Ferndale Catfe Lounge, Ferndale, Michigan
The Catfe Lounge at 821 Livernois in Ferndale, Michigan, is now open for business. Among their offerings, for a donation, are premium coffee and tea, delectable treats, free wifi and the opportunity to adopt a cat.
Operated by the Ferndale Cat Shelter, it gives both people and prospective pets the chance to socialize, in a healthy environment for those who seeking the perfect companion and for the felines who thrive on the interaction. Volunteer director, Deanne Iovan sees this as giving cats a solid opportunity to be active through play and socialization, elements that make them better pets.
Cat café’s continue to be a phenomenon world-wide. While the first formal cat café is credited to Taipei, Taiwan, the original concept is Japanese in origin. As many were not permitted to have pets, being able to spend some quality time with a cat was incredibly well received by those who wanted and needed a bit of kitty time. The idea also captured hearts worldwide. A major difference, however, between cat cafés in those early pioneering countries and models such as in Ferndale, is in the former most of their cats live out their lives in the café itself, whereas the later is a combination coffee break and adoption center.
ABOVE: Cat Town Cafe & Adoption Center, Oakland, California BELOW: Meow Parlour, New York, New York
In 2014 there appeared to be a rash of openings across the United States from the Cat Town Café & Adoption Center in Oakland, California, the first of its kind in the states, and Meow Parlour in New York, inspired by multiple visits to a Parisian locale to Colorado’s Denver Cat Company, The Cat Café of San Diego, and Planet Tails, a café and pet store in Naples, Florida, among others, with each being associated with a rescue or humane society and all are focused on finding homes. The owners, volunteers, and organizations are passionate about giving the felines a quality life while presenting both prospects and guests with a meet and greet in a comfortable, social situation.
ABOVE: Denver Cat Company, Denver, Colorado BELOW: Planet Tails, Naples, Florida
ABOVE: The Cat Cafe, San Diego
As things progress cat café tourism may not be far off given so many unique storefronts in both larger cosmopolitan and smaller towns, with each looking for positive ways for deserving cats and kittens the opportunity to meet prospective forever home people. While no doubt there will always be naysayers and those who don’t see the value in this novel approach to coffee and cats, the reality is these establishments are getting cats adopted into loving homes. That, in itself, is worth the price of a Starbuck’s.
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