KD Sunday Spotlight: Cats N'At
PINE TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) - A small business in the North Hills reimagined the animal shelter experience by teaming up with a local animal rescue and creating a unique space just for cats.
"Basically, I call it like Disney World for people who like cats," said Anna Montano, who volunteers at Cats N'At and Conquer the Colony.
It's the purrr-fect place to forget all your worries, sit back, and make some new friends. Cats N'At created a comfortable cat lounge in Pine Township where adoptable cats can roam around, and there are no cages.
The kitties always put their best paw forward because they get a lot of visitors.
"It's just like a very therapeutic and happy place," Montano said.
All the felines are from Conquer the Colony, a foster-based nonprofit rescue that has a strong focus on trap-neuter-release, which limits the stray and feral cat population. When they rescue one that's friendly, they go to the cat lounge and live there until they find loving forever homes.
Kim Sendek-McMillan is the founder of Cats N'At. She said people who aren't "cat people" are pleasantly surprised when they visit the lounge.
"A lot of people come in, they always remember their grandma's mean cat, and then they get here, and they're like, 'Oh my gosh, cats are so cool,' you know what I mean? So, just open your mind and see how interesting and exciting cats can be," said Sendek-McMillan.
Cats remind us to pause and enjoy the moment. The cats in the lounge can make you laugh and lower stress levels.
"We have a lot of people that come here, maybe they have a spouse that's allergic and can't get a cat, or they're in an apartment and the landlord doesn't allow pets, so they'll just come here and hang out. We also have a lot of special needs people that come here because it is very relaxing and therapeutic to just hold a cat," Montano said.
Cats N'At also hosts birthday parties and events for kids and adults.
"Crafting events, we have bingo, we are starting some fun things that we're going to do. Trivia nights, murder mystery night, we've got ideas," said Sendek-McMillan.
Montano volunteers for Conquer the Colony. She also helps out at the cat lounge. She said it provides a unique and paw-sitive experience.
"Most of the larger rescues have cats in cages, so when you visit, you only get to see one cat at a time, they're kind of scared because they're not in their natural environment. Here, they feel like they're at home, so they're very comfortable [and] you get to see their personalities," Montano said.
They have a room for adult cats and another for kittens. Special needs kitties hang out in the boutique downstairs that has all things cats for sale.
Conquer the Colony handles all the vetting for the felines, and they are ready to be adopted.
"I can tell you the two women that run it, they've been there every step of the way, they've never said no to me. Every time, I'm like, 'Oh, I got another cat I need help with,' they're like, 'Alright we'll figure it out,'" Montano said.
Cats N'At has only been open for two years and they've already had nearly 300 adoptions.
"It's amazing because we take our time, there's no same day options, we take our time, we do a background check, we make sure everything's in order with their other kitties, as well as our kitties here. It feels good. I sleep really well, it feels, we got some great adopters," said Sendek-McMillan.
They're raising money to make improvements and add a coffee bar. Almost all their funding comes from cat lounge visits.
If you're not ready for the responsibility of owning a pet, you can still make a reservation to take a break and get some kitty therapy.
"Just come visit, come pet some cats!" said Sendek-McMillan.
If you want to help the cats, they have their own Amazon wish list, you can buy them something or attend one of the events.
You can book a reservation online to visit Cats N'At or attend an upcoming event.
Upcoming events at the cat lounge include Taylor Swift Night on Dec. 28, a paint-and-sip with cats for kids on Dec. 29, and Cats After Dark for New Year's for ages 21 and older on Dec 30.
You can see the cats that are available for adoption on the Conquer the Colony website.