Cat lovers and homeowners within the Tri-Valley, get able to enter metaphorical kitty paradise subsequent weekend because the Pleasanton Cat Extravaganza and Rescue Awareness Event is ready to happen on the Alameda County Fairgrounds on Sept. 9-10.
Curated and hosted by Loving Cats Worldwide, the cat present will characteristic 5 totally different feline contests together with kitten class, junior class, grownup class, pedigree neutered and spayed, and family pets. Residents can enter their cat whereas shopping for their tickets.
Founder and CEO of Loving Cats, Steven Meserve, instructed the Weekly that after having been a licensed choose with The International Cat Association — which is taken into account the world’s largest genetic cat registry and one of many world’s largest sanctioning our bodies for cat exhibits — for therefore lengthy, he wished to do his personal cat present.
One that was extra entertaining and accessible to all ages, however that additionally raised consciousness to any points occurring within the feline world.
“Our goal, clearly, is to extend the visibility of all cats worldwide however our concept is to essentially form of hit a brand new youthful era and get individuals , get individuals enthusiastic about it,” Meserve mentioned. “I’d say 95% of the folks that come … to our occasions have by no means even recognized this world existed.”
He mentioned he wished to not solely create a extra inclusive area for cat exhibits, he wished to include schooling for rescues and enhance the general visibility of the overpopulation points that the state is grappling with by way of strays that aren’t getting spayed and neutered.
“This is a breed present, positive, however our No. 1 precedence is to extend the visibility of all cats and to guarantee that all people understands that we do have an issue,” Meserve mentioned. “The drawback with California, and a number of these hotter shopper climates, is that cats are having kittens all the 12 months … it does not simply occur within the spring.”
That’s why when Meserve launched the for-profit Loving Cats firm again in June 2022, he additionally wished to create a nonprofit basis that might work alongside Loving Cats, which he did — The Meserve Foundation.
The basis, whereas additionally very younger, receives parts of the ticket money made by the cat extravaganza exhibits, together with the one arising in Pleasanton, with the general purpose of elevating consciousness for the cat rescue inhabitants.
Meserve mentioned he hopes someday he may use these charity funds to donate to pure catastrophe conditions, create a youngsters scholarship program and assist fund pet spaying and neutering clinics, that are in large demand given the overpopulation points.
“The basis’s ethos actually is to advertise schooling … to essentially form of change the mindset on how necessary it’s for individuals to spay and neuter their cats,” Meserve mentioned. “We even have the flexibility to make a large affect with the quantity of visibility that we’ve got.”
“The quantity of publicity and the quantity of visibility that I personally have, and we as an organization have simply in a single 12 months … we must always be capable of make a large affect,” he added.
And in line with Meserve, the Loving Cats exhibition has been gaining a number of consideration simply on this previous 12 months having had exhibits within the United Kingdom, all around the United States, South America, Asia, Philippines and Japan.
“In that one 12 months we have produced 25 exhibits on 4 totally different continents. So it was apparent that the world wanted this, that they had been keen on it,” he mentioned. “I knew what could possibly be achieved and now we’re actually in our second 12 months and we’re beginning to dial issues up.”
Another side of the present that Meserve wished to level out was that he’s aiming to bridge the hole between the breeding world and the adoption world by having a number of rescue organizations at every of the exhibits.
At the Pleasanton present, East Bay SPCA, together with about eight to 10 different animal rescue organizations, can be there with the intention to ensure that the general public is conscious of the overwhelming pet rescue scenario.
“Any rescue that we are able to get, they will come free-of-charge and so they have the flexibility to essentially market their rescues,” he mentioned. “Some rescues will even have kittens there or cats there. Some won’t. It simply will depend on the principles and the rules and the way they do business.”
The present will even characteristic instructional shows, a catwalk trend present and a better of present for the entire prime cats.
One factor that Meserve mentioned was significantly particular concerning the present is that anyone can deliver their cat to enter the present throughout the family cat contests. He mentioned having family cats that aren’t pedigree cats makes the present that rather more intimate and fascinating.
He added that generally rescue cats that the organizations usher in are entered into that contest and even adopted due to that.
And on the finish of the day, even when you do not deliver a cat or undertake a cat on the present, Meserve mentioned his foremost purpose is to simply entertain and educate.
“Our exhibitors, or breeders, are very welcoming,” he mentioned. “We all share the identical form of purpose … if somebody has a premeditated ‘Oh, I’ve been to a cat present, it was actually horrible and the individuals had been actually imply,’ like, we’re fully not that.”
The exhibits begin at 10 a.m. and finish at 4 p.m. subsequent Saturday and Sunday (Sept. 9-10) on the fairgrounds in Pleasanton. People should buy tickets and enter their cats on the Loving Cats Worldwide web site at www.lcwwgroup.us.
