Karen Mauler, one of our incredible volunteers, has been helping out at our Mulberry campus since our Cat Shelter was first established. She started out as a cat foster and helped with the occasional transport. Since then, Karen has done everything from Advanced Cat Care, volunteer mentorship, events, foster home checks, and transport. One of the areas she focuses most of her attention is in the Ringworm Ward. Ringworm is a fungus that requires weeks of sulfur dips for affected kitties. Karen has been assisting our amazing staff member and Ringworm Coordinator, Ludi, for years as one of our “Ringworm Warriors,” coming in multiple times a week.  

Keeping animals safe and helping to find them caring homes has always been a passion for Karen. She values the organization’s dedication to animals and to our community. She finds that helping families keep their pets in their home is just as important as getting animals adopted. Karen’s fondest memories are alongside other volunteers and working with Ludi in the Ringworm ward. 

Karen is no stranger to helping animals in need. Her two kitties that she adopted from another rescue have irritable bowel disease and must be on medications. Tori is her Torbi kitty and Etta is a Russian Blue kitty. The two cats were brought to the shelter after the devastating Hurricane Harvey that made landfall in 2017. She adopted them when she moved north knowing that they would have a hard time finding homes. She also has a dog named Isyss, that she took in two years ago from her son-in-law to ensure she gets appropriate medical attention. She’s an 11-year-old American Staffordshire Terrier with arthritis. Karen and her brother also share the responsibility of 6 adopted horses. 

Originally from Iowa, Karen moved to Colorado in the 1980’s. She wanted to live in a place with a sunny, drier climate. After getting her Bachelors in Business Administration from Denver University, Karen started her career as a Senior System Safety Engineer working on the Atlas and Delta IV Rocket Programs. After dedicating 37 years to her work, she is now retired and enjoying every minute of it. 

In her free time, Karen loves to be with her family. She’s very close with her brother, her daughter and 2 grandchildren. They all enjoy taking the horses out on trails whenever possible. Karen has recently started to dabble in gardening though she says it’s still trial and error. She also enjoys a good book or jigsaw puzzle on her patio when the weather is nice. 

As for future goals, Karen is enjoying living life to the fullest in her mountain home. She’s always excited to see the deer and even the occasional bear or mountain lion roaming around in the forest. More often she gets a visit from her neighbor’s working cat that they adopted from Animal Friends Alliance.

Thank you, Karen, for your dedication to Animal Friends Alliance and the animals and people in our community. Your time spent providing healing love and care to our ringworm cats is so impactful and appreciated. We are so grateful to have you as a volunteer, Karen!