Cats usually get a bad rap, but Melissa Pruit wears her bright pink cat ears proud and embraces the title of “Crazy Cat Lady” by opening the first cat cafe in Phoenix.
What began as a Kickstarter campaign just over a year ago, has blossomed into La Gattara Cat Lounge and Boutique, La Gattara, meaning “crazy cat lady.”
Owner, Pruit, took a trip to Japan where she first discovered cat cafes in 2008 and knew then that Arizona needed one.
“We are the number one state for how many cats get put down a year for overpopulation or for people that just aren’t educated on cat related issues,” Pruit said.
While adoption is not on her top three priorities list, Pruitt said La Gattara has already helped 84 cats find their forever home in the four months they’ve been open. She says her main goal is to educate, which is why she had Feline Behavioral Consultant, Carrie Seay, host a Cat Behavior Chat.
“For me this is just like a community place for people who love cats and want to learn more about them. I know that there’s kind of the plan to have more events and do more education as well as adopt out all of the wonderful adoptable cats we have here,” Seay said.
The atmosphere of the cat lounge is energetic with cats jumping all around and playing. The walls have splashes of bright blue and pink. All of the wall space is covered by comical cat art, depicting cats answering telephones, landing on the moon or some other non-traditional cat act.
La Gattara also offers events like Paint with Cats, Cat Yoga and Meow-ditation. For some, it’s more than just a place to adopt a cat. For some, it’s a place of therapy.
“There’s a lady that comes here who just got through a divorce and her dad died and she said this is what’s gotten her through. It’s like real life prozac,” Pruitt said.
18-year-old, Shaandiin Yazzie, has worked at La Gattara since it’s inception and has even been a part of the decorating. She’s responsible for the giant cat mural painted on a wall inside the cafe.
Yazzie has also experienced the therapeutic comfort the lounge has to offer.
“It’s helped me overcome a lot of my anxiety. I’ve been able to come here after a long day of work or when I was going to school, or when I just don’t want to be at home and I can come, hang out with cats and just pet them and feel very at peace with myself,” said Yazzie.
With the location of the boutique on University Drive in Tempe, it is the hope that a diverse range of community members will discover what this new cat cafe has to offer. Gilbert Animal Shelter volunteer, Jolene Isom, has high-praise for the cat cafe.
“We’re at a great animal shelter in Gilbert too, but this whole set up here is just so nice and it’s close to the college kids so it gets younger people excited about cats,” Isom said.
Being the first cat cafe in Phoenix, Pruitt was nervous about the reaction she would get from the community, however, she says she received nothing but support and positivity.
“When you come in here there’s just people sitting in circles that don’t know each other that are just playing with cats. I mean where do you get that from. That’s amazing,” Pruitt said.
Pruitt looks forward to having even more events at La Gattara, including a Cat Paw-looza and a Grand Opening that’s currently in the works. Until then, she continues to live by her motto “Peace, Love, Meow.”
By: Ashley Mackey
What began as a Kickstarter campaign just over a year ago, has blossomed into La Gattara Cat Lounge and Boutique, La Gattara, meaning “crazy cat lady.”
Owner, Pruit, took a trip to Japan where she first discovered cat cafes in 2008 and knew then that Arizona needed one.
“We are the number one state for how many cats get put down a year for overpopulation or for people that just aren’t educated on cat related issues,” Pruit said.
While adoption is not on her top three priorities list, Pruitt said La Gattara has already helped 84 cats find their forever home in the four months they’ve been open. She says her main goal is to educate, which is why she had Feline Behavioral Consultant, Carrie Seay, host a Cat Behavior Chat.
“For me this is just like a community place for people who love cats and want to learn more about them. I know that there’s kind of the plan to have more events and do more education as well as adopt out all of the wonderful adoptable cats we have here,” Seay said.
The atmosphere of the cat lounge is energetic with cats jumping all around and playing. The walls have splashes of bright blue and pink. All of the wall space is covered by comical cat art, depicting cats answering telephones, landing on the moon or some other non-traditional cat act.
La Gattara also offers events like Paint with Cats, Cat Yoga and Meow-ditation. For some, it’s more than just a place to adopt a cat. For some, it’s a place of therapy.
“There’s a lady that comes here who just got through a divorce and her dad died and she said this is what’s gotten her through. It’s like real life prozac,” Pruitt said.
18-year-old, Shaandiin Yazzie, has worked at La Gattara since it’s inception and has even been a part of the decorating. She’s responsible for the giant cat mural painted on a wall inside the cafe.
Yazzie has also experienced the therapeutic comfort the lounge has to offer.
“It’s helped me overcome a lot of my anxiety. I’ve been able to come here after a long day of work or when I was going to school, or when I just don’t want to be at home and I can come, hang out with cats and just pet them and feel very at peace with myself,” said Yazzie.
With the location of the boutique on University Drive in Tempe, it is the hope that a diverse range of community members will discover what this new cat cafe has to offer. Gilbert Animal Shelter volunteer, Jolene Isom, has high-praise for the cat cafe.
“We’re at a great animal shelter in Gilbert too, but this whole set up here is just so nice and it’s close to the college kids so it gets younger people excited about cats,” Isom said.
Being the first cat cafe in Phoenix, Pruitt was nervous about the reaction she would get from the community, however, she says she received nothing but support and positivity.
“When you come in here there’s just people sitting in circles that don’t know each other that are just playing with cats. I mean where do you get that from. That’s amazing,” Pruitt said.
Pruitt looks forward to having even more events at La Gattara, including a Cat Paw-looza and a Grand Opening that’s currently in the works. Until then, she continues to live by her motto “Peace, Love, Meow.”
By: Ashley Mackey
