Chico Cat Cafe

07/03/2026

Four Years Since the Gopher Hole

Tomorrow night the sky over Tehama County will come apart in noise and light, the same as it does every year, the same as it did four years ago when a kitten too young to be on his own, scared off from wherever he'd come from, went looking for somewhere to hide.

He found a gopher hole beside our barn. We found him the next morning. Wide-eyed. Wild-hearted. Too small to be that scared and too scared to be held.

We named him Independence. Everyone calls him Indy.

He earned the name twice. Once for the weekend he arrived. Once for the year that nearly took him.

He came inside that first summer after a pack of neighbor dogs almost finished what the fireworks started. We neutered him, tamed him, and gave him a job: Cat Ambassador at Chico Cat Café. For six months he ran that floor like he'd been born to it. Greeted strangers like old friends. Taught scared foster cats how to be café cats. Chased his own tail with a conviction that had nothing to do with reason and everything to do with joy.

Then, that Christmas, he got sick. FIP. The diagnosis that used to mean goodbye.

We fought for him. He fought back harder. Four years later, he is still here Still enormous. Still completely uninterested in living quietly.

He didn't just survive. He kept becoming something. Barn kitten to café ambassador to, now, permanent uncle to six barn kittens who came after him, one of them with special needs he has never once treated as a special case. He still stampedes through the house like his own weather system (we have lovingly nicknamed his epic running sprees the Indyanapolis 500). He still makes biscuits and self-nurses and vibrates his tail like a rattlesnake when he's thrilled about something only he understands. And somehow the same cat who tore across a room with no sense of consequence has become the gentlest thing in it, especially with the ones who need gentleness most.

A scared kitten in a hole is now the biggest, softest presence in this home. Four years. FIP survivor. Uncle to six. Still the same golden blur who chose us before we ever chose him, and still choosing us, every single day since.

Tomorrow night, when the sky opens up again, he'll have four years of proof that he doesn't have to hide from it anymore. Happy almost-Independence Day, Indy, my hurricane-hearted boy. Thanks for staying ❤️ 🧨 🐈

06/25/2026

After three unforgettable years serving our cat-loving Chico community, Chico Cat Café officially closed its doors in April 2026. This is our official "We're Closed" pinned post for our café page.

Helping hundreds of cats find loving homes, watching friendships form, and creating a welcoming space where people and cats could connect was one of the greatest privileges of our lives. None of it would have been possible without our adopters, foster families, volunteers, staff, rescue partners, and every person who walked through our doors. Thank you for being part of this incredible journey.

As many people continue to ask, we want to clarify that Chico Cat Café is permanently closed. We are not reopening, and we are not affiliated with any new cat café initiatives in our region. Although the café chapter has come to a close, my work in feline welfare, shelter medicine, and improving access to care continues.

You can follow along here:
🐾 The Outpost Observer (LinkedIn Newsletter) – articles exploring shelter medicine, rural access to veterinary care, One Health, and the future of animal welfare:
Subscribe on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/build-relation/newsletter-follow?entityUrn=7457066942621921280

🐾 Pawsitive Paradigm (Substack) – essays, stories, and reflections on cats, community, entrepreneurship, and building a better future for animals and the people who love them:
https://pawsitiveparadigm.substack.com

If you're looking to adopt a cat in our area, we encourage you to connect with:
• Neighborhood Cat Advocates: ncachico.org
• Catnip and Cattitude: catnipandcattitude.org

This page will remain online as an archive of our journey, celebrating the cats, people, and memories that made Chico Cat Café so special. From time to time, I may also share updates about my ongoing work in feline welfare, writing, and education.

If you'd like to stay in touch and see what comes next, follow me on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jodibelongiervt/ . That's where most of what we're building lives now, including The Outpost Observer newsletter. For those of you not on LinkedIn, Pawsitive Paradigm on Substack comes straight to your email.

Thank you for believing in what we built together. Chico Cat Café may have closed, but the mission that inspires it continues.

With heartfelt gratitude,
Jodi Belongié, RVT, CFVP, FFCP (Shelter, Veterinary)
Co-Founder, Chico Cat Café

04/10/2026

Even though our doors are closed, I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting on everything the café taught me — not just about cats, but about people, trust, and community.

So much of what we created together in that space came from quietly observing how cats move through the world — how they build trust, how they take their time, how they choose when to engage.

I put some of those reflections into words here. It’s a little different than what I’ve shared before, but it’s deeply connected to everything the café stood for.

If you spent time with us, I think you’ll recognize some of these moments. 🐾

Every leadership book talks about trust, patience, and reading the room. None of them credit cats.

04/09/2026

350 + cats found their people within our walls. 25000+ people walked through our doors. And we couldn’t find a single landlord willing to let us do it again.

Here’s what we decided to do instead.

You were part of this. The quiet mornings. The full weekends. The cats who didn’t know yet they were about to be chosen. The something-in-the-air that made it feel like more than a place.

And even after we closed in September — you never really left.

The voicemails kept coming. The emails asking about reopening. People stopping by our old location, hoping to find us there. Tour groups. Cancelled events. The volunteers and fosters who raised their hands and said: I’m ready. Whenever you are.

And the ones who came just to love on the cats — no agenda, no adoption plan, just a need to be somewhere that felt real. We saw you. We knew you. We remembered your favorite cats.

And the adopters — the ones who walked in not knowing they were about to meet their person, and walked out changed. We carry every one of those stories.

This community never stopped believing in us. And we never stopped trying.

Since December, we met with nearly half a dozen landlords. We showed up prepared. We made the case. We believed each time it might be the one.

Some spaces didn’t fit. Others — and this is the harder truth — had landlords unwilling to consider an animal-centered space at all.

Over three years, together, we built something extraordinary:

🐾 350+ cats adopted
🐾 700+ events
🐾 25,000+ visits
🐾 9 rescue partnerships
🐾 Countless happy tears, quiet moments, and squeals of absolute delight

And the system still said no.

The proof is already here. The only thing missing is access.

So we decided to stop asking for one space — and start funding many.

🐈 Introducing: The CATS Foundation 🐈
Cultivating Alternative Transition Spaces

Jodi has founded The CATS Foundation — a California-based philanthropic initiative dedicated to funding the next 2.0 generation of alternative adoption pathways.

Through ✨ The Purrposeful Pathways Project ✨ we’ll offer micro-grants and scholarships to individuals and organizations creating:
• Pop-up adoption lounges
• Foster-based enrichment spaces
• Community adoption events
• And yes — new cat cafés built with everything 1.0 taught us

Our first California grant round opens Spring 2027. If you’ve been dreaming about building something like this — or know someone who has — we want to hear from you.

And if you want to help us fund more spaces and more ideas — that door is opening soon too.

The café couldn’t find its next space.

So we decided to help build many.

You were part of 1.0.

Now you’re part of what 2.0 makes possible. ❤️🐾

To our incredible staff, who showed up day after day with care, patience, and heart.
To our rescue partners, who trusted us with their cats through every season.
To our students and regulars, who made us part of their routines, their study breaks, their safe place.
Thank you.
You didn’t just support this space. You helped shape it. This Foundation exists because of you.

And to the cats of Chico — thank you for trusting us to find you your people, on your terms, in your own time. You were never just the residents.

You were the whole point. 🐾 We LOVE you all so much ❤️

If you were part of this — we want to hear your favorite memory. A cat you still think about. A moment that stayed with you. A photo if you have one.

We’ll go first.

The moment we keep returning to is a cat who had been shut down in a shelter — withdrawn, invisible, passed over — finally relaxing into themselves in a room full of strangers. Not because someone reached for them. But because the space itself was safe enough that they chose to open.

That’s the heart of everything we built together. And it’s exactly what The CATS Foundation exists to make possible — again and again, in as many places as we can.

Drop yours below. Let’s hold this chapter together before we step into the next one 😻🐈‍⬛🌈

04/07/2026

We've been a little quiet over here — but behind the scenes, we've been busy tending to some meaningful (and very exciting) projects that we can't wait to share more about soon. 🥰

In the coming weeks, we’ll be sharing more of this work on a few national podcasts — which feels like a really special step in bringing these ideas into a broader conversation. More on that soon.

In the meantime, we wanted to share something we're genuinely excited about closer to home. 🐾

Our friends at Purradise Ridge Cat Lounge are preparing to open their doors — just 20 minutes away — and we've been cheering them on as they bring this vision to life. It is something really special.

Spaces like this carry forward something we believe deeply: that connection, care, and community matter — and that cats deserve to be met in environments where they can truly be themselves.

Please show them some love as they get ready to open:
👉 Purradise Ridge Cat Lounge
👉 https://www.purradiseridgecatlounge.com/

More from us soon — and thank you, as always, for being part of the cat café magic 😻🐈‍⬛💫

1. Book a reservation online or walk in and get your ticket when you arrive. We strongly recommend booking ahead of time before the slots fill up. Reservation fees help pay for things like cat food and litter, rent, utilities, and staffing costs. Please do not bring any pets with you! 

01/21/2026

Meet Marmalade!

He came into the world quietly—one small orange kitten among a few others, surviving together on scraps near a school. Even then, there was something different about him. He was shy, yes, but never sharp. Never defensive. Just watching. Waiting. Hoping.

When gentle hands reached out, he answered immediately.

Marmalade is a cat who feels with his whole body. Touch is his language. Affection is his oxygen. Once he trusts you, he doesn’t simply accept love—he seeks it out with devotion. He will climb into your space, press his face against yours, lightly paw your cheek or hand, and remind you (softly, insistently) that connection matters. He gives kisses. He leans in. He stays.

He does not like to be alone. At night, if separated, he’ll sit outside the door and reach his paw underneath, quietly asking to be near you. Not out of fear—but because companionship is where he feels safest.

1-year-old medium hair Marmalade thrives with other cats. He was found among them, and he still carries that communal spirit. With his current feline companion, an older female, he play-wrestles, grooms, cuddles, and coexists in a constant, affectionate rhythm. He would be happiest in a home with another friendly cat—someone to chase, curl up with, and share the quiet hours.

Playfulness lives right beneath his tenderness. Headphones, cables, stray objects left on the floor—nothing escapes his curious paws. He is endlessly entertained by the world and eager to engage with it.

When he settles in for affection, the reward is extraordinary: deep, resonant purring that can last hours. He arches into your hand, presses his body against yours, and welcomes touch everywhere—chin, chest, belly, back—each stroke met with gratitude and trust. He doesn’t enjoy being picked up and prefers to stay grounded, but once settled beside you, he is all in.

Marmalade has never shown aggression. He hasn’t been exposed to dogs or children, but his gentle, social nature suggests a home that understands respect, softness, and patience will be the right fit.

He is not a cat who wants to simply live near you.
He wants to live with you.

If you’re looking for a companion who bonds deeply, loves fully, and believes—at his core—that life is better when shared… Marmalade is already reaching for you.

**Note: Chico Cat Café is currently closed and does not have cats onsite. All cats listed on our website (including Marmalade) are in foster homes and are available for adoption. Please contact us for all adoption and meet-and-greet inquiries.**

01/14/2026

✨ Chico Cat Café: A New Chapter Is Taking Shape ✨

For a while now, we’ve been quietly working behind the red curtain — listening, learning, and letting something new take shape.

And we’re finally ready to share a little of what’s coming.

Yes… Chico Cat Café will be reopening this year, and right now we’re aiming for spring. 🌸

Our nonprofit paperwork is moving forward, we’re weighing our options between a few locations next week, and the new version of Chico Cat Café is beginning to reveal itself.

But this isn’t just a reopening.

It’s a new chapter.

One of the most meaningful things to share is that Chico Cat Café has been accepted into a prestigious, nationally respected shelter-medicine and community-care program through UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine and Maddie’s Fund— a place where shelters, rescues, and changemakers from across the country gather to imagine better, kinder, more sustainable ways to care for cats.

To our knowledge, no cat café has ever been part of this program before — and that feels exactly right for Chico. What this means for our town is that the café you love is being gently re-imagined with the very best thinking in modern feline care, foster support, and adoption science guiding the way.

We’ll still be doing what we do best: curating quiet moments, soft paws, purring hearts, and the slow magic of cats and people finding each other. But we’ll be starting with weekend-focused hours, creating calmer, more intentional, more cat-centered experiences.

This year also brings something new: a big partnership with Chico State — with local programs, classes, and collaborations designed to bring students and the community into deeper connection with cats, care, and each other. The kind of programs that make ears swivel and tails twinkle. 🐾✨

And yes… there are a lot more surprises waiting in our whiskers, things we’ll share when the timing is just right.

We’re also honored to be launching this next phase — Chico Cat Café 2.0 — alongside Neighborhood Cat Advocates, whose work through Pawprints Thrift Boutique and the Pawprints Spay & Neuter Clinic has already changed so many lives in our region. Together, we’re building something that blends adoption, education, and community in ways Chico hasn’t seen before and we want you to be a part of it 🥰

Because we’re becoming a nonprofit, another door is opening too: VOLUNTEERS! Soon we’ll be inviting cat lovers, helpers, and dreamers to step inside and be part of this story — with training and onboarding details coming very soon.

Thank you for waiting with us.

Thank you for believing in us.

We can’t wait to welcome you — and the cats — back into this next chapter.

Are you ready for it? Hang tight – grab our paws – and HOLD ON Chico! 💛🐾

12/24/2025

🎄 From Our Hearts (and Paws) to Yours 🤍

As this year gently comes to a close, we want to pause and say thank you—from the cats who’ve curled up in your laps, the fosters who opened their homes, the rescues who trusted us, and the humans who showed up again and again with love.

Chico Cat Café has always been more than a place. It’s been a community built on compassion, patience, second chances, and the belief that cats (and people) thrive when surrounded by care. None of what this space has been—or what it’s quietly becoming—would exist without you.

While our doors are temporarily closed, our hearts are very much open. Behind the scenes, we’re tending the roots, listening closely, and reimagining what’s possible. The next chapter is being shaped with intention, guided by everything this community has taught us—and by what the cats need most.

Thank you for supporting us through this pause, for trusting the process, and for holding space with us as we prepare to step into the new year.

From our cats, our fosters, our rescue partners, and our entire extended café family—

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and here’s to a hopeful, love-filled New Year. ✨🐾😽🎄🎁