July 10 marks National Kitten Day, but at one Brooklyn Heights establishment, “every day is kitten day.”
The Brooklyn Cat Cafe (BCC), located at 76 Montague St., is the borough’s only cat cafe and the only nonprofit of its kind in New York City.
Since its opening in 2007, the cafe has remained committed to its mission of reducing feline homelessness in the city. Sonja Chai, marketing director at BCC, spoke with Brooklyn Paper regarding the business’s role in the community.
“There are a few things that we had in mind when we opened the cat cafe,” Chai said. “One: there are so many homeless cats: while they’re waiting for homes, how do we give them a space that makes them feel relaxed and as much like a home as possible while they’re waiting to be adopted? The other thing, a cat cafe helps us reach more members of the community… we try to appeal to and meet the needs of all of these people.”
The cafe is currently in the midst of kitten season, generally referring to the period between late spring and early fall when intact cats mate and reproduce most. Intact females can go into heat and give birth to multiple litters during this time.
“We start getting kittens as early as February, and we’ll still be getting nursing moms into November,” Chai said. “It’s very difficult for a nursing mom to keep her kittens safe, keep herself safe, make sure that she has the right food to be able to nurse them. Add on how extreme the weather is in New York City, many of them don’t have adequate shelter, they don’t have water or food sources, or their food sources go bad in the heat. [That is why] we try to do as much work as possible in the summertime, right now, to combat the issue.”
The cafe, run by the Brooklyn Bridge Animal Welfare Coalition, works with both its own rescue program and individual rescuers to rehabilitate their cats. All cats at the cafe were found on the streets of New York, and are available for adoption by patrons.
With kittens being especially fragile, BCC makes it their mission to help as many as they can, while also spaying and neutering intact cats to prevent them from breeding further.
“Over 75% of kittens who are born outside do not survive to six months so that’s why we are so keen on both taking [kittens], getting them inside and helping them grow up healthy,” Chai said. “Also getting them adopted into homes, and spaying and neutering moms. That’s really our priority.”
Kittens play inside the Brooklyn Cat Cafe, where rescued cats are cared for while they await adoption. The cafe sees an increase in intake during kitten season, which typically runs from late spring through early fall.Photo by Barbara Vasquez
Once at BCC, staffers do everything they can to help kittens grow up healthy and well-rounded for when they find a home.
“All of our kittens get adopted in pairs, [and] that really helps them developmentally and socially,” Chai said. “They grow up playing appropriately with people, and then they rough house with each other.”
When deciding to adopt a cat or kitten, Chai suggests first looking at your lifestyle, and figuring out what kind of personality would best fit.
“Kittens have a lot of energy,” Chai said. “They eat a lot, they use the litter box a lot. It is really fun and they’re so energetic, but they take a little bit more attention and work… it really just depends on the specific cat and what someone is looking for.”
The Brooklyn Cat Cafe provides shelter and socialization for cats rescued from New York City streets.Photo courtesy of Alexandra Steedman/Brooklyn Cat Café
For cat lovers looking for a way to celebrate the holiday, the cafe has the option to book their kitten room for private “kitten party” sessions, helping socialize the animals while raising funds for the rescue efforts.
Now, during kitten season, intake service demand is at an all-time high. Even so, the cafe always has cats in need of loving homes.
“It’s just very special to be able to see [kittens] grow up, and watch them get adopted,” Chai said. “[National Kitten Day] is definitely something that we celebrate every day.”