Linda Archambault beamed as she petted a cat that has demanded her attention at Hearts Alive Cat Café.
Archambault, 72, has been volunteering at Hearts Alive Village Cat Café for three years since retiring from her award-winning education career.
Hearts Alive Village is one of only two cat cafés in Las Vegas that facilitate adoptions and help cats socialize before adoption.
Pet supply store turned cat café
“The idea for a cat café started off half as a joke. We used to be a pet supply store,” said Feline Program Coordinator Brittany Rutledge.
Hearts Alive Village, at 1750 South Rainbow Blvd., #4, in Las Vegas, transitioned from a pet supply store to a cat café in 2022. Hearts Alive Village changed to a cat café business model after they weren’t selling much pet supplies, Rutledge said.
Hearts Alive Village charges $15 per hour for a session and that session comes with snacks and beverages.
The shelter currently houses 40 cats, but can house up to 60 cats. An average of 15 to 30 cats are adopted per month, said Rutledge.
Adoptions vary from month to month because if there are more kittens in the café, they get adopted quickly, Rutledge said.
The cat café model allows visitors to see how cats interact with other cats and humans before they choose to adopt them, said Rutledge.
Cats also receive medical attention at the shelter with frequent veterinarian visits, Rutledge said. She pointed to a pair of cat siblings who lost their home to a house fire, who are awaiting clearance for adoption once their lungs are examined.
Amber, a tortoiseshell cat with large green eyes, hopped onto the table and nudged its head on Archambault’s arm. Amber is a recent addition to the cat café, Rutledge said.
Amber recently underwent surgery to remove parts of her intestine that was folding over itself, Archambault said.
Despite Amber not being medically cleared for adoption, the staff still wants her to socialize with other cats and humans while she recovers, Rutledge said.
“I’m an educator, so I’ve always worked with kids, but never had the chance to work with animals,” Archambault said.
Archambault’s duties as a volunteer is to answer the help line. Callers often contact the line because they can’t afford veterinarian services and Archambault connects them with financial aid and discounted medical services.
Volunteering also led Archambault to adopt a cat named Smokey from Hearts Alive Village.
Hearts Alive Village operates on a color system, with green collars indicating that a cat is social and friendly. Yellow collars indicate that a cat is shy. Red collars indicate that a visitor shouldn’t touch that cat or touch at their own risk.
Smokey was at Hearts Alive Village for a year, wearing a red collar, Archambault said.
“I convinced her to take treats for me,” Archambault said, “Eventually, Smokey would be waiting for me to bring treats on the days I’m volunteering.”
Rutledge said that the café’s staff joked that the cat had adopted a human instead.
“Smokey went from not liking people touching her to cuddling with me on the couch,” Archambault said.
Hearts Alive Village also runs a pet food bank, a clinic, and a horse rescue.
Matching cat personalities to lifestyles
Rescued Treasures Cat Café also facilitates adoptions, taking in about 50 cats per month. An average of 30 to 40 cats are adopted per month, said Manager Sasha Huysentruyt.
Rescued Treasures, at 4155 North Rancho Dr., #150, in Las Vegas, has been open since May 2014 and operates a gift shop where proceeds go to buying cat food, litter and other pet supplies.
Rescued Treasures charges $12 per hour for a session, which comes with complimentary coffees and snacks, like chips and cookies.
The advantage to the cat café model is that potential adopters can see more of the cat’s personality before they adopt, said Huysentruyt.
When potential adopters come in, Huysentruyt says staff ask people about their lifestyles and find a cat that best matches the adopter’s lifestyle.
“They are required to come and do a session in the café, so they can spend some time with the kitty. Sometimes you come in thinking you want one kitty, and then you meet a different one, you fall in love,” Huysentruyt said.
Adopters that want playful cats get matched with younger kittens. Adopters that want calmer cats get matched with older cats.
Some come from all over the country to see cats. In the café, a wall displays all the states café visitors have come from. Pins mark visitors from multiple states across the country.
“We do get we get people that want to adopt, but we also get people to just hang out,” Huysentruyt said.
Some tourists miss their cats and visit the café to get their feline dose, Huysentruyt said.
Locals also visit frequently, such as Tim Raridan, 75.
“I’m not going anywhere,” said a smiling Raridan, as he watched two cats crawl over a coffee table.
The café frequently posts success stories to their Instagram, but one story got stuck in Huysentruyt’s memory.
“We had a mom. She’s got babies, six or nine kittens, that require so much nutrition that she was not in good health when she got here,” Huysentruyt said.
“We’ve been able to make sure she’s gotten her weight up, been able to clean her up a little bit, and she’s doing quite well,” said Huysentruyt.
Both Hearts Alive Cat Café and Rescued Treasures Cat Café encourage reservations.
Contact Annie Vong at avong@reviewjournal.com. Follow @annievwrites on X or @annievong.bsky.social.
