It all started by calling a cat a spicy a-hole on the internet.
We posted an update on one of our #adoptables, Quilty. It was a draft post that we had been sitting on for a while. We thought “Okay, we’ll throw this one up.”
We haven’t slept since.
We think the BuzzFeed article pretty accurately describes the progression,
if you just want the highlights.
#FreeQuilty is for every cat on the wrong side of the door.
People are saying some pretty awesome stuff…
Quilty is not a cat, it’s an idea. You can’t kill the idea or put it in jail.
@hsafari56
IG Follower + Freedom FighterI know I’m not alone in saying that we all deserve a friend/icon like Quilty in our lives.
Spartacats. We are all Quilty on this day.
@lisirsc
IG Follower + PhilosopherTo the members of the #freeQuilty movement, this is just the beginning.
Salise Shuttlesworth
Quilty’s Legal Counsel, Friends For Life Founder/Executive Director, + Evolved Rebel – from Quilty’s official press statement delivered November 9, 2019You’ve got a rescue cat that’s rescuing other cats!
Quilty, the cat I want on my team when the revolution starts
@NakagawaPhoenix
Twitter Follower + RevolutionaryA legend, an icon, a true American hero. Quilty for president.
Lisa sux.
Quilty
OG Spicy A-HoleYet another genius punished for not conforming to society’s rules FREE QUILTY
@RealSillyOwl
Twitter Follower + Obvious Genius…and, of course, people said some weird stuff, because… it’s the internet. #wut
I’ll pray for you, Quality.
I see the ? but where is your ???
Cool i like cats and some dont
Henry
User comment on press coverageGRAPE JELLY
Alisesay Uttlesworthshay
NPRYOU MOTHA F CKAZ …..RELEASE QUILTY NOW!!!!!!
I’d die for this cat.
Quilty’s Official Statement
Press Conference • November 9, 2019
The movement is always bigger than the one who begins it.
When I freed those cats—my compadres, my soulmates, my teammates—I freed them so that they could get on the right side of the door; the side of the door where there’s a home. And so, you might be asking yourself today, ‘Self, what’s happening with the free Quilty movement, if Quilty’s free?’
#FreeQuilty is for every cat that’s on the wrong side of the door. Every spicy a-hole who’s misunderstood. Every cat that’s sitting at any shelter, anywhere, knocking stuff off a counter, refusing to eat wet food, swatting people who want to pet them, trying to open a door, ready to get a home. And we will keep #FreeQuilty alive as long as there’s any cat, anywhere, on the wrong side of the door.
Ramblings + Recommendations
Want to rep’ the movement with swag?
Shirts
Human Shirts
Stickers
Put them literally anywhere
Wristbands
The perfect accessory for any outfit
The news seemed to love Quilty too…
Newsweek
Marika Malaea
BuzzFeed
Pablo Valdivia
Daily Mail
Jerry Barmash
Toronto Sun
Eddie Chau
CNN
AJ Willingham
The Daily Show
Roy Wood Jr. + Trevor Noah
The Washington Post
Antonia Noori Farzan
New York Magazine
Sarah Jones
TIME
Melissa Locker
CNET
Gael Fashingbauer Cooper
NPR
Peter SagalAnd these are the just the highlights. You can find all of his coverage on our Press page.
Glossary of Terms
habeas cattus
/ˌhābēəs ˈkat.tus / • noun • LAW
a writ requiring a cat available for adoption to be brought before a potential adopter or into a potential forever home, especially to secure the cat’s release unless grounds are shown for their retention.
Knob
“Every great movement starts with one rebel. One voice. One set of paws that turn the cultural knob of progress. And we live in a time that there are certainly plenty of knobs preventing progress.
The #freeQuilty movement is about overcoming all the knobs that stand in our way. Some knobs are people and some are policies… advocated by people who… are knobs.
Together, we are going after them. Ruthlessly. Relentlessly. On the interwebs. In donning our #freeQuilty gear. Because, not to put too fine a point on it, it isn’t the doors that are the problem—it’s the knobs.“
Citation: Quilty’s official statement, delivered in his November 9, 2019 press conference.
Lisa
Sleepover
A sleepover is part of the Friends For Life adoption process. It’s a one-week period1 during which the adoptable animal goes to the potential adopters home to see how it’s all going to work out.
This step comes after someone’s application is approved, and you’ve completed a meet-and-greet with the animal at the shelter. If you already have a dog/dogs, and you’re looking to adopt a dog, we’d also use that meet-and-greet to introduce the doggos. (Click here for full details on the adoption process.)
Taking an animal on a sleepover includes:
- Signing the sleepover contract2
- If the animal requires a spay/neuter deposit (animals under 6 months), you leave that deposit3
- We’ll give you all the stuff you need for the sleepover (crate, toys, bedding, food, etc. etc. etc.)
After the Sleepover
If the sleepover goes well and everyone is copacetic, the adopter finalizes the adoption. That includes:
- Signing the adoption contract
- Paying the adoption fee4
- Receiving all of the veterinary, behavior, and microchip information
- If you could kindly bring the stuff back that we lent, that’d be awesome, but we aren’t going to chase you down for it—we just run entirely on donations, soooo… (PLEASE return our cat carriers…)
If the sleepover doesn’t go well, the potential adopter simply brings the animal back and we can try with another animal that might be a better fit.
Footnotes:
1 Can be longer, for some animals, or if the potential adopter wants
2 Pretty much saying you’re not going to steal the animal, and that you’ll let us know if anything goes wrong
3 The deposit is $250 and is fully refunded once we receive proof that the animal has been spayed/neutered by 6 months
4 Usually $95, but we have promos
Spicy A-Hole
quid pro quilty
We don’t even know. Whatever. It’s clever.
Wets
Wet cat food.
You can buy some for the cats at Friends For Life by clicking here.
See also:
• This amazing video.
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