Pet Chat: Cats and Coffee

Last week, America’s first ever cat café opened in New York City. The pop-up café, sponsored by Purina One and the North Shore Animal League, brought adoptable cats and coffee lovers together. But mostly people came for the cats. The café was hosted in an event space for several days last week, and the idea was for people to get quality time with homeless cats, to talk about cat health, and to hopefully find forever homes for the adoptable cats.

So much buzz was generated about the Cat Cafe that enthusiastic crowds had to wait in long lines to get in. Some waited for more than two hours. By Friday of last week, five out of the 16 homeless cats had found permanent homes.

Even though the Cat Café was only open for four days, the organizers hope the event sparks conversation and encourages adoption of homeless cats. Niky Roberts, with Purina One, stated:

“It’s a great thing because dogs are very publicly social — you can take your dog out and go for a walk, talk to people at the dog park — but that’s not a luxury most cat owners have, so this is a place you can talk with likeminded people about cat health and be among cats.”

As café guests sipped their cappuccinos and played with adoptable cats, they were able to listen to a series of speakers that included discussions let by a veterinarian, a cat behaviorist, and other cat experts. North Shore Animal League was also on hand to promote cat adoptions and encouraged people to come over to their shelter in Long Island where they have over 100 cats up for adoption.

For those of us who don’t live in New York, the scenes from inside the cat café were live streamed, with more than 5,000 people watching around the world. If you missed it, there are some great photos on this website http://mashable.com.

Cat cafes started in Asia in the 1990s, and have since gained popularity in Europe. The popularity of these cafes in places like Japan is attributed in part to the fact that many landlords forbid pets. Additionally, cats at these cafes can provide at least temporary companionship for those who would otherwise not have access to them at all. There have been talks about opening cat cafes in California and Oregon, but for now organizers say the Cat Café in New York is the first one of its kind in North America.

It has been proven that cats have a calming affect and can even lower blood pressure. So, while we may need coffee to energize us, adopting a cat would help to relax us. Here’s hoping more Cat cafes start popping up all over!

Adoptable Pet of the Week

Alfred is a friendly and outgoing dog with very expressive eyes, who is looking for his forever home. He is a neutered male about 6 years old, about 83 lbs., and current on all his shots. In his former life Alfred lived on a ranch with kids, cats, and chickens. He loves taking walks, hiking, snuggling on a lap, riding in the car, and gets along with most dogs. Alfred was abandoned at the Santa Barbara County Animal Shelter with several serious medical conditions, so the shelter contacted K- PALS to provide the veterinary care and medications for Alfred. Alfred is all white and sensitive to the sun so he needs to be an indoor dog, and wear sunscreen when he goes outdoors. Alfred is now ready and eager to be adopted so he can move out of the shelter and get on to a wonderful life in the real world. Alfred is just waiting for the right person or couple, who is kind and loving, to give him the good life and forever home that he very much deserves.

For information about adoption for Alfred, call Animal Services 805-681-5285. For information about K-9 PALS, call 805-570-0415 or email adoptme@k-9pals.org.

To view all dogs for adoption from K-9 PALS and courtesy posts for dogs from the County Shelters and other rescue groups, visit the K-9 PALS website at www.K-9PALS.org.

K-9 PALS (K-9 Placement and Assistance League, Inc.) is the all-volunteer non-profit 501C3 no-kill organization working on behalf of homeless and abandoned dogs in shelters in Santa Barbara and Ventura county shelters, and other abandoned dogs in need. K-9 PALS provides veterinary care, training, promotions, rescue, transports, adoptions, and advocacy for homeless and abandoned dogs from Santa Barbara and Ventura county shelters and other shelters in southern California.

K-9 PALS provides free dog behavior training sessions for people who have adopted a dog from any shelter, rescue group, or humane society. When you adopt a dog from any shelter or rescue, contact K-9 PALS at info@k-9pals.org or 805-570-0415 to take advantage of this great offer. For more information about K-9 PALS go to www.K-9PALS.org, or K-9 PALS on facebook.

All donations to K-9 PALS go directly to benefit homeless dogs in order to save lives, and reduce the number of abandoned and homeless dogs in our county shelters. Donations are gratefully accepted through PayPal, or by mail to K-9 PALS, P.O. Box 60755, Santa Barbara, CA 93160-0755.

Lisa Acho Remorenko is executive director of Animal Adoption Solutions, www.animaladoptionsolutions.com