By Brendan Rees
A woman who takes in abandoned and stray cats is now in need of a home herself.
Daniela Maslen had packed all her belongings into a semi-trailer, thinking the sale of her home in Hampton Park had gone through.
“We already packed up everything and five minutes before the removalists left we got the phone call from our lawyer saying that settlement was not going to happen,” she said.
She says the current buyers were “in the process of getting a loan together” after “they have had four months and they didn’t do anything.”
The founder of 2nd Chance Cat Rescue, who was ready to move into a property she bought in Cranbourne with her husband, is now at a bed and breakfast in Harkaway with their 15 cats – 12 of which have been rescued.
“We are just waiting,” Ms Maslen explained. “We haven’t got anything in writing yet so we’re still in limbo.”
Ms Maslen was running her not-for-profit organisation from Hampton Park home, but saw a better opportunity at the new property to provide more space for the cats.
But now the cats are in cages in the back of the bed breakfast which Ms Maslen says is not ideal as “they can’t really do much.”
“We have had everything stored away…everything is in the van and in our car, and trailer.”
She said she had to buy more clothes because of all her belongings being in storage.
“We don’t have internet access where we are staying, so I can’t even use that,” Ms Maslen said, adding she needed to use a library to keep up with her emails.
“To top it off my husband isn’t working any more…it makes it much, much harder.
“He’s actually having to take his super out to get a bridging loan…that’s not a good thing,” she said.
Ms Maslen said moving back into their Hampton Park home was not an option as it would cost them up to $7000 by the time she moved her belongings from storage, and then eventually back into the new property.
Speaking to her lawyers, she says “they’re hopeful” that settlement will be “all going through” which was originally set for 14 November.
