MEET OUR FOUNDER

ABIGALE (CHOI) MADONIA

Abi grew up with lots of animals from cats and dogs to chickens, ducks, rabbits and fish. It’s never been a secret how much she loved them, so much so that her entire family was shocked when she went into a career completely unrelated to animals.

In 2017, Abi got her first set of fosters and she was hooked. She has done everything from neonates to fospice (feline hospice) care, critical care, behavioral cases and everything in between - but her heart remains with neonatal care. In almost 8 years of fostering, she has had over 600 animals in her care and counting. She has worked with a multitude of shelters and rescues such as McKamey Animal Center, Humane Educational Society, Troopers Treasures, Whiskers Fund and more. Abi has had a multitude of volunteer positions in rescue throughout the years including serving on several fundraising committees, acting as a Board Member, working as a Foster Coordinator, and even teaching a few classes on the basics of neonatal kitten and puppy care.

Abi documented her rescue journey on social media throughout the years, gaining thousands of followers who were invested in the lives she was saving and their stories. In May of 2024 she officially made the step to create her own rescue, one that focused solely on the care of neonatal kittens and puppies, an area she felt was lacking in her community. And thus, Your Local Fur Mama was born.

Outside of rescue life, Abi is the Founder and CEO of Reyka & Lu Creative, a full service marketing and advertising firm that specializes in working specifically with small to medium sized businesses. She also Co-Founded Nooga Networking, a group created to help connect individual Business Professionals in the Chattanooga area. She is an avid baseball fan and used to work for a Washington Nationals affiliate earlier in her career. Abi enjoys shopping (probably a little too much), interior design projects and spending quality time with her family and friends.

Born in Maine and a New Englander at heart, Abi and her husband Zach currently live in Chattanooga, TN with their 8 fur babies - Lilly, Balenciaga, Dolcé, Nalu, Harley, Olive, Rory and Elio - with plans of adding at least one human baby to their zoo in the near future.

  • Abigale Madonia

  • Zachary Madonia

  • Lilly Ray

  • Balenciaga Rosé

  • Dolcé Noir

  • Nalu Sky

  • Harley Belle

  • Olive May

  • Rory Blue

  • Elio Gray