Some things you just can’t make up. The owner/op-purr-ator of Vancouver, Canada’s paw-pular tourist attraction, the cat café, CATFE, is Michelle FURbacher. YES! FUR is in her name!
Her idea to open a Cat Cafe “freaked out” her parents because she had never had a business of her own and had only baby sat a few friends’ cats. Then by chance she learned about Cat Cafés in Japan and thought, “Why not!” Her decision has paid off in paws-itive ways.
In the three years since her store opened she’s placed 633 homeless cats into their fur-ever homes and four more are going home this weekend! The store has 200 visitors on weekends and a slow day 70 visitors. No wonder you have to make a reservation on line: www.catfe.ca
Why should you spend $10 an hour petting cats? The answer is obvious to cat lovers, especially those whose landlords don’t allow cats. You get your cat-fix here!
Imagine surrounding yourself with other like minded animal lovers, in a relaxing environment with your fur-vorite espresso, a cat cookie (Meow-caron) and 12 different cats a week. Once a week, the S.P.C.A. (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) shelter delivers new foster cats to the Catfe to replace the ones that were adopted. It is a purr-fect partnership.
These are special kitties! Visitors socialize with them and adopt according to their purrs-onalities. The felines mix well with other free roving cats. Once adopted, the cats adapt easily to new siblings, and sleep all night. Some adopters even return for a second kitty because they know they are adopting amazing rescues.
The available adoptees are “fixed”, vaccinated, microchipped, dewormed, and treated for fleas. The shop closes daily from 2-3PM because C.A.T. Union requires an uninterrupted siesta for their cat naps. They can sleep in one of the 50 cat shelves, or enter the Puuur-ivate room through a cat door to get away from admirers.
As you know, cats do what they want: some times play, some times they are cat-atonic and all asleep at the same time, they are typically cat-unpredictable, so you never know what your experience will be. The entrance fee helps pay fur the three helpful staff and rent because adoption fees go to the S.P.C.A. shelter.
You can sit with a furry friend: a cup of coffee/espresso, cookie-cat treats, cat cupcakes and cookies shaped like cat heads. I was thrilled to find Meow-chandise; Catfe mugs, fuzzy kitty socks for humans, toys for cats and t-shirts that read, “I am not a crazy. My cat had me tested. He said I am fine.” For us cat lovers, this friendly store is purr-aradise!
“It’s been said that you should ‘do what you love and then it won’t feel like a job’,” said Michelle. “The CATFE is the purr-fect job!
The staff fall in love with every cat and some are hard to adopt out, but we know we are helping them. There are always many others in need of homes. We are surrounded by wonderful caring customers who love coming into the store. It is heartwarming watching felines find their fur-ever homes, meeting their parents, and then hearing happy endings. Occasionally, a customer arrives stressed or in a bad mood,” said Michelle, “Then a few minutes later, I look over at them petting a
cat and smiling. It’s a thrill watching them transform. One customer who recently moved to town said, “I am lonely and come here because it feels like home.”
People say that pets choose us. Often when a new cat arrives, within its first hour, some fresh visitors sit down and the cat leaps up onto their table, and rubs against their faces, choosing to adopt them! Obviously, cats think this is a People-Café not a Cat Café for them to pick out their very own purr-fect family!”
