To say Chatham-Kent's (CK) only cat lounge has been a success would be an understatement.
The space, located inside The Glasshouse Nursery, opened its doors in July 2024 and now plans to celebrate its 100th adoption this weekend.
Myriam Armstrong, the Executive Director of Pet and Wildlife Rescue (PAWR), told CK News Today that if she had been told the lounge would hit this milestone so quickly, she wouldn't have believed it.
"We were looking forward to adopting some of them eventually, but we didn't think it would go this quickly," she said.
The lounge was created to help cats that had trouble finding their forever home. This included senior cats, shy cats, and cats that have a tough time being in a cage.
Armstrong noted that the space has also been a big help for people looking to adopt.
"They stress coming into a shelter because it makes them sad to see them in cages," she explained.
Many adoptions were spur-of-the-moment: people would show up just to play with the cats and end up leaving with a new family member.
According to Armstrong, it's nearly impossible to find a time when there isn't someone in the lounge.
"We have a caretaker who goes twice a day, and he always has to ask people to give him a minute to clean up because it's always filled with people," she added.
The lounge will be celebrating the milestone this Sunday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. PAWR plans on handing out 100 cupcakes, while the first 100 people to donate a bag of cat kibble will receive a $50 gift certificate to The Glasshouse Nursery.
