BY VALERIA MARTINEZ @lolvaleria
Rescue cats crowd our RSPCAs and small shelters each day. More than 35,000 die each year at RSPCA because of lack of space and not enough adoptions.
Adopting, volunteering and donating are great ways to help these animals in need. However, there’s a different way that is unique.
A four minute walk from Central station you will find Sydney’s first cat cafe, Catmosphere.
A cat cafe is your usual cafe serving drinks and snacks but with a difference. While you eat and drink there are cats surrounding you, coming up for pats and cuddles.
Catmosphere gives you the option of half an hour with kittens and an hour with the adult cats.
All of these cats are fosters from the RSPCA staying until they find a home.
“Sometimes we get cats available for adoption from our own store,” our Catmosphere hostess said.
It costs to keep a pet cat. For that reason, Catmosphere lets you sponsor a cat for $30 a month and entitles you to two visits a month.
Entry for an hour-long kitty visit is $20 per person. Included in this is a free hot or cold drink and a cat shaped cookie to take home.
The adult cats are friendly, curious creatures. One of the rules is not to pick them up; they are rescue cats and a history of abuse and a stranger picking them up can cause distress.
Having these cats in a cafe, raising money in ticket sales and merchandise increases their chances of survival and lets them run around and socialise instead of living in a pen.
Catmosphere has another cafe in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand.
