Muskan Nagpal - STRAY CAT BLUES

In Brooklyn’s Midwood, Olga Gudyno lives in a two bedroom apartment with her husband. Sometimes 6 cats. Sometimes 9. Sometimes 12. It just depends on the kind of day she’s having. Olga is a cat trapper in New York City. She works with the system - trap, neuter and return (TNR). This means she traps a cat from the streets of Brooklyn, gets them neutered or spayed at a vet, and returns them to their natural habitat. And this is because NYC has a cat problem. According to reports, New York City has about 500,000 cats. According to Olga's notebook, last year, she TNR’d 83 cats and rescued 67. Most of them are confined to low income neighbourhoods where they thrive in dark alleys and cluttered backyards. This photo series looks at a day in Olga’s life - what it looks like to trap a cat and look after them as they overtake your whole life.

Some of these pictures also appeared in The Brooklyn Magazine.

November 2, 2023, Thursday
Olga Gudyno with a cat trap in Midwood, Brooklyn

November 2, 2023, Thursday
Olga Gudyno sets up a trap in a backyard in Midwood Brooklyn

November 2, 2023, Thursday
Olga Gudyno looks at a cat she just trapped in Midwood, Brooklyn

November 2, 2023, Thursday
Olga Gudyno takes rest as her hands hurt from carrying a cat trap in Midwood, Brooklyn

October 29,2023, Sunday
A cat roams the kitchen at Olga's house in Midwood, Brooklyn

October 29,2023, Sunday
Olga Gudyno feeds her cats breakfast at her home in Midwood, Brooklyn

October 29,2023, Sunday
Utensils in the kitchen sink along with cans of cat food

October 24, Tuesday
Olga Gudyno feed the cats at her home in Midwood, Brooklyn

October 29,2023, Sunday
Olga clears the space and moves her cats at her home in Midwood, Brooklyn

October 29,2023, Sunday
Olga Gudyno feeds a cat at her home in Midwood, Brooklyn

October 29,2023, Sunday
Olga Gudyno with her pet dog, Chloe at her home in Midwood, Brooklyn