When two stray expecting cats showed up at Lisa Shaffer’s house in 2008, she had no idea how those cats and their kittens would impact her life. The two cats had their kittens on the same day, giving birth to seven kittens, one of whom was destined for stardom—or, at least as much stardom as a Happy Valley cat who’s scared of strangers and the outside world can muster.
“We found homes for all of the kittens except one, which was Horatio,” Shaffer explains. “So we just decided to keep him, and he’s been ours ever since.”
In addition to being mom to six cats, Shaffer works as the bibliographic and patron services manager at the Centre County Library & Historical Museum, where she also helps manage the library’s social media accounts. In 2014, she had the idea to tweet a cat-themed post for what’s known on Twitter as “Caturday,” posing Horatio sleeping next to a book. Shaffer soon began posting photos of Horatio alongside library materials—from books to DVDs to CDs—every Saturday and, as Horatio proved cooperative, the photo shoots slowly became more and more elaborate.
“I decided, well, let’s see if I can put a hat on him. What will he think? He just sat there,” laughs Shaffer, noting that Horatio is quite agreeable to any project that earns him a treat or two. “He wore this little party hat for [an author’s birthday]. Slowly, we added more props and tried to create very simple costumes. It slowly evolved over the years to costumes and wigs with different layers and backgrounds, and what we have now.”
Today, Horatio appears in an array of costumes on the library’s Twitter page every Saturday, sometimes alongside his feline siblings, but always with a few library materials available for check-out, promoting the library’s various resources. Recently, he’s dressed up as artist Bob Ross, actress Julie Andrews, and Muppet creator Jim Henson.
Shaffer plans her photo shoots well in advance, noting possible library materials to promote or upcoming holidays or days of observance. She uses craft materials and toddler clothing to create the outfits and reuses past costumes with alterations. But exactly how easy is it to dress a cat?
“He’s such a sweet cat. He’s very laid back. I’ve never forced him to wear anything that he doesn’t want to wear,” Shaffer explains. “He always gets treats, as well. … Every time I set up the photo [shoot], he always comes into the room, ready for his close-up. He always knows and sees whenever I’m working on a costume.”
All of the photo shoots are conducted at Shaffer’s (and Horatio’s) home, to account for his fear of strangers, but fans can still spot a cardboard cutout of Horatio at the library, if they’re eager to get their own social media snapshot with the photogenic cat.
In response to the posts’ popularity, the library has also started offering an annual calendar that features thirteen photos—some that proved popular over the last year and some that are brand-new, but all of Horatio. The calendar is available for purchase at the library’s multiple branches, as well as online at the library’s Etsy store, with sales supporting community-focused programming.
“It’s exciting,” Shaffer says of Horatio’s growing following. “He has fans all over the world. … I think the biggest thing is that it’s something fun that people enjoy but, at the same time, it always goes back to the library and promoting the library’s services and what libraries can do for you. It’s like, yes, this is a fun, cute cat dressed up as Bob Ross, but a library’s doing this. Libraries are so cool. It always comes back to promoting the library, because they really are the beacons in the community that have all this information that they offer for free.”
Horatio isn’t the only animal supporting the Centre County Library & Historical Museum’s efforts. The library also offers its Tail Waggin’ Tutor Program every Thursday at the Bellefonte branch from September through May, where five certified therapy dogs sit with children who are learning to read, providing a friendly, no-judgment zone for out-loud reading. The canine members of the tutoring crew pose for their own calendar, also available at the library’s branches and online.
To see every photo of Horatio, every Saturday, follow the Centre County Library & Historical Museum on Twitter @CentreCoLibrary, and find the 2023 Horatio and dog-themed calendars at www.etsy.com/shop/centrecountylibrary. T&G
Holly Riddle is a freelance writer for Town&Gown. This story appears in the December 2022 issue of Town&Gown
