Wait wait wait… freeze frame. Before I get into that…
First meet Rocko. Rocko is as awesome as awesome comes.
But his journey has been a tough one…
This is how Rocko looked when our cat rescue partner, LYFF Rescue, rescued him from an animal shelter on January 29, 2019.
He was on death watch due to an undetermined “eye injury” which was later determined to be chemical burns to both eyes. (Likely intentional given placement of the injury.)
The shelter who received him did not have the resources to treat him – not even with pain medication.
LYFF Rescue stepped in and sent out an APB asking for monetary commitments so that they could commit to the treatment they knew could save this cat and give him an awesome future.
A generous anonymous donor stepped in and Rocko went to a volunteer foster home for continued treatment – progressing to this…
Once he was fully healed, good ol’ Rocko moved into the Cat & Craft Cat Lounge and started livin’ large…
Then on May 13, 2019 his forever momma who came in for her Cat Lounge reservation, applied for and was approved by LYFF Rescue to Rocko him home to his brand new life!
I often have to remind myself that the “cat cafe” concept – while present around the world – is still not a universally known thing…
I sometimes overhear first-time visitors ask why we have cats and why we charge a fee to spend time with the cats.
It’s sometimes a challenge to communicate correctly, especially when there are a lot of elements competing for our modern-day short attention spans!
If you found this blog and are taking the time to read it, I realize you are probably onboard with the whole “cat cafe” concept…so that’s why I’m going to ask for your help!
Do you know someone who has heard of us (or any cat cafe) but hasn’t visited? Or maybe you have friends or family members that love animals, but have never had a cat as a pet before?
…OR maybe you know someone who deep down is destined to become a crazy cat lady or cat man, and you know all they need is a little coaxing!
If you answered “Yes” to any of these questions, please read on and use this info as a tool to help us grow our community and save more lives!
Here’s the deal… just like Rocko, every cat in our care was saved from euthanasia.
You read that right…
Every single cat we have cared for at C&C since our January opening was pulled from something referred to as “death watch” in the rescue/shelter world. This means the cat was marked for euthanasia by the shelter and assigned a timeline for changing/appealing that decision.
Euthanasia assignments can be based on a number of things – behavioral issues, medical issues, or simply a lack of space.
Some behavioral issues are easily addressed with time and attention. Some medical issues are easily (or not so easily) addressed with treatment and dedicated care. And when it comes to a lack of space, resources are finite and when an adult or senior cat is taking up cage space with no one showing interest in adopting it time can simply run out.
We exist to give these cats another chance.
I like to think of our space as a spoke in a wheel. Each spoke serves a purpose that helps the wheel to turn, and the wheel in turn to carry forth an objective. Shelters, rescue organizations, individual volunteers and cat cafes are all spokes in a wheel, and all work together to give companion cats a higher quality of life and a second chance at love.
We are extremely lucky to work with a non-profit rescue organization that is willing to take on the hard cases – and sometimes expensive cases – to help as many cats as they can. But a rescue can only commit to saving a cat if they know they will have the resources to care for it and help it get adopted. This is where we come in.
Each cat adopted from Cat & Craft enables LYFF Rescue to save another life.
We work really hard to give our foster cats a safe, comfortable and cozy environment where they get plenty of love and attention. But we are no substitute for a family and a home to call one’s own. And worse, the longer current fosters reside with us, other cats are stuck living in cages and missing their chance to be saved due to a lack of available foster space.
Each time you see us post a happy adoption photo taken in front of our big blue cat, it means another cat is soon to arrive and take its place in our foster lounge.
Operating a foster cat lounge isn’t free… or cheap.
In a perfect world committing to help improve the lives of others would be a free endeavor. Sadly we don’t live in a perfect world. We have to pay additional monthly rent for our cat lounge space. Additional monthly power and insurance bills too. Staff costs to feed and clean up after 15 cats every day? That’s an additional monthly expense too. Cat litter… I won’t get into how much cat litter we go through.
By additional I mean all these costs are added to our costs to operate a coffee shop. And the coffee shop is the vehicle by which we attract and encourage people to come spend time with – and hopefully adopt – our foster cats.
So on the rare occasion I hear someone make a comment that they shouldn’t have to pay $12 to hang out with cats, I don’t disagree.
I tell them if they can convince my landlord to stop charging me rent, and SDGE to waive my power bills, and AllState to give me free insurance, and help me win the lottery so I can pay our staff so they can buy gas to get to work, then I am beyond happy to waive their $12 lounge fee!
In all seriousness, what I’m getting at is that we are invested in providing the platform and experience that we know will help the 500 cats we are trying to save in our first year of business, and even more beyond that. But like any small business we depend on the community to support us. And that is where you come in.
Even just choosing to make us your daily or weekly coffee shop helps… truly it does. But spending time with the cats in our care… helping us share their stories and encouraging others to do the same… that’s how you can help us weave something truly magical!
Hey, North County, help us keep creating more happy endings just like our buddy Rocko!
With Love and Light,
Caroline
It boggles my mind that some people would ask or wonder why they need to pay to visit with the cats. Makes me wonder if they are true cat people and it worries me a bit.
Good news about Rocko and his forever home.
Congratulations to Rocko and his new family! I was in tears (happy) that Rocko found is forever home. He was truly a delight and what a character when my mom and I visited the playground for the first time. Rocko was eager to meet all of us waiting in the greeting and hostess area. We all felt a warm greeting from him laying on the floor looking in through the glass door as to say “hey everyone we are ready to entertain and meet all of you”. So Rocko was the first impression of what was to come in the next hour. I really wanted him to find a home but will miss him during our next visit. As I read on about Rocko’s story the tears turned into great sadness to hear of his life’s journey and the struggles and pain that he has endured. If anyone has had an eye infection you know the pain that goes along with that so imagine the pain that this little guy was going through with a chemical burn.
Regarding the fee for spending time with these animals is the best money you will ever spend knowing that you contributing to a worthy cause. It’s worth every cent for the experience that you have. I have a huge amount of respect and gratitude to the compassion and sincere love that the owners have for making a difference in these beautiful felines life’s. Thank you for everything you do to make this world a better place for the kitty’s, the family’s that adopt, and for the general public to enjoy the company of these animals.
We hear it often but still needs to be said again and again. Spay and neuter your pets! Please donate to make a difference whether its money, time, or items to an animal thrift store. Enrich your life by adopting a forever companion. It’s an amazing feeling to give and see the results of kindness as evidence of Rocko’s story it changed his life and his new family’s life forever.
I am Rocko’s mother. I have changed his spelling to Rocco!
He is dearly loved and I can’t imagine my life without him.
He’s even made friends with my older cat, Simone. (although it took a few weeks) but they’re chasing around and playing together. Everyone LOVES HIM.