A Utopia for Cats… and Humans. Kitten Cuddling Jasmine Nguyen This past month, I had the opportunity to attend a volunteering event at Mini Cat Town in Eastridge Mall. Having been to the mall in the past, I have often passed by this nonprofit cat shelter, where people often lined up and paid to enter and have some fun with the cats or look at them in the interest of adopting one of them. Yet, this is the first time that I entered the organization. I have worked with numerous cats in the past, and I love their personalities, so this event was perfect for me given my experience. Upon arriving at my shift, we were tasked with bringing the cats out to the front and cleaning their pens. Although somewhat laborious and tiring, this was good insight on how the shelter provided for and took care of the cats. Whereas I attended the morning shift, afternoon and closing shifts were also available, where each shift focuses on different tasks like checking health, weighing, and returning the cats to their pens. I also really enjoyed meeting the other volunteers and learning more about the process of taking care of all the cats. After everything had been cleaned, I went out to the front where customers were starting to enter in and look at the cats. During this time, I helped clean the area after customers had left to ensure it was hygienic due to COVID guidelines, and helped take the cats to the volunteers so they could see and look at them. Although there have been accounts of wild customers from the supervisors, it was pleasant to see the place in action, even if it were in limited capacity. It was a very enjoyable experience participate in this event, so much so that I'm excited to return to my next shift to continue taking care of the cats and trying to help them get adopted into their forever homes! :)
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