[CAT] "Chanel Lethbridge hopes to open Edmonton's first cat cafe"

[rfmcdonald]

CBC Edmonton describes the efforts of one Edmonton cat-lover to set up a cat cafe, on the Japanese model. It is worth noting that she is encountering the same issues with regulation and landlords responsible for stalling like efforts in Toronto.

Lethbridge, a first-year business student at NAIT, hopes to open a one-of-a-kind cat cafe that would give pet-less Edmontonians or anyone else who loves cats the chance to cuddle up with a feline friend, and then grab a coffee.

Due to Alberta Health regulations, the cafe will have a glass wall running down its centre; on one side, the cafe. On the other: a lounge full of cats.

"It's like an extension of your living room," Lethbridge said of the cat lounge. "There's comfy furniture in it and friendly cats live there, so you can go and spend time with the cats. And then the other side is a regular cafe."

That "regular" cafe will serve cat-themed snacks and drinks, along with pet merchandise.

[. . .]

Similar cafes have already been opened in Europe, Japan and Montreal, and plans are in place to open cat cafes in Toronto and Vancouver.

Lethbridge says the cafes are a big draw for people who aren't able to have a pet of their own — something she has run into herself, as rules at her current apartment building don't allow her to have a cat.