It’s really crazy how the adoptions go. Remember how I said there was a full house at The Cat Cafe? That house got emptied out really quickly, because we had nine adoptions over the past week! All adoptions are wonderful moments, but there was one that was very special.

Patra was raised with her sister Cleo from the time she was a kitten. Sadly, the family who raised these two had to give them up due to financial challenges. They went to the sister of their person, and she cared for them until she had a baby. The loud noises were too much for Cleo and Patra, and she had to surrender them.

These two were friends, but they weren’t a bonded pair. That meant that Cleo and Patra could be adopted separately, and that is what happened. With Patra, she went to a home with a resident cat, who bullied her. So Patra went back to San Diego Humane Society, and then found her way to The Cat Cafe.

Initially, Patra was very shy. She hid behind the sink in the cat retreat and really didn’t come out much. But as she settled in, she started to show her personality and started to interact with both customers and staff.

One day, we received a call from the woman who originally gave Patra up to her sister. She was so ecstatic to know that Patra was available that she didn’t wait for a return call. Instead, she gathered her family and drove from Hemet to our location to adopt Patra.

You can see that even though Patra is not happy to be in a carrier, she remembers the people who cared for her and is glad to be reunited with them.

We received six cats from San Diego Humane Society so there are now seven cats in. Here’s a quick overview of The Magnificent Seven:

• Dita is a petite two year old girl who weighs seven pounds. She’s shy initially, but if you give her time to get to know you, she’ll show you her sweet personality
• Lani is a little unusual because she’s an orange tabby. Only around one in four orange tabbies are female. This six year old girl also is a big girl, weighing 22 pounds. She’ll need to be put on a special diet by whoever adopts her.
• Madeline is a black and white cat who is four years old and weighs 13 pounds. She’s a friendly and inquisitive girl who enjoys playing with wand toys.
• Momo has been at The Cat Cafe the longest. He’s a six year old, 16 pound guy who’s a shy cat. But once you get to know Momo, he’s a lot of fun. If you’re looking for a cat to spend a day on the couch with you while you binge on Netflix, he’s your boy.
• Moose is a handsome Siamese mix. Not surprisingly, as a Siamese, he likes to be the boss. This seven year old guy weighs 14 pounds and he’s probably best in a home where he can be the only cat.
• Paulina is our resident house panther. She’s the youngest member of the Magnificent Seven, at eight months. She’s very playful and friendly and loves to hop into people’s laps.
• Truvy is a cat who’s lived a tough life. She was a shelter cat for seven years, which means that this eight pound girl is so happy to be able to run around The Cat Cafe that she greets everyone she meets with head bonks

Come on in and meet the Magnificent Seven. Maybe you’ll want to take one home.

One of the things I’ve heard from people is that they wish more cats were out. Well, thanks to the efforts of San Diego Humane Society, we were able to address this. We received the latest additions to the clowder here at The Cat Cafe, and they’re an interesting and diverse bunch.

We’ve had such great success at getting cats adopted, we’re now able to open our doors to more cats from other shelters as well! San Diego Humane Society has been working with other overcrowded animal rescue organizations in finding adoptable cats for us. Every cat that someone adopts here doesn’t just change the life of the adopted cat and the person doing the adoption. It means we are able to save other cats who may come from places where they don’t have much time. It also frees up space in shelters so they are able to help even more cats in immediate need of care.

That should make all of The Cat Cafe’s supporters — and you’re a supporter even if you don’t adopt — feel very good. You are literally saving lives.

As for the six new arrivals, here they are:

• Axel is a three year old, recently neutered guy who weighs 10 pounds. This ginger tabby took a while to get comfortable hanging out in the cat playpen, but now, he’s the stereotypical orange tabby. He’s friendly, talkative, and playful. 
• Baby May is a little older, at seven years, and she’s 14 pounds. This pretty calico is a snowshoe mix. She takes a while to warm up to you, but when she does, she’s not shy about showing affection.
• Blossom is a three year old, eight pound tortie. She’s calm and friendly, and she’s got an interesting habit. She loves to show affection by licking you. I think she’s got a little dog in her, because not only does she love licking you, but her tongue is like a dog’s
• Eevee is two years old, and she’s a slim cat, weighing nine pounds. This girl is a little shy and cautious but she’s more than happy to play with people who she is comfortable with.
• Garrett is also three, and like his fellow orange tabby Axel, he was recently neutered. But he’s friendly and playful and loves to interact with new people.
• Tessa is our resident house panther. She’s six years old and weighs 14 pounds. But remember, because she’s a black cat, she goes with anything and is slimming.

Come on in and get to know The Cat Cafe’s latest arrivals. And if you fall in love and take one home, you’ll help us and our partner save more lives.

In what is becoming a common occurrence, another cat found a forever home after spending very little time here in The Cat Cafe. The latest adoption that came through us was Milo. He’s an orange and white tabby that reminded me of my first cat, Tigger, because he had an orange spot on his nose.

When Milo arrived at The Cat Cafe, the paperwork and notes on him said that everyone who spent time with him at the San Diego Humane Society said that he was an awesome cat. And it showed. Milo wasn’t too keen on getting out into the cat playpen, but when he did come out after hours, he was a very friendly cat.

And when he was back in the cat retreat, whenever you could get him to approach you, he would immediately show affection to you. If you know anything about cats, you know that when their tail is held up high, they are happy. Milo did that, and then some. He’d wrap his tail around your leg, which is a cat’s way of saying, hi, you’re my human, and I’m your cat.

It’s no surprise that one of our customers asked about Milo. He was in the cat retreat at the time, so we took her back there to meet him. It didn’t take long for Milo to win her heart over and she scheduled an appointment for the next day to do the adoption.

You can see how happy Milo’s new family is to have him. And I know that Milo’s going to be happy there, because he’s going to be well taken care of and showered with love.

It’s exciting to be adopting out so many cats. Milo is the eleventh cat we’ve sent to a good home from The Cat Cafe and we’ve only had our full hours start on January 5.

The weekend was a busy one for us here at The Cat Cafe, but it closed on a really good note. I’m proud of the coffee we serve as well as all of the team members, both paid and volunteer. But what makes me the happiest is when we find a good home for one of our adoptable cats.

And yesterday, we sent our youngest and most playful cat to a new home. Cookie was here for about a week, and I was surprised she lasted that long. She’s only seven months old and she loves to play and she had the entire room laughing when she was out.

The thing is that she was so rambunctious and playful that she didn’t spend too much time out in the cat playpen. She’d entertain and play with customers at The Cat Cafe for a little bit, but then she’d wear herself out and go to sleep and recover in the cat retreat.

One person saw Cookie on our website and decided that he would make a trip to The Cat Cafe to see her. After meeting her, both with and without his girlfriend, he decided that Cookie was the right cat for him. And yesterday, he took her home.

Cookie’s adoption brings the number of cats who have found a home of their own up to ten. This is way above what we expected. We would have been excited to adopt one animal a week. Ten in less than a month? If you told us that The Cat Cafe would do that, we’d have laughed and said you’re way too optimistic.

But as it turns out, that’s exactly what has happened here and we hope to be adopting out a lot more cats real soon.

Our busiest days so far have been weekend days. That shouldn’t really come as a surprise. So when a group of people came in after heading to the Gaines Street campus of the San Diego Humane Society and learning that we had a bonded pair, Mac and Cheese, it was a little hectic.

Making things more complicated were that Mac and Cheese had arrived just a couple of days ago and they hadn’t started wandering through the cat playpen yet. Instead, they preferred to spend their time in the cat retreat.

At The Cat Cafe, one of our main goals is to get homes for adoptable cats, and since the group of people who wanted to take Mac and Cheese home were patient, we managed to make it work. They were let into the cat retreat after a brief wait. And they got to spend a good amount of time with the bonded pair that they’d end up taking home.

After about ten or fifteen minutes, they said they wanted to adopt the pair. Since it was a group, we needed to pick one person to do the paperwork. Once that person was selected, it didn’t take long before we were sending Mac and Cheese to their new home.

Mac and Cheese left here to cheers from the people who were waiting in line to get into the playpen. And it’s only fitting that they did, because it’s often hard to find someone to take home a pair of cats. I’m really happy that we’ve been able to get two pairs of cats, Mac and Cheese as well as Wexler and Larson, placed into the same home.

We’ve got people interested in a number of the cats who are here at The Cat Cafe. If you’ve got your eye on one of them, please set up an appointment so that you can go home with the cat that you love.

I have a confession to make. My plan initially was to introduce everyone to the cats that come in to The Cat Cafe individually. It’s a bit of a challenge to create new updates all the time, and I figured that with so many cats coming in, I could give you all something new to read on a daily basis for a while.

Well, I have learned a lesson. With so many cats leaving after spending just one day at The Cat Cafe, I’ve learned that the idea of spreading out the introduction of them, like I did with the Fab Five, just isn’t going to work.

So instead I will introduce you to all of the new arrivals as a group. And we’ve got quite a few to tell you about.

• Mac and Cheese: This bonded pair must go together — no exceptions will be made. They’re three years old, and adorable. They are  taking a little time to get used to the space at The Cat Cafe, so they may not be out. But when they are, I’m sure they’ll be gone quick. Mac is the bigger of the two, and she’s the one here.
• Momo is an easy going guy who was surrendered because a baby came into the home who was allergic to cats. He’s a big guy, weighing around 12 pounds. He’s also a little shy, and take a while to warm up. But once he does, he really enjoys the spotlight.
• Kendra is a five year old brown tabby who is also a little shy at first but who warms up as she gets more familiar with her environment. Since she just arrived at The Cat Cafe today, it’s unlikely you’ll see a lot of her for a while. We’ll give her the time she needs to warm up to everyone. She is best suited for a home without children.
• Cookie is a one year old black and white girl who is a little more playful and outgoing than some of the others who have come in this newest group. She’s a happy go lucky girl who adapts well to new situations. I’m sure she’ll be running around The Cat Cafe’s playpen in no time.
• Sylvia’s got an interesting story. She suffered from a degloved tail, and the vets weren’t able to save it so they amputated it. Her fur hasn’t grown back yet from the area where it was shaved, but you can tell that she’s going to adapt to this very well. She’s a playful and fun girl.

Don’t wait too long before you come in to The Cat Cafe to meet our new arrivals. If what’s happened recently is any indication, they won’t be spending too much time with us before they go to their forever home!

Yesterday, we adopted out two house panthers after they spent just one day at The Cat Cafe. I was excited about this, because black cats are the last ones to be adopted due to silly superstitions. Just think, with a black cat, you can wear black clothes because their fur will match.

It’s also difficult to adopt out senior cats. Most people adopt kittens. Only about 10 to 20 percent of all adoptions involve adult cats. And the percentage of senior cats who are adopted is even lower. This is really sad, and it’s one of the reasons why I was excited to get in a senior cat.

Emily is ten, but you’d never know it from the way she acts. And man, is she ever a friendly cat. You know how most cats give you head bonks if they like you? For Emily, that wasn’t good enough. Nope, Emily had to literally jump into you to give you a head bonk. It was adorable, and something you’d expect from a kitten, not a senior cat.

This is what the couple who decided they wanted to take Emily home saw and fell in love with. They had never seen her before, and they just had to take her home. Their only concern was how she would interact with other cats. Fortunately, Emily lived in a home with other cats and she was just fine with them. That was also the case during the day she spent at The Cat Cafe.

Because Emily is a senior cat, her adoption fee was $25. This was something her new pet parents were happy to pay. We filled out the paperwork, put Emily in a travel crate, and she left The Cat Cafe after less than 24 hours to go to her new home.

I’m so glad to have been a part of the adoptions of three cats who are more difficult to adopt out. Even better, I didn’t really get a chance to get attached to the ones who left since they were there for only a day. That made it a purely joyful moment, not a bittersweet one.

With Janis, Wexler, and Larson all going home the same day, it was a good thing that our partners at the San Diego Humane Society brought in some new cats. My plan was to introduce you to them over the next few days. Well, that plan went right out the window when two of them were adopted just one day after they arrived!

Even better, the two cats who were adopted were black cats! There’s a stigma that many people hold against black cats, and it leads to them being the last cats to be adopted. Fortunately for us and for the cats who went home today, customers at The Cat Cafe don’t hold that view.

Breanne is a long haired black cat who was surrendered because her energy level was supposedly too high. That’s something I just didn’t agree with. She was playful, inquisitive, and friendly but overly energetic? Maybe it’s because I share a home with three bengal cats, but that just wasn’t something I saw.

It was love at first sight for the woman who adopted Breanne. She came in during the afternoon, and said she wanted to take her home. After we closed, she came back and adopted Breanne.

We also had our first staff adoption today. The second Nannete came in, one of our team said she had found the cat she wanted to adopt. I asked her if she was sure, because she said the same thing about Wexler when he got in, and she said yes. I reminded her that if she fell in love with all the cats, there was no way I was letting her take them all home so she better be sure, and she said she was.

She thought about it overnight, and this morning said she was sure she wanted to adopt Nannete. We did the paperwork, and it was a little strange sitting across the table from an employee, going over the adoption contract. But I’m glad to have done it, because I know Nannete is going to a great home.

The Cat Cafe only got adoptable cats in on January 2. So far, we have found homes for six cats. I’m so glad we can do this and look forward to sending lots more cats to good homes, even if it’s a bittersweet moment for me.

Writing this blog post is going to be one of the last things I do today before I go to bed. It’s been a long day, and I’m tired, but I’m also very happy. A lot of good things happened at The Cat Cafe today.

First, I want to thank our media visitors from NBC San Diego, U-T San Diego, and The Talk of San Diego. It was great having you all visit, and I appreciated you taking the time out of your busy day to swing by.

The U-T did a wonderful photo montage, and I invite everyone to take a look at it.

You all know that one of the goals of The Cat Cafe is to find homes for adoptable cats. We did that with Butterball on Saturday, and today, within an hour and a half, three cats went on their ride to a forever home.

Janis was the first one to head to her new home. I’ve had the chance to watch her blossom. One of the things the San Diego Humane Society requires during adoptions is a briefing on any medical conditions a cat may have. I had to tell the people adopting Janis that she was a shy cat. That may have been the case when Janis was taken in, but she really came out of her shell during her time with us.

To see this girl go from a shy, cautious cat to a playful and confident one was an amazing transformation. I’m so glad that The Cat Cafe had a chance to be part of it, and very happy she’s going to a home where she’ll be loved.

About an hour later, I bid farewell to Wexler and Larson. The couple who adopted these brothers wanted cats who were mellow and calm, and that describes Wexler and Larson perfectly.

While these brothers were not so tightly bonded that they had to go together, it was better if they did. As if to demonstrate this, Larson decided to head over to groom Wexler when their potential family was watching.

They’ll be going to a home where they’ll have an enclosed and heated patio to stay in initially until they get used to the full house. If their actions at The Cat Cafe are any indication of what they’ll do, these two brothers will be demanding to investigate all of their new home in less than a day!

I’m going to miss these three cats, but I’m so happy that they’ve found a good home!

You all know that one of the things that we are trying to do here at The Cat Cafe is to find homes for our adoptable cats. And today, that happened! It was definitely a bittersweet moment, especially because the cat who was adopted definitely pulled on everyone’s heartstrings right away.

We are sad that Butterball, who I called the sweetest member of the Fab Five, has left The Cat Cafe but we are very happy that he has a forever home!

When Butterball came to us, the notes said that he was a shy cat. That definitely was not the case at The Cat Cafe. I’m so glad that we had a chance to let him come out of his shell and show his loving personality.

And I know he’s going to a very good home, too. The couple who adopted Butterball first came in to see him early in the week. One of them discovered that their allergies kicked in. Even though they loved Butterball, they decided that they would think things over so that they could be sure it would work.

This couple contacted me today, and were kind enough to understand that with the rush we were dealing with, we weren’t going to be able to handle adoptions until later. So we set up an appointment.

But I got a call after we were closed telling me they wanted to adopt Butterball right away. They were so determined to bring him home that they told me they would pay a premium and that they would help us clean up The Cat Cafe if it meant that Butterball could go home with them.

Of course, I turned down the premium, and the offer of help cleaning. After all, one of the goals at The Cat Cafe is to find homes for adoptable cats, so I had to make it happen.

You don’t have to be as determined as the couple who adopted Butterball to bring one of our adoptable cats home. You just have to be willing to fill out a little paperwork and write a check to the San Diego Humane Society.

Which cat will you be taking home?