Winchester Resident Helping Abandoned Animals

At one time Charlotte Fazio had 13 cats wondering through her home. That number has since dwindled down to seven.

“That’s the limit,” said Fazio.

She and her husband had always owned at least one cat, but the lifelong Winchester resident never expected to have more than a couple cats roaming her halls.

About a year ago, Fazio, who has always been an animal-lover, wanted to try and give back, to help animals in need. A friend introduced her to the Protection of Animals in Wakefield Society (PAWS) and for the past 12 months she has been one of the organization’s strongest members.

“I like animals and I wanted to help,” Fazio said.

PAWS is an all-volunteer, non-profit animal welfare organization serving communities north of Boston. According to Fazio, the charity’s mission is to promote and protect the rights and well-being of all domestic animals and wildlife, and also to foster greater understanding of animal welfare and animal rights through education.

Fazio first started to help out at PAWS events, but then one night she got an emergency call from a friend.

“She needed me to pick up a cat,” Fazio said. “All of the other foster homes were at capacity, so I needed to take the cat in.”

For the next few months, Fazio’s home became a safe-haven for lost, sick or abandoned cats. One cat ended up having eight kittens.

At one point Fazio had 13 cats at her home, but they have all been adopted – six by Fazio and her husband.

“I ended up adopting some of them,” Fazio said. “We started with one cat, and we ended up adopting six more.”

While she is no longer a foster home for cats due to lack of space, Fazio still actively participates with PAWS, trying to find other animals a home.

“I enjoy this,” Fazio said. “I get to meet a lot of nice people in the organization and a lot of good people looking to adopt these animals.