Photo by Marge Neal Karen Nellis poses by a cat sleeping on one of her kitty beds at the Frederick County Division of Animal Control's feline shelter. Nellis makes the beds for cats' comfort on a volunteer basis.

But not many people think of a creature comfort that Frederick resident Karen Nellis makes by hand: Cushy cat beds that allow a good night's sleep -- or an afternoon catnap -- without having to stretch across the cold, hard floor of a steel cage.

"It's all about the comfort of the cats," she said Thursday while touring the cat shelter at the Frederick County Division of Animal Control's headquarters on Rosemont Avenue.

Nellis has been volunteering at the shelter for about four years, ever since she adopted one of its cats.

She and her husband had a cat who died of feline leukemia before the cat turned 2, Nellis said.

"I took it hard; his death was very bad for me," she said. "I came here to get another cat in tribute, if that's the right word I want, to my cat who died."

Shortly after beginning her volunteer work at the shelter, she read a newspaper article about a woman in New York who made animal beds for a shelter.

"I immediately thought I could do that here," she said, and came up with a simple "straight sewing" pattern for the fleece beds that would keep the shelter's cats and kittens cozy.

Through trial and error, Nellis discovered that beds made with a fleece covering and 100 percent cotton batting innards hold up the best to constant laundering in the shelter's industrial washing machine. Polyester gets hard and brittle after too many trips through the washer and dryer.

"And we use bleach and that breaks the fabric down too," she said.

Her latest effort is to recruit volunteers to make more beds.

"This is perfect for someone who enjoys sewing and also cares about animals," she said. "And they can do it in the privacy and the convenience of their own homes."

Some people love animals but can't volunteer at the shelter because they can't stand to see the cats and dogs confined in cages.

"It's too emotional for some people to see the animals in the cages," shelter volunteer coordinator Shawn Snyder said. "So this would be a good opportunity for someone like that to help out."

The shelter depends heavily on volunteers who provide services, such as working directly with the animals -- feeding, cleaning cages, walking and exercising them or just spending time socializing with them.

Last year, nearly 6,000 animals went through the center.

"More get adopted, returned to the owner or sent to rescue groups than get euthanized," Snyder said, adding that temperament and health are usually the key factors in deciding which animals to put down.

Thursday, the cat population was about 90, but the shelter can house between 150 and 175 felines, Snyder said.

Each has a name, whether the moniker was given by staff or the cat came into the shelter from a home and its name was known.

Volunteers call each by their name and many respond with a twitch of the ears, a turn of the head or a quiet mew.

"They're all great cats and they all deserve to have a home," Nellis said. "And while they're here, they all deserve to be comfortable."