THE CATS

All of the cats at affoGATO are adoptable fosters from the Cleveland Animal Protective League. We typically house between 16-20 of their cats, and care for them in our space until we can find their fur-ever home! We are not part of the Cleveland APL, but work super closely with them.

Luckily, we don’t have to pick! The awesome staff over at the Cleveland APL tries to curate the best mix of purrsonalities for the cafe. We usually aim to have mostly “less adoptable” cats, such as middle age and senior cats, mom cats, cats with previous or chronic health needs, bonded pairs, “boring” tabbies, etc. We rarely have kittens or “special breeds”.

We usually have a mix of outgoing cats and nervous cats that have been sent to us to help with their socialization outside of a stressful shelter environment.

That being said, we can submit requests to the shelter, so if you know an APL cat that might be a great fit, let us know!

Get to know the cats! You can:

• Schedule an in-person visit here (“Cat Lounge Hangout”)
• Read the cats’ profiles on our website
• Watch our free videos on Twitch

Apply to adopt! Click here and select the option near the bottom of the page that says “Adoption Application”, or apply directly through the Cleveland APL. It’s free and not a commitment to adopt. The application just gives us the info needed to ensure that it’s a good match, and that we can have a productive discussion! You also don’t need to list a specific cat yet if you’re filling it out in advance of a visit, or you may list multiple cats if you haven’t decided yet!

Chat with us! If you’re at the cafe and have time, we’d love to chat in person instead of playing phone tag. If you don’t plan to visit, would like to learn more info before scheduling a visit, or apply after visiting, then we’ll just give you a call! We typically call applicants in the order that they are received, with priority given to people who have visited the cats at the cafe. If we miss you, we’ll always leave a voicemail, so please ensure that your voicemail is set up and has space.

Take your new friend home! Depending on staffing, how busy the cafe is, and the cat, you may not be able to take your cat home right away. (Don’t fur-get, most cats are not excited about going in a carrier, and we want it to be as stress-free as possible for all involved!) That being said, we also cannot do long-term holds, and cats must generally go home within a couple of days of committing to adoption. Taking all of this into account, we will work with you to arrange a date and time that works for everyone! At that pick-up time, we will:

• Have you sign the Cleveland APL’s adoption paperwork
• Send out your copies automatically via an email from Petzel
• Have you pay the adoption fee which goes entirely to the APL, either cash or card
• Give you a sample bag of Hill’s Science Diet, along with any critical items for your cat such as medications
• Put the cat in the carrier for you. Feel free to bring your own, buy one from us, or use a free temporary cardboard carrier
• Beg you to send us updates about your cat. Email us, text us, or tag us, we just love to see them happy at home!

No, we have plenty of cute animals here! Our cats all mingle together and have received vet and behavioral exams prior to coming here, so it’s best that we don’t mix other animals into the equation. Our baristas love to see pictures though!

We also cannot allow service animals into our space for the same reason, and because we nearly always have a few cats that are very afraid of dogs, so even the best behaved dogs would be disruptive.

However, we would love to host your dogs, travel cats, and other cute pets outside of our space! We have a doorbell outside of the cafe door specifically to call us out to take your order while with hanging out with your furry friend! We have benches outside, the Beauty Bar next door has a lovely community patio, and there are multiple parks in Tremont to enjoy your drinks and a free pup cup!

No, we cannot process cat admissions directly. All of the cats here live in a room together after receiving vet care and behavioral assessments from the Cleveland Animal Protective League. If we introduced cats that haven’t received the same care, it could lead to outbreaks of disease such as FeLV, ringworm, parasites, etc.

Instead, we encourage people to call or email the Cleveland APL using this intake information, or find the nearest shelter if you’re located outside of Cuyahoga County.

If the cat in question was knowingly abandoned, neglected, or subject to other cruelty, please contact Humane Investigations instead.

Many shelters have wait times for admissions, so that they can ensure good quality care for all of the animals that they are housing. We recommend that you take the earliest possible appointment, as you can always cancel if you figure something else out!

If you are truly unable to wait, you can try asking family and friends, other shelters, or online resources like your neighborhood Facebook page or the Weirdo Cat Lovers of Cleveland Facebook page, the Cleveland subreddit, etc. People are often more willing to foster if there is already a scheduled “end date” of shelter admission.

That being said, we humbly ask you to consider fostering the rescue yourself if at all possible, and to help with Trap Neuter Release, particularly in the “off seasons” of Fall and Winter when there’s more shelter space. Bathrooms and spare bedrooms make great foster spaces, and there are lots of helpful tips on Kitten Lady and Jackson Galaxy for the inexperienced. We know it’s inconvenient (we all do a lot of fostering at home too), but if everyone does their part, the community can save a lot more cats!

affoGATO can sometimes help with lending out basic TNR or foster supplies like traps, carriers, food, a litter box, etc. If you’re willing to do your part in rescuing the strays of Cleveland, we’re happy to try and help you in that endeavor too! Reach out to [email protected] or text 440-941-5130 and we’ll see what we can do.

Yes, just check with us first please to ensure we have space if it’s a large item like a cat tree! The easiest way is to text 440-941-5130 or email [email protected].

We are generally happy to accept wet and dry food, excellent condition and clean cat beds and trees, and unused cat toys. If we receive things we can’t use, we usually donate them to the APL to use at the shelter or distribute to fosters!

We also have an Amazon Wishlist that is prioritized by need.

Finally, monetary gifts are always welcome, as it gives us flexibility for unexpected cat supplies, medical needs, staffing for care, and our cat lounge utilities and rent. We have a donation option on the site, or Venmo @affogatocatcafe.

We are not a 510(c)3, so donations are not tax-deductible. If you are seeking to make a donation to one specifically, we recommend the Cleveland APL (for example, asking us to sponsor an APL cat that’s living here), or we can recommend other local organizations based on the cat-related need you’re hoping to support!