LurkingKittehCatfe
Cat Cafes began in Japan, but now they have spread to Taiwan, China, South Korea and Europe. It was only a matter of time before they made it to the US, and now Carlos Wong is attempting to make one happen in Los Angeles.
To this end, he has a Kickstarter for his concept, Catfe, and the support of pet adoption center Best Friends Animal Society LA/No Kill LA. Unlike Cat Cafes in Asia, all the cats that will live at Catfe will be adoptable. Some will be immediately adoptable, and others will stay at Catfe for several months getting to know the clientele and getting socialized before being adopted out.
Here's his Kickstarter campaign video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2Qg7xTNToA
CatfePopUp
As a proof of concept, there was a pop-up Catfe in Chinatown last weekend. Lines went around the block as small groups of people were let in for a few minutes at a time. Over $13,000 was donated to the Catfe Kickstarter, and even more awesomely, 31 cats and kittens found fur-ever homes with new pet parents!
However, the Kickstarter needs lots more love to make Catfe work. Even though Catfe got tons of press and lots of visitors, setting up what will basically be a coffeehouse restaurant/boba bar costs a lot. And the Kickstarter expires on October 20th! So if you are an animal lover who wants to see more homeless cats and kittens find homes, and perhaps might even want to come visit Los Angeles to check out the place for yourself eventually, please check it out and see how you can help.
Here's an LA Times video shot at the pop-up Catfe... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgoNSpWCSZk
...and here's a gallery of Ms. Geek's photos taken there.
