“Love seeing a female-run business
Back in the spring of 2017, four tiny kittens appeared out of nowhere at Kentucky’s Jeptha Creed Distillery. The distillery’s staff had been distributing straw around the property when they discovered the tiny babies tucked inside one of the bales.
“As we were spreading straw and picking up hay bales, they just came tumbling out of one of them,” Autumn Nethery, Jeptha Creed Distillery’s co-owner and vice president of operations, told The Dodo.
The distillery staff members looked everywhere for the kittens’ mom, but she was nowhere to be found. It quickly became clear that the sisters had been alone for quite some time and weren’t going to survive much longer without help.
“They were tiny,” Nethery said. “They were clearly starving.”
For the distillery staff, the decision to take in the kittens was simple. They’d already been thinking about getting a cat to live on the property, so why not just take in four? They decided to name the kittens after distillery ingredients: Malt, Wheat, Barley and Rye.
“The staff all took turns bottle-feeding them because they had barely opened their eyes when we found them,” Nethery said.
In the years since their rescue, all four of the kittens have grown into healthy, happy adult cats. They thrive in the distillery environment, enjoying lounging in their catio and hanging out with the staff and guests.
“During the day, they are typically napping,” Nethery said. “But when the tours come through, they will wake up. They’ll put on a show — they love to be pet. They love the attention.”
But Malt, Wheat, Barley and Rye also play an important role in operating the distillery. At night, they serve as security guards, patrolling the grounds.
“Love seeing a female-run business,” a commenter on Jeptha Creed’s TikTok wrote.
As if working at a distillery didn’t make these sisters unique enough, they’re also genetic anomalies. While only 20 percent of orange cats are female, all four of the girls have beautiful copper coats.
Everyone at Jeptha Creed Distillery feels lucky that these special cats showed up at their property eight years ago. They’ve served as great mascots, and more importantly, have brought so much joy to everyone lucky enough to meet them.