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Cat Cafe Montreal: Café Chat L'Heureux To Welcome Cats And People

In Need Of Purr Therapy? Montreal's Cat Cafe To Provide Furry Cuddles

If you're the kind of person who would really like to have a pet cat, but fear you're not quite up to the responsibility (or the clean-up), Montreal's soon-to-open Café Chat L'Heureux is for you.

According to their website, the cafe has plans to launch this summer in Montreal's Plateau district. Café Chat L'Heureux (translated as "happy cat cafe") is inspired by the cat coffee shops of China and Japan, where people who don't have a lot of space can pay to cuddle with kitties, according to the BBC.

In a video for the cafe's Indiegogo campaign to raise funds to make this a reality, owner Clement Marty explains that Montrealers are also finding it difficult to keep pets, with many apartments not allowing them at all.

As explained on their Facebook page, Café Chat L'Heureux will have eight to 10 resident cats for people to hang out with, while two to three will be from shelters for potential adoption. The focus on animal welfare is important to Marty, who also stresses the benefits of "purr therapy" for alleviating anxiety.

Marty plans to host senior groups and people with disabilities to help quell any loneliness they may feel, as well as children's classes to teach about pet responsibility and care.

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