best resources for Trap Neuter Return in the entire country,” she said.
“We’re really so fortunate here. We have a lot of cats, but we have a lot of resources for them.”
Part of Gustafson’s full-time mission now involves caring for feral cats — and she has discovered a community that is willing to perform the same work, thanks to social media.
“It’s just incredible how many people are doing that work,” she said.
To help, visit the Humane Society of Southern Arizona’s Community Cats Program at hssaz.org/tnr.
Courtney Gustafson, “Poets Corner Cats” Book Signing
WHEN: Saturday, April 26; visit website for time
WHERE: Bookmans, 4841 N. Stone Avenue, Tucson
INFO: bookmans.com
This article appears in Apr 17-24, 2025.