Homeless cats find a purr-fect shelter in student-run café
By Wing Tan |
March 15, 2013, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
AN art student in Songjiang University Town is the cat's meow among the local stray population of felines.
Pan Wenyi, who studies at the Shanghai Institute of Visual Arts of Fudan University, has been nicknamed "the cat mum" by customers at a small corner café she opened last year in the town.
"I hadn't expected to make much money from the café, nor did I expect to meet so many furry little friends," said the 23-year-old.
The coffee shop is on Wenhui Road along the university's main street - a place where many homeless cats hang out because sympathetic students often leave tidbits of food for them. Among the cat carers is Pan.
She "adopted" her first stray cat during a typhoon last summer.
"He was crouching in the corner with those pathetic eyes, mewing," she said. "My heart melted."
The girl brought the straggler into her café to feed him.
"I had one, so why not take one more?" Pan said to herself at the time.
When word got out about her refuge for homeless cats, more people brought in strays. The shop has now been a transit stop for more than 30 cats while Pan tries to find homes for them. At least Pan doesn't have to worry about mice in her café.
"Cats are clever and quiet and are not a big burden to care for," she said. "They get along very well with my customers."
She sends cats that are sick or disabled to the veterinarian for treatment. She also has the cats neutered.
"Some people argue that sterilization is against animal rights, but they are wrong," she said. "The surgery is to protect the cats and our environment. In addition, neutered cats have lower risk of disease."
She posts their photos on a pet websites and on Weibo, a popular microblog site, hoping to find homes for the cats. She asks those adopting cats to sign a statement vowing to take good care of the animals.
"Most of the money I earn is spent on the cats," she said.
This is graduation year for Pan, and she is busy preparing her thesis.
"The shop will be taken over by a young couple who are also cat lovers," she said.
"They have promised me that this cat refuge will not close and their photos will continue to be posted online looking for new owners."
Pan Wenyi, who studies at the Shanghai Institute of Visual Arts of Fudan University, has been nicknamed "the cat mum" by customers at a small corner café she opened last year in the town.
"I hadn't expected to make much money from the café, nor did I expect to meet so many furry little friends," said the 23-year-old.
The coffee shop is on Wenhui Road along the university's main street - a place where many homeless cats hang out because sympathetic students often leave tidbits of food for them. Among the cat carers is Pan.
She "adopted" her first stray cat during a typhoon last summer.
"He was crouching in the corner with those pathetic eyes, mewing," she said. "My heart melted."
The girl brought the straggler into her café to feed him.
"I had one, so why not take one more?" Pan said to herself at the time.
When word got out about her refuge for homeless cats, more people brought in strays. The shop has now been a transit stop for more than 30 cats while Pan tries to find homes for them. At least Pan doesn't have to worry about mice in her café.
"Cats are clever and quiet and are not a big burden to care for," she said. "They get along very well with my customers."
She sends cats that are sick or disabled to the veterinarian for treatment. She also has the cats neutered.
"Some people argue that sterilization is against animal rights, but they are wrong," she said. "The surgery is to protect the cats and our environment. In addition, neutered cats have lower risk of disease."
She posts their photos on a pet websites and on Weibo, a popular microblog site, hoping to find homes for the cats. She asks those adopting cats to sign a statement vowing to take good care of the animals.
"Most of the money I earn is spent on the cats," she said.
This is graduation year for Pan, and she is busy preparing her thesis.
"The shop will be taken over by a young couple who are also cat lovers," she said.
"They have promised me that this cat refuge will not close and their photos will continue to be posted online looking for new owners."
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
