Cat Holly’s Lavish Quinceañera Saves Houston Animal Shelter

May 28

May 28 Cat Holly’s Lavish Quinceañera Saves Houston Animal Shelter

The 40 or so guests came from Phoenix, Chicago, and New York to attend a lavish quinceañera in Houston, Texas toasting a 15-year-old cat named Holly Marie Gonzalez.

Holly’s owner, Miranda Gonzalez, had been determined to throw a full-blown quinceañera — normally a coming-of-age celebration for human girls turning 15 — since adopting the cat when it was just six months old.

“Since she was a baby, I always knew,” Gonzalez tells People magazine. “I told my husband, ‘You know she's going to get a quinceañera, right?’”

When the big day came, Gonzalez did not hold back. The party included a 6-piece mariachi band (who were unaware they’d be performing for a cat until they arrived), a massive tiered cake, two dress changes for Holly, who made a spectacular entrance, motoring into the festivities in a remote-controlled car.

In lieu of gifts, guests were asked to donate to a local no-kill cat shelter, Almost Home Cat Haven. “We ended up raising $600 that night,” says Miranda. After the cat’s quinceañera went viral on social media more donations rolled in, and now the shelter – which had been at risk of shutting down without funding – has enough cash to cover rent, utilities, cat food, and supplies for the next few months.

“This is my soul cat,” Gonzalez says. “I don't know how I would've gotten through life without her.” The family is already making plans for a sweet sixteen party.

Holly’s was not the first quinceañera thrown for a nonhuman. Among other coming-of-aged (sic) celebrations, standup comic Gabriel Iglesias spent $100,000 on the fiesta de quince años for his chihuahua Risa in 2022. “I've never had a daughter, I've never had a kid of my own,” Iglesias said at the time, “so I'm gonna go full-blown on this one. And I did.”