Every Thursday, Rotterdam business owner Rachel Anne checks the euthanasia list for New York City animal shelters.
Morbid? Maybe. Important? Indubitably.
Three weeks ago, Anne’s cat café, The Pretty Paw Lounge, saved their 34th feline from the list. Tomas, two years old, was to be put down just 30 minutes from when Anne heard his story. Tomas has cerebellar hypoplasia — or “wobbly cat syndrome.” The neurological condition affects his gait but he is otherwise a healthy and happy hopeful pet.
“I have a great friend down there with a rescue group called Alley Cats, and she was able to go in the shelter and pull him right before it was going to happen,” said Anne.
Upon taking in Tomas, Anne had him tested for other conditions that could jeopardize his health or spread to the other cats. His blood was drawn at the vet and two weeks later, there are no signs of anything but cerebellar hypoplasia.
“He just has that, which is generally passed down from the mama when he was just a baby when he was nursing,” said Anne. "It's a condition he's probably going to have his whole life – he's only two years old — but he's just doing so good, and he doesn't even notice that he walks a little funny.”
All of the café cats are quarantined for at minimum two weeks before joining their roommates. Anne took this time to get to know Tomas and make any adjustments needed for the teetering tomcat. His food bowl has been elevated to make reaching it easier and his climbing tower is short enough to accommodate his hesitant bounds.
The café owner has also noticed that Tomas walks straighter with a little support at his hips. She plans on reaching out to a company that makes wheelchairs for special needs pets to get him some extra help.
“And he loves his humidifier, it really helps him and he puts his face right in it,” Anne said, smiling. “I don't know, I think it's a comfort thing.”
According to Anne, people love special needs cats and the critters have no trouble getting adopted from Pretty Paw. Some people even come looking for them specifically, she said. She recalled a three-legged cat who had a short stint at the café before finding his forever home. A pair of senior female cats are set to arrive this weekend. The two are overweight, which led to their placement on the euthanasia list. Anne and her employees will quarantine them and get them on a diet to prepare for meeting potential pet parents.
“Especially when you tell people that they were at risk in an overcrowded shelter . . . they want to adopt them more and give them a second chance because they had absolutely no chance in the city,” said Anne.
Tomas is up for adoption and now accepting visitors. Patrons specifically looking to adopt can let an employee know and they will be taken to the quarantine area. The Rotterdam café is located at 370 Mariaville Road. It's open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
“It’s the best part of owning the business, by far,” she said. “You can change their life in one second. I wish I could take all of them.”
