We celebrated cats, cat culture, and cat people, while raising money for cat rescues, with you on Caturday May 29 & 30, 2021! You can purrchase tickets to watch the replays.
100% of purr-ceeds from this virtual event is donated to cat rescues.
This year’s Cat Festival was VIRTUAL WEEKEND!
100% proceeds raised from the 2021 Edmonton Cat Festival will support:
Get over 30% off Fancy Paw Beaded Teasers 18” – $ 19.99 (reg $24.99) + receive a free 36” removable silk line ($ 4.99 value)
Fancy Paw Beaded Teasers 35” – $ 24.99 (reg $31.49) + receive a free 36” removable silk line ($ 4.99 value)
Get 15% off all orders using code 15off
Use KITTYLOVE for 15% off EVERY item
Discount valid May 29 – June 20
BONUS: For May 29 & 30 orders, get a bonus mystery goodie added to your order!
Get 10% off your minimum $20 order using code giveme10
Please note: all times are listed in MST (mountain time).
We’re excited to welcome you to the 2021 #YEGCatFest! We’ll explain how the day will go, thank our sponsors, tell. you how the virtual vendor marketplace works, give you details about giveaways you could win throughout the day, and tell you a bit about the rescues the virtual event will be supporting.
Sit in on this panel featuring the three cat rescues who will be receiving donations from this year’s virtual event.
Get a behind-the-scenes understanding of what it takes to run or volunteer for a rescue, the challenges, successes and opportunities of Little Cats Lost, SCARS Second Chance Animal Rescue and AARCS Alberta Animal Rescue Crew Society, advice on becoming a cat foster family, and more! You’ll also get a chance to ask the panels your own questions.
Learn about the rescues this year’s festival proceeds are supporting:
Join artist Heather Simonsmeier as she shows you how to draw cats! How to draw YOUR cat!
Heather is an Edmonton based artist who specialized in custom portraits and printmaking. Although she is allergic to cats and doesn’t have her own, she loves them so much & enjoys making cat art.
If you’d like to follow along live with Heather, make sure you have a paper, pen, and ballpoint pen or marker handy during the session.
We’re excited to ameownce that One Eared Uno will be kicking off our virtual weekend with a LIVE Q&A and Digital Meet & Greet (time permitting) on Caturday, May 29 from 10:15 a.m. to 11 a.m. MST!
Uno is the CEO of having one ear!
With over 1.8 million+ followers on TikTok, One Eared Uno is quite the celebpurrrrrty. 1.8 million cat lovers have fallen in love with unique Uno!! Virtually meet Uno and his mom Kat at the Edmonton Cat Festival! They’re helping kick off the virtual weekend, will be taking your questions, and if there’s time—any festival ticket holder can try to “snap” (screenshot) a side-by-side photo with Uno!
Veterinarians Dr. Ashleigh Allen, Dr. Candace Farrar (Emergency DVM), and Melissa Oddson (Dentistry RVT) with Pulse Veterinary Specialists & Emergency will demo at-home cat care focused on senior cats—like trimming nails, cleaning teeth, and considerations to care for your senior cat.
Pulse Veterinary Specialists and Emergency is a state of the art hospital that opened its doors in the Edmonton area in March of 2020. Conveniently located just off the Anthony Henday to provide convenient access for all residents of the greater Edmonton area. Dr. Kim Hawkes, the first veterinary cardiologist in Alberta, had long-envisioned opening a practice that matched exceptional care with compassion and community pride. With this vision in mind, an incredible team of board certified veterinary specialists, emergency veterinarians, animal health technologists and amazing support staff began to grow together to bring this practice to life. Pulse is the only exclusively veterinarian-owned emergency and referral hospital in Alberta.
Watch adoptable kittens playing, sleeping and just generally existing LIVE in a creative kitty play pen.
Maybe you’ll get the itch to give one of them a furr-ever home after this livestream! Open this stream in a new window to catch a different festival session happening simultaneously to the cute felines.
These kittens are adoptable through Little Cats Lost.
Join Ringo Trivia for a paw-some round of cat-themed trivia! Play solo or with a team and see who knows the most random facts about cats!
Anyone with a festival ticket can play along for fun but if you want to qualify for a chance to win a prize, you need to register as an Official Player or Team.
Megan Evans is a cat lover and french hornist (horn-er? hornerist?) with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. She grew up in Vancouver and went to McGill University in Montreal. Megan’s cat, an 11 year old grumpy tuxedo named Jerry, came to her unexpectedly 3 years ago and has since wormed his way into her heart.
Tune in for a special Edmonton International Cat Festival virtual performance by cat-lovin’ meowsician Megan Evans!
Local video game aficionado and Cat Festival committee member Brittney LeBlanc walks cat lovers through different cat games you can play! Brittney will demo, review, and share great suggestions for cat games on a variety of platforms (phones, computers, and more).
Janelle Snow (She/Her) of Sundog Strength & Soul (200-RYT) took her yoga teacher training to deepen her practice and through that, fell in love with teaching. Her approach to teaching is creating classes and workshops for everybody and all bodies. She believes yoga has had a profound effect on her physical and mental health.
Janelle will be leading TWO online yoga practices for our 2021 Virtual Cat Festival Weekend!
“If you’ve wanted to try yoga and the only difference you know between upward facing dog and downward facing dog is how your own pupper likes to play, don’t even worry about it – this is CATFEST, after all! Join me and my cat Yogi for some CAT-arunguas, kitten poses and all the other cat puns I can come up with.”
Note: If you’re pregnant or think you might be pregnant, please consult your doctor before practicing.
Learn how to purr-fect the purr-fect cat eye in this cat-themed eyeliner tutorial using animal-friendly products by cruelty-free & vegan beauty blogger Kassia.
We are so excited about this LIVE cat grooming demonstration from cat grooming expert, professional cat groomer Samantha Darcy of The Main Lion Cat Grooming Salon based in Pennsylvania, United States. The Main Lion specializes in The Lion Cut, but also offers other ameowzing cat grooming styles like The Tiger, Dragon, Liger, Velvet, Tigon, and MORE! A truly unique business.
Samantha’s cat grooming styles are getting tons of views in TikTok, and we are excited to give festival goers a chance to see a LIVE cat grooming demonstration, learn more about cat grooming, cat grooming tips, and answer virtual attendee questions!
Samantha Darcy is a Professional Cat Groomer, member of the Professional Cat Groomers Association of America, member of the National Cat Groomer’s Institute of America, and has a long list of cat grooming credentials! She is also the Founder of Feline Fashionista, a guide for cat owners on the benefits of cat grooming including hairstyle choices, finding groomers, photography tip, and more.
In this session, get tips for how to train your cat to become an outdoor, adventure cat, presented by Adventure Cat Cypress (@mynameiscypress) and paw-rent Reanne.
Join Alberta cat toy maker for a how-to session on making cat toys!
Alicia Speers is the face behind Heart Felt @heartfeltcalgary. Alicia was born and raised in Fort McMurray, is a proud Albertan, Auntie and Mom. She started making felt toys for her nephews first Christmas and then ventured into cat toys for one of her best friends kitties Billy! Both her nephew and Billy loved them so much she decided to spread her love of felt to the rest of Canada!
In this pre-recorded session, Alicia will walk you through how she makes a simplified version of her paw-pular CAT-ctus (cactus) shaped cat toy.
If you would like to follow along at home you will need:
Although the how-to is pre-recorded, Alicia will be available LIVE to answer questions as you go through the how-to video.
An impurrtant new study explores cats fascination with sitting in boxes or box-like shapes. In this session, hear from Gabriella Smith, the lead author of the study If I fits I sits: A citizen science investigation into illusory contour susceptibility in domestic cats (Felis silvestris catus), about why she wanted to do this impurrtant research, what she found (and what that might mean about your cat!)
Gabriella Smith received her MA from the Hunter College (CUNY) Animal Behavior and Conservation program in May 2020 studying contrafreeloading in Grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus). Since then, she performed a citizen science study with the Hunter College Thinking Dog Center into illusory contour susceptibility in domestic cats (Felis silvestris catus) via their natural behavior to sit in enclosed spaces. She found that the cats were as likely to sit in the illusory, Kanizsa square as they were in the real square. Gabriella is currently the manager of the Pepperberg lab of avian cognition, and looks forward to developing more citizen science studies of illusion susceptibility in both dogs and cats.
Learn all about catios—what they are, benefits, how to build a basic one or why you should let the pros help you, presented by Hellas Custom Catios and the City of Edmonton Animal Care & Control Centre.
Join celebrity adventure cat Great Grams of Gary on a pre-recorded kayak adventure through the Canadian Rocky Meowntains!
Chill out with the chillest celebpurrty adventure cat in Canada. Virtually enjoy the mountain and lake views, gentle waves and crisp mountain air with our favourite cat!
Settle in with the Edmonton Public Library, who will do an energetic live reading of cat-themed books!
Cat Storytime will be led by Michelle Rempel, who has worked for the Edmonton Public Library for close to 12 years, mostly out of the Shelly Milner Children’s Library. She has facilitated, roughly, a billion Storytimes in the span of her career.
Over the years Michelle has been a proud “mama” to 6 different cats and is still missing her Ella, medium haired tuxedo, who lived to the ripe old age of 23!
We’re excited to welcome you to Day 2 of the 2021 #YEGCatFest! We’ll recap the exciting purr-gramming from Caturday, thank our sponsors, remind you how the virtual vendor marketplace works, give you details about giveaways you could win throughout the day, and tell you everything else you need to know to best enjoy the final day of the festival.
We chat with local celebrity cats including Cypress (@mynameiscypress) , along with Kitty Mojito & Lynx (@kittymojito) about what it’s like to be Instagram Famous, why they decided to share about their cats on social media, tips for creating social media accounts for your cats, and more!
About Cypress:
Cypress is a 2 year old Bengal that is both sweet and spicy. Cypress has already logged thousands of kilometres across Saskatchewan, Alberta and BC and spent many nights camping and in hotels. She has been paddle boarding, boating, snowshoeing and hiking with her humans. She is up for any adventure!
About Kitty Mojito & Lynx
Kitty Mojito is a 9 year old domestic shorthair who enjoys fashion and adventure. Her favourite activities include lounging on the patio swing, strolling along local trails and canoeing in the summer. Lynx is an almost 14 year old Bengal who is always up for an adventure. He loves to nap, snuggles under the covers and give kisses. Kitty Mojito and Lynx are both rescues who love to spread the word about adopting shelter kitties, especially seniors, through their Instagram @kittymojito. Follow their lives and adventures there!
Janelle Snow (She/Her) of Sundog Strength & Soul (200-RYT) took her yoga teacher training to deepen her practice and through that, fell in love with teaching. Her approach to teaching is creating classes and workshops for everybody and all bodies. She believes yoga has had a profound effect on her physical and mental health.
Janelle will be leading TWO online yoga practices for our 2021 Virtual Cat Festival Weekend!
“If you’ve wanted to try yoga and the only difference you know between upward facing dog and downward facing dog is how your own pupper likes to play, don’t even worry about it – this is CATFEST, after all! Join me and my cat Yogi for some CAT-arunguas, kitten poses and all the other cat puns I can come up with.”
Note: If you’re pregnant or think you might be pregnant, please consult your doctor before practicing.
Watch adoptable kittens playing, sleeping and just generally existing LIVE in a creative kitty play pen.
Maybe you’ll get the itch to give one of them a furr-ever home after this livestream! Open this stream in a new window to catch a different festival session happening simultaneously to the cute felines.
These kittens are adoptable through Second Chance Animal Rescue.
In this session, virtually meet and ask questions to renowned Cat Behaviourist and best-selling author Pam Johnson-Bennett.
Ever wonder why your cat does THAT? What about that odd quirk? How do you stop a cat from behaving a certain way? Get all your cat behaviour questions answered in this session with Pam!
Pam Johnson-Bennett is a certified cat behaviour consultant and best-selling author of 8 books. She starred in the Animal Planet series Psycho Kitty that was seen all across Canada. Pam was vice president of the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants and founded their Cat Division. She has served on numerous advisory boards and has been an award-winning columnist for many online and print magazines. She is considered a pioneer in the field of cat behaviour consulting and her books have been used as textbooks for behavior courses. She has influenced many practicing in the field today. Her book, Think Like a Cat, is referred to as the cat bible. Pam is the spokesperson for Arm & Hammer Cat Litter’s Purrfectly Impurrfect campaign to raise awareness of shelter cats often overlooked due to age, appearance or behaviour. In addition to her lecture and media schedule, Pam does a limited number of private behaviour consultations. She owns Cat Behaviour Associates in Nashville, TN.”
In this ameowzing session, follow along and learn how to recreate savoury cat recipes developed by Chef / Owner Kathryn Joel of Get Cooking.
Spoil your cat with delicious homemade dishes!
If you’d like to follow along, download Chef Kathryn JoeCat Food Recipe by Kathryn Joel for Cat Fest‘s homemade Cat Food Recipe.
Please note:
Jordan Norman and the Wisdom Teeth are not teeth but they are wise and they do bite. Playing a mixture of acoustic rock and traditional folk, The Wisdom Teeth also throw in some of that 90’s grunge they heard so much about growing up in Edmonton Alberta. The Wisdom Teeth write about what they know, that’s why they talk a lot about the snow, sleeping, and the advantages of calling your mother. Lyrics are one of the most obvious ways The Wisdom Teeth draw you into their songs but don’t forget about the wickedly talented and gorgeous members of the band. Jordan Norman and the Wisdom Teeth have been fortunate enough to have some amazing shows such as performing twice at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, opening for Canadian folk rock legend John K Samson, and other iconic musicians such as Aiden Knight, Rueben and the Dark, and The Rural Alberta Advantage.
Jordan Norman and the Wisdom Teeth’s music is available on every legal and illegal streaming platform. Give them a chance by paying them no money to listen to their music and you never know, you might just find something you like.
Tune in for a special Edmonton International Cat Festival virtual performance by cat-lovin’ meowsician Jordan Norman!
Join fellow festival goers in this fun virtual game led by Cat Festival committee member Brooke Hunker and see who can guess the correct cat items for a chance to win prizes!
Watch adoptable kittens playing, sleeping and just generally existing LIVE in a creative kitty play pen.
Maybe you’ll get the itch to give one of them a furr-ever home after this livestream! Open this stream in a new window to catch a different festival session happening simultaneously to the cute felines.
These kittens are adoptable through Alberta Animal Rescue Crew Society.
Join Plaid Cap Imports for a session all about cat-themed wines, cats and their hiss-tory with wineries, and more! And ask questions or leave comments for a chance to win cat-label Lou Gat wines!
Cat Themed Wine Price Specials
From May 24 – June 7, get 10-15% off a set of Lou Gat wines (all 3 bottles) at the following Edmonton stores:
This session is for your cat to shine! If you’d like to do a Show & Tell about your furry friend, join this session, moderated by festival founder Linda Hoang. Whoever would like to do a few minutes Show & Tell on camera will be invited onto the virtual stage to introduce fellow cat lovers to your cat. Tell us your cat’s name, age, breed, what kind of things your cat likes to do, funny quirks, interesting points about its personality, reasons why you love your cat, and anything else you’d like to share about your furr-end!
You can do a quick Show & Tell with your cat or take a few extra minutes to tell us more details about your cat if you’d like.
This could be crazy, ameowzing, awkward or a bit of all those things!
We’re excited to ameownce that White Coffee Cat will be closing out the virtual weekend with a LIVE Q&A and Digital Meet & Greet (meet and greet is a ticket add-on).
With 2 million+ followers on Instagram, Coffee comes from a very furr-amous cat family including sister Nala Cat (Guinness World Record Holder for cat with the most followers on Instagram – 4.3 million followers), and Luna Rose (nearly 600,000 followers).
What a weekend it has been! Our Cat Festival Committee will say goodbye and thank you for purr-ticipating in this year’s virtual weekend, and helping raise money for local rescues. We’ll hopefully have a total to share about how much $$$ we’ll be donating to Little Cats Lost, Second Chance Animal Rescue, Alberta Animal Rescue Crew Society, plus thank our sponsors, vendors, presenters, announce giveaway winners, details on how to BINGE CAT FEST on your own time following the event, and more!
PLEASE NOTE: although the virtual Cat Festival is open to any cat lover anywhere, only Alberta or Edmonton residents will be eligible for prizes as the majority require local pick-up.
We will announce most winners at the end of day Closing Remarks but also post winners on our social media channels following the festival. If you have won a prize, you will be contacted via email or social media. If you are unable to redeem the prize in Alberta or Edmonton, we will need to select a new winner.
To access the livestream festival, you will need a festival ticket, either a computer, laptop or phone with Internet access, (the computer experience is better than the phone experience!) and an email address to login.
Festival Sponsor
Homes Alive Pets
Festival Sponsor
City of Edmonton Animal Care & Control
Virtual Vendor Marketplace Sponsor
ATB Financial
Festival Sponsor
Hellas Custom Catios
Festival Sponsor
Majesty & Friends
Festival Sponsor
Ringo Trivia
Festival Sponsor
Plaid Cap Imports
Festival Sponsor
Pulse Veterinary
Festival Sponsor
Pam Johnson-Bennett
Festival Sponsor
Sundog Strength & Soul
Festival Sponsor
Get Cooking
Festival Sponsor
Edmonton Public Library
Festival Sponsor
Nanc Price Photography
Festival Sponsor
Doughnut Party
Giveaway Sponsor
Kind Ice Cream
Giveaway Sponsor
Critter Collections
Giveaway Sponsor
Alberta Carpet & Furnace Cleaning
Giveaway Sponsor
Emily Chu Illustration
