The Cochrane and Area Humane Society (CAHS) received a donation of more than $11,000 from The Cat House Inc. specialty pet store on Friday.
“They are just a fantastic shelter, they are doing so much,” said Joanne Wegiel, president of The Cat House and a Cochranite for 34 years.
The donation comes from the efforts of a GoFundMe campaign originally conducted by The Cat House, which raised more than $25,000 to open a new retail location after a fire destroyed its previous Calgary location in November 2015.
“It’s really since January that we realized that maybe it’s time that we didn’t get back into it,” said Wegiel.
After several unsuccessful attempts to acquire a new retail space, The Cat House decided to renounce the store’s reopening and instead donate the earnings to surrounding Alberta animal shelters, including CAHS.
“We were flattered of course that they chose us,” said Tracy Keith, executive director of CAHS.
The humane society intends to use the funds to enhance its cat rooms with items such as wall-mounted toys and benches that can store cat toys under the seat.
“We’ve talked with Joanne about how we might use the money to help improve the cat rooms and the quality of life for the cats,” said Keith.
The remaining amount will be allocated to medical costs and services, like specialized surgeries and medication for the animals.
“We always have a big need for funds towards medical care,” said Keith.
“All animals here do typically receive a lot of rehabilitation opportunities if they need it, both behaviourally and medically.”
Wegiel has been an active humanitarian in Cochrane long before the existence of CAHS and helped promote the society’s foundation in 1998.
“I used to trap and rescue feral cats in town before there was a shelter, so I was really glad when they asked people to step forward,” said Wegiel.
She continues to volunteer for the shelter one day a week to work with the cats.
“She has been involved with us for many, many years,” said Keith.
Instead of a physical retail space, The Cat House is now conducting business through its website, selling its specialty cat wares online for the first time. Merchandise includes the store’s signature catnip alternative, Tatarian honeysuckle wood.
“They get extreme pleasure to the sense of smell,” said Wegiel.
The online retailing has already proven successful for the company, which listed its products without any marketing or announcements and still “started getting orders within days.”
“Just in the last few days, I got another blast of orders,” said Wegiel.
The remaining GoFundMe earnings were distributed to other animal shelters across the province, including Calgary-based organizations The MEOW Foundation, the Alberta Animal Rescue Crew Society, and the Arts Senior Animal Rescue, as well as the Whisker Cat Rescue in Red Deer.
“As devastating as the fire is, I’m glad something good is to come of it,” said Wegiel.
