𝙁𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙝𝙪𝙢𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙖 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜

Seven years after graduation, Sheena Cabuyaban could have pursued a career in communication. Instead, the tiny paws and soft purrs of her feline rescues, and her deep compassion for animals, led her to become a full-time rescuer.

Sheena, a graduate of Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU) Batch 2018, developed interest in rescuing stray cats at a very young age “𝘐 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘎𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘦 2,” she shared.

Her interest in rescuing grew to be her passion. To sustain her advocacy, she worked as a motorcycle telemarketer after graduation. While her rescuing efforts were made official in 2018 during the time she was employed, she eventually quit her job in 2021 to focus on her calling as a full-time cat rescuer.

At the same time, she started documenting her journey as a cat rescuer through photography and social media posts. This was when she created the CAThography Facebook page, which features a blend of her love for cats and photography.

“𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘺, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘧𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘢. 𝘚𝘰, 𝘐 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘺 𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘫𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘶𝘦𝘥.”

As a way to keep memories, she started sharing her journey on Facebook. What began as entertainment eventually evolved into a creative outlet. Sheena’s photos and videos of her rescue efforts led to the growth of her Facebook page and TikTok account to thousands of followers.

𝙏𝙧𝙞𝙖𝙡𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙪𝙢𝙥𝙝𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙖 𝙨𝙤𝙡𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙘𝙪𝙚𝙧

Being a full-time rescuer is a road filled with challenges, and Sheena knows them all too well.

She begins her day at dawn with an early bike ride, followed by preparing meals for her cats, cleaning litter boxes three times daily, and managing her online store and social media accounts to cover the monthly expenses of her rescues.

“𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘷𝘦𝘵 𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘴,” she admits. She recalls a heartbreaking rescue, her cat Warrior, a victim of a hit-and-run accident. “𝘞𝘦 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 ₱100,000 𝘰𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘺. 𝘏𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘶𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥. 𝘈𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘴, 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘭𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘥.”

Despite the hardships, Sheena finds joy in small victories. The cages that once served as shelter for her rescues have turned into a bigger cabin designed to keep the cats safe and give them ample space to roam and play.

Sheena does not rely solely on donations. Through social media monetization, merchandise sales, and generous supporters who voluntarily give, she sustains the needs of her rescues.

“𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘥𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘴𝘬, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵, 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘥𝘦𝘦𝘱𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘧𝘶𝘭.”

𝘼𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙟𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙤𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙚

Sheena’s life once pointed in a very different direction. A graduate of BA in Communication from MMSU, she initially dreamed of becoming a journalist. But even then, her love for animals was already evident.

One of her batchmates, Mr. Brett Andrew Rikke Bungcayao, an instructor of the MMSU - College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) recalled their college days. “𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘴 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘴.”

Though Sheena was regarded as the “shy” student, she was always willing to help others. “𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘯, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧,” Mr. Bungcayao said.

Similarly, Dr. Alma Sierra and Prof. Myra Eugenia Castillo, two of Sheena’s former teachers, remember her as a reserved student. “𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘫𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘭𝘰𝘸-𝘬𝘦𝘺,” Prof. Castillo said.

While Sheena never pursued journalism professionally, she channels her storytelling through the videos she uploads online. “𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘴,” said Prof. Castillo, who shares the same love for cats as Sheena.

Dr. Sierra, her former teacher turned friend, often exchanges messages with her to share their experiences in caring for cats. Because of their shared interest and frequent interactions, Dr. Sierra saw Sheena’s dedication. “𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘶𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘴, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥,” she said.

Sheena rescued a number of cats within the university, particularly in CAS. Her willingness to help others still manifests. “𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤 𝘧𝘢𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘴. 𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘮𝘦, ‘𝘔𝘢’𝘢𝘮, 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤 𝘧𝘢𝘯𝘴, 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦, 𝘯𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭,’” recalled Dr. Sierra.

While focusing on rescuing full-time, Sheena grew interested in pursuing a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree. “𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘺 𝘝𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘔𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘦. 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘰 𝘮𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮,” she said when asked about her plans.

Prof. Castillo was the one who encouraged her to take the course. “𝘐 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘴. 𝘏𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘢 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢 𝘷𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯,” she said.

𝙎𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙤𝙘𝙖𝙘𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙

CAThography, which began as a simple social media documentation of Sheena’s rescue efforts, now has half-a-million followers.

“𝘐 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦,” Sheena said. “𝘛𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘩𝘶𝘨𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦.”

Her followers have seen her journey from the construction of her cats’ first cabin, to the development of her own rescue space and supply storage.

She does not post solely for views, but primarily for awareness. Her content often highlights the importance of spaying and neutering, responsible pet ownership, and supporting local rescuers.

Even her former teachers follow her journey on social media. “𝘐 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘢𝘨𝘦,” Prof. Castillo shared. “𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘤𝘺. 𝘚𝘩𝘦’𝘴 𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘦.”

𝙈𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙖𝙜𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙝𝙤𝙥𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙜𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙪𝙙𝙚

For Sheena, rescuing animals is not just about saving lives; it is about saving her own too. “𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘶𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘰,” she admits. “𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘐 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨.”

Her heart goes out to all her fellow rescuers and cat owners. “𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘢 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. 𝘓𝘦𝘵 𝘶𝘴 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘱𝘢𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘨.”

Despite the daily struggles, Sheena remains optimistic and hopes to leave a legacy. “𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘵. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘊𝘈𝘛𝘩𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘩𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘨𝘦, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦.”