The Catfe Lounge expands its space

The Catfe Lounge recently expanded their space in Ferndale, MI. What was once a shared space is now two separate cafe and cat areas.

The Ferndale Cat Shelter (501c3) operates the Catfe Lounge, which opened in 2015. For a $10 tax deductible donation, visitors can grab a cup of coffee and play with some kittens. Some visitors seek a pet to adopt — all cats in the Catfe are eligible — while others are simply seeking a comforting place to study, or just hang out with the felines if they are unable to own a cat of their own.

Ringo the cat lounges in a bed toward the back of the Catfe. (WSUpj/Arianna Endicott)

Marie Perreault, Operations Manager for the Catfe, can often be found there during business hours.

"We are a small but mighty shelter," Perreault said. "In the last year, we did 475 adoptions. We get cats from all kinds of different places: animal control, surrenders, strays, et cetera."

Perreault also discussed one of the programs that benefits not only the animals adopted out, but also the people they are given to.

"We have a Forever Foster program," Perreault said. "We give cats to senior citizens and pay for everything for them, so people who are on fixed incomes can have a cat still, so we're really proud of that program."

Kitten Chick Pea naps after a long day of playing. (WSUpj/Arianna Endicott)

Though the Catfe just recently expanded, Perreault is already planning the next step for the Catfe.

"We just expanded to this side, so, we haven't had this forever," Perreault said, while speaking on the cafe side. "We're hoping to make this a full fledged cafe soon, but for right now it's just self serve coffee. We're really excited to be expanding; we have administrative offices in the back."

Although cats are adoptable, there are always new cats coming in to the Catfe for visitors to play with.

"We have about 15 cats on the [Catfe] side, and we have over a hundred cats in foster care," Perreault said.

Chicken the cat sits in the window as cars pass by. (WSUpj/Arianna Endicott)

You can visit the Catfe Lounge at 821 Livernois, Ferndale, MI, 48220. More information can be found about the Catfe on their website.

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This was a super fun story to shoot, because the cats were super responsive to my camera. Many of the younger ones were a little more difficult to take photos of because they were so interested in it, they kept getting too close to the lens so I couldn't focus. Most of them were also interested in the shutter clicks, so they were definitely interested and expressive. I also loved that I was able to shoot some photos near the window, so I had an interesting contrast from the window's lighting.
The staff members and volunteers at the Catfe were super helpful when I was taking photos, and they were all passionate about the work that they do. It was great to talk to people who were proud of the programs they run.

Roger the cat takes a step back for some alone time in his cage at the Catfe. (WSUpj/Arianna Endicott)

Bjorn the kitten enjoys the comfort of his bed. (WSUpj/Arianna Endicott)

Mini watches the activity of the Catfe from the safety of a shelf near the ceiling. (WSUpj/Arianna Endiott)

Sonny the kitten watches for an opportunity to play with toys at the Catfe. (WSUpj/Arianna Endicott)

Aspen hides in his cat cave at the Catfe. (WSUpj/Arianna Endicott)