The Cats of Cortona — Meet Casa Mauu, the Volunteers Behind the Town’s Beloved Strays
If you’ve spent any time walking the medieval streets of Cortona, you’ve almost certainly met one of them — a cat stretched out on a sun-warmed stone wall, peering down from a window ledge, or threading its way between the legs of passers-by in Piazza della Repubblica. The cats of Cortona are part of the town’s character. What most visitors don’t know is that behind every well-fed, well-cared-for stray, there’s a network of dedicated volunteers working quietly to make sure they’re safe.
That network has a name: Casa Mauu.
What is Casa Mauu?
Casa Mauu is a volunteer animal welfare association based in Cortona, founded in 2020 by Elisabetta Picotti. The name comes from the distinctive sound cats make when they greet you — a deep, resonant “mauu” that anyone who has spent time around cats will recognise immediately.
What started as a small local network has grown into one of the most active cat welfare organisations in the Val di Chiana. The association operates across the Cortona area and beyond, caring for stray cats and feral colonies, coordinating sterilisations, finding foster homes, and working to rehome cats in need of adoption.
The team is made up entirely of volunteers — Rossana, Sabrina, Silvia, Luciana, Giulia, and others — who give their time, energy, and resources every day to cats that most people simply walk past.
What They Do
The work of Casa Mauu is largely invisible to visitors — which is precisely why it matters to talk about it. On any given day, the volunteers might be:
— Feeding the feral colonies scattered across Cortona and the surrounding area
— Coordinating veterinary care for injured or sick cats
— Arranging sterilisations to manage the stray population humanely
— Finding foster homes (stalli) for kittens and cats awaiting adoption
— Responding to emergency calls about abandoned animals
— Organising fundraising events to cover veterinary costs
All of this is done without public funding, sustained entirely by donations, fundraising events, and the personal commitment of the volunteers themselves.
The Cats of Cortona
Cortona has always been a town of cats. They inhabit the alleys, the piazzas, the steps of churches, and the corners of ancient palaces. For many visitors, encountering a Cortona cat — sitting imperiously on a Renaissance doorstep or basking in the afternoon sun on Via Nazionale — is one of the small, unexpected pleasures of the town.
What makes Cortona’s cats different from the strays you might find in other Italian towns is precisely this: they are watched over. The volunteers of Casa Mauu know the colonies, know the individual animals, and make sure that the cats visitors admire are healthy, sterilised, and cared for.
Insider tip: If you spot a cat in Cortona with a notched ear, it has already been sterilised and is part of a managed colony — a small sign of the work that Casa Mauu and other volunteers do every day.
How to Support Casa Mauu
If the cats of Cortona have made your visit a little more magical — and they will — consider supporting the people who look after them.
Donate at Conad, Camucia: The easiest way to help while you’re in the area — the Conad supermarket in Camucia has a donation collection point for Casa Mauu. Drop off cat food, supplies, or a cash donation on your way through.
Bank transfer: Donations can be sent directly to Casa Mauu APS:
IBAN: IT55 Y054 9625 4080 0001 9014 622
PayPal: casamauu@gmail.com
5 x 1000: If you file taxes in Italy, you can donate your 5×1000 to Casa Mauu at no cost to you.
Codice Fiscale: 92095650518
Follow and share: Casa Mauu is active on Facebook. Following their page and sharing their posts costs nothing and helps them reach more people who might be able to help.
Adopt: If you live in Italy and are thinking of adopting a cat, Casa Mauu regularly has cats and kittens in need of permanent homes. Every adoption frees up space for another animal in need.
Attend their events: Casa Mauu organises occasional fundraising events in Cortona — aperitivi, dinners, and other gatherings that are open to everyone. Keep an eye on their Facebook page for upcoming events.
A Town That Cares
One of the things that makes Cortona special — beyond the art, the history, and the extraordinary views — is the sense of community that runs through it. Casa Mauu is a quiet but powerful expression of that community: a group of local women who decided that the cats of their town deserved to be looked after, and who have been doing exactly that ever since.
The next time you stop to admire a cat on a Cortona street corner, you’ll know who to thank.
Find Casa Mauu on Facebook: Search “Casa Mauu” to find their page, follow their work and find out how to help.
