Monthly Volunteer Profile: Charlotte Phillips

Volunteering among the cats at the Winnipeg Humane Society comes naturally for Charlotte Phillips. It must be in her DNA.

Charlotte has been a Cat Condo/Kitty Kat Way assistant for the past two years. She joined dad, Fred, and brother Daniel, both Feline Enrichment volunteers, in service at the WHS.

Charlotte, who completed her Bachelor of Business Degree at the University of Saskatchewan in 2021, came back to Winnipeg with her parents and brother. Charlotte’s parents returned to Winnipeg from Saskatoon in 2022 after retiring.

Her love for cats came from constant exposure to them since she was young.

“Growing up we always had a pair of cats,” she said. “When I was a child, we had a pair of brothers who were brown tabbies who were super cuddly and purred constantly. It messed with my mind a bit to consider that the cats were older than I was, because I was around 10 and they were 16. I was like, “How are these little creatures older than me?’ And after they passed away, we got another two brothers, and they stayed with us for 16 years.”

This helped Charlotte develop her socialization skills, the focus of her volunteer position. “Most of our job here is teaching the cats that people will bring them good things,” she explained. “And teaching the cats that people are safe. That’s our goal – from now on, anyone you interact with will be safe. They’ll bring you kitties food and give you attention and affection.”

One of her favourite parts of the job is observing the interactions between cats and people. “It is so emotionally rewarding when you see someone connect with an animal and watch them take them home,” she explained. “It’s amazing when an animal picks a person. Sometimes, the cat adopts you.”

The interaction between visitors and available cats is almost like a courtship process. “It’s so much fun when you get someone who’s willing to take a look at everyone available and find the cat who fits best for them,” she explained.

Sometimes families come in after having researched on the WHS website and will have a particular cat in mind, she said. If that cat is no longer available, then the job becomes determining which cats would be best for them. There are variables to consider: are there other pets, are there children, is the family looking for a playmate or would a lap cat be better? “Some people come in and you talk with them for a little bit, and you know you could bring them to any condo and they’ll be good with any cat, as long as I let them know of that particular cat’s temperament.

“Managing the emotions of visitors and cats together is engaging,” Charlotte said. “You have to decide which condo would be great for kids to visit. I let the visitors visit while keeping the cats happy. It’s a fun puzzle to solve.”

The payback of seeing a cat connect with a visitor and seeing the cat get adopted makes the job worthwhile, she explained.

It’s also amazing to watch the transformation of cats as they get used to human contact. Her girlfriend has a cat who’s very shy and reclusive and doesn’t want to be in the same room as strangers. “It’s been fun getting to know her,” she said. “We’ve gotten to the point where not only does the cat not leave the room when I enter, she comes up to me and asks for pets. And just recently, I was over, and I heard her start purring. Building that kind of slow relationship is very rewarding.”

And for now, finding her cat connection at the WHS is very satisfying for Charlotte. “It’s really important for me to spend time with animals at least once a week for my own mental health.”