An inside look into Curtis Sliwa’s life with 15 rescue cats

It’s the perfect apartment.

The Post got an exclusive look at Curtis Sliwa’s tiny studio apartment on the Upper West Side on Wednesday – after the newly appointed GOP mayoral candidate announced that he and his wife shared the space with 15 rescue cats.

The 750-square-foot studio on West 87th Street and Central Park West is cat heaven, with furniture more suitable for cats than their human roommates.

There are three street windows, perfect for bird watching or an afternoon nap in the sun, and they have been retrofitted with wire mesh so the cats can enjoy a makeshift spot outside while they sunbathe on the windowsills.

Two towering cat apartments cover the main wall of the apartment and in the kitchen there are three private cat hotels on the cupboards that offer a bird’s eye view of what is going on below.

Curtis Sliwa’s 750-square-meter studio apartment is a true kitty heaven with furniture. Matthew McDermott

While a number of human decorations are scattered on shelves and tables in the apartment, a growing number of cat toys are crammed next to them, threatening to take up almost every free space in the studio.

“I try to use electronic toys that they can hunt because they are difficult to play with all the time,” said Sliva’s wife, Nancy Beth Sliwa, as she tossed two toy wands across the room.

Surprisingly, the house smells more like a freshly opened box of Fresh Step cat litter than the trash buried in one of the six boxes scattered around the room.

According to Sliwa’s wife, Nancy Beth, the couple clean the litter boxes at least three times a day. Matthew McDermott

But warding off the smell of ammonia and cat feces is a tedious endeavor, explained Nancy Beth.

Curtis, who won the Republican mayor primary against Fernando Mateo on Thursday, is an outspoken animal activist. Matthew McDermott

“We clean the litter boxes at least three times a day,” said the cat mom, which is the equivalent of a monster of 18 shovels a day that enables the couple to maintain hygienic living conditions.

“I use vanilla candles and clean with alcohol, water, and baking soda because the chemicals in these heavy-duty cleaners can really make cats sick.”

Curtis, who won the Republican mayor primary against Fernando Mateo on Thursday, is an outspoken animal activist.

Every single cat was supposed to be euthanized by the city’s contested animal care center, but was rescued and nursed back to health by him and his wife.

“It starts with Apollo, who is the patriarch, and then Athena, she is the female cat who rules the quarters,” said the proud cat father of his furry brood.

“Then it goes with [Crooked Head] because the head is actually almost unscrewed and it would have been put to sleep and then there is Drop Foot and Whiskers and Frisky and Big Little One. ”

Then there is Tiger, Love, Ajax, Duncan, Hope, Tiny, Hercules and finally Wolverine, “who snores so loudly that he rips the paint off the walls,” Curtis explained affectionately.

“It starts with Apollo, who is the patriarch, and then Athena, she is the female cat who rules the quarters.”

Curtis Sliwa, NYC Mayoral candidate and cat parent

Each night, three of the cats share the apartment’s queen-size bed with the couple, who says they need to lie perfectly still so they don’t accidentally roll over one of the cats.

“Once you lay down, that was it. Cats on the left, cats on the right,” Curtis said, adding that the nights can be difficult.

“The kittens don’t know when to stop if they invade the older cat’s lawn,” Curtis said of the nocturnal cat policy.

Every single cat was supposed to be euthanized by the city’s contested animal care center, but was rescued and nursed back to health by Sliwa and his wife. Matthew McDermott

“Keeping them in their own lane when they are all running and cracking around at night because they are nocturnal and can get aggressive can be a big challenge!”

But if the couple are playful themselves, they have a simple solution: pack them all in the bathroom.

“They make more noise than we do these nights!” Curtis laughed.

The couple stated that they are happy to open their homes to the Death Row cats, but they are trying to adopt as many of them as possible.

“This year we have taken in 20-25 and adopted 10. We have four planned releases and when they go we will take in four more,” Curtis said, adding the older and less healthy kittens will be lifelong residents.

Despite the work and the crowded conditions, the cat father said that his furry roommates were wonderful for his health.

“It’s a stress reliever,” explained Curtis.

“You actually ensure peace and quiet. When I had high blood pressure from chronic Crohn’s disease, the cats would lie on my chest and naturally lower my blood pressure as normal. Cats can do that. ”