A purrfect mixture: Kitten yoga finds area of interest in Northland

By Peter de Graaf of RNZ

Forget the downward canine — at one Northland yoga studio it’s all concerning the kittens.

Yoga and frisky felines won’t appear an apparent mixture, however for the proprietor of Yin Side Yoga, close to Paihia within the Bay of Islands, they’re an ideal match.

Francie Long, who can be a volunteer with native charity Coast to Coast Cat Rescue, mentioned the classes have been enjoyable however served a critical objective too.

So far a dozen deserted, rescued or undesirable kittens had discovered “forever homes” after capturing the hearts of individuals attending her yoga classes.

Long mentioned she had fostered 30 or so kittens herself.

“I love kittens and I love yoga, so I thought it was a good mix to bring the two together to raise awareness and to fundraise for fostering and the desexing programme.

“And with yin yoga, it’s very much about resetting your nervous system. Adding kittens into it brings another element of joy and laughter and just being able to relax.”

On the day RNZ attended a session on the Haruru studio, 9 individuals have been practising yoga whereas 13 kittens, all about 6 weeks old, frolicked, scampered and dozed round them.

A couple of clambered inside T-shirts or settled in for naps on individuals’s laps, backs or bellies.

Long mentioned that was one of many challenges of kitten yoga — if a kitten fell asleep on you in mid-pose, you might need to attend for it to get up earlier than you would change position.

“They’re very quiet so you don’t know they’re around you sometimes. Maybe it’s only when you roll out of a pose or move that you hear a meow or feel a scratch telling you to stay exactly where you are. Once a cat finds you and sits on you, you can’t move until they move.”

There was no set price for the classes, however anybody participating was invited to present a koha to Coast to Coast Cat Rescue.

Socialising was an much more essential side of kitten yoga than fundraising or rehoming, Long mentioned.

“If kittens come off the street and they’re a bit feral or a bit timid, they’re hard to rehome. So giving them this little bit of time, with people and other kittens, lets them know that humans aren’t all bad. So it helps getting them fostered or rehomed to their new whānau.”

The advantages prolonged to the individuals participating, Long mentioned.

“Cats are very calming. I know, for myself personally, I deal with a lot of anxiety and I find it really soothing to have my cat in the evening to come home to and to be able to chill out with him. And they’re entertaining as well.”

Ironically, Pip, of Whangārei, was engaged on her cat-and-cow pose when a kitten made itself snug on her again.

“This is the first time I’ve heard about kitten yoga. I signed up straight away,” Pip mentioned.

“It just sounded like the best combination to make your week, and it has. This is the cutest thing ever.”

Rose, of Waipapa, was one other kitten yoga convert.

“I just think it’s a brilliant idea. It’s good for the kittens, it’s good for us. Especially because I can’t have cats where I live, so this is my little kitten fix.”

One of the kittens even appeared to give you a plan for locating a home, by snuggling itself deep into the reporter’s digital camera bag and falling asleep.

Long mentioned undesirable kittens have been a big drawback in Northland as a result of the gentle local weather meant cats may breed almost all 12 months spherical.

“So it’s really good there are a lot of free desexing programmes around at the moment. That’s taken the economic barrier out of owning cats or a kitten. Now there’s no excuse really for not desexing your animal.”

However, so long as kittens wanted to be rehomed, Long mentioned yoga and kittens would make an ideal mixture.

“Kittens love the energy. They’re very, very aware of the energy of people and with yin yoga, your energy grounds a little, you become calm and it settles the kittens. They feel comfortable, they feel safe, and they’ll curl up with you. They’ll fall asleep on you. They might start pulling your hair or nibbling your toes, but yeah, it’s definitely a good mix.”

The subsequent kitten yoga session will take place within the new 12 months as soon as kitten season is underway.

Northlanders eager to undertake a kitten are welcome to contact Coast to Coast Cat Rescue.