Celebrate cats, cat culture, and cat people, while raising money for cat rescues!
Our 2022 event took place n Caturday May 28 and Sunday May 29, 2022!
100% of purr-ceeds donated to cat rescues.
(You do not need a festival ticket to shop the marketplace!)
100% proceeds raised from the 2022 Edmonton Cat Festival will support:
This year we’re also selling limited capacity tickets to in-person cat yoga presented by Yogalife Studios, with 100% purr-ceeds from the yoga class being donated to:
Please note: all times are listed in MST (mountain time).
We’re excited to welcome you to the 2022 #YEGCatFest! We’ll explain how the day will go, thank our sponsors, tell you how the virtual vendor marketplace works, give you giveaway details (win prizes!), and tell you a bit about the rescues the virtual event supports.
Ever wonder how a cat rescue operates? Or how you might get involved? Learn more about the work that rescues Community Cats Edmonton and Little Cats Lost do to support cats in need in the community.
Join Dr. Carissa Tong of Pulse Veterinary Specialists and Emergency for a session on first aid for felines. What constitutes urgency vs. emergency. What are some basic first aid techniques cat owners can provide at home? Come with cat care questions to be answered by Dr. Tong!
About Pulse Veterinary Specialists & Emergency
Pulse Veterinary Specialists and Emergency is a state of the art hospital, opened by Dr. Kim Hawkes, the first veterinary cardiologist in Alberta. At Pulse, you’ll find an incredible team of board-certified veterinary specialists, emergency veterinarians, animal health technologists and amazing support staff. Pulse is is introducing the first veterinary radiologist and neurologist to Edmonton and are the only exclusively veterinarian-owned emergency and referral hospital in Alberta and will be the only veterinary hospital in Edmonton to boast an MRI.
About Dr. Carissa Tong
Dr. Carissa Tong, BVM&S, MRCVS, DACVECC, is a Specialist in Small Animal Emergency and Critical Care. Carissa attended veterinary school in Edinburgh, Scotland, and completed her advanced training in the US. She is a broad-certified specialist in small animal emergency and critical care, as well as a cat lover. She shares her home with her husband and two rescued kittens, Luna and Willow.
Join Get Cooking Chef / Owner Kathryn Joel in this session to learn how to prepare savoury cat recipes at home! Spoil your cat with delicious homemade dishes. Attempt to follow along at home! (ingredients/recipe will be provided prior to the festival).
About Get Cooking
A culinary school in the heart of Edmonton’s downtown, just blocks from the Ice District, Get Cooking offers live and interactive online cooking classes, as well as online and in-person team building, private and corporate events. Our approach to cooking focuses on the use of local ingredients to create globally inspired cuisine. Our goal is to demystify cooking, empowering home cooks with both confidence and new skills.
About Kathryn Joel
Kathryn is the founder and owner of Get Cooking. A graduate of London’s Le Cordon Bleu and Leiths School of Food and Wine, Kathryn’s culinary career has included food buying and catering as well as partnership in a small food production business. She discovered teaching by accident, on a work experience post at The Seafood Training School at Billingsgate in London in 2007: she quickly realized she’d found her calling and has been teaching cooking classes ever since.Kathryn is also a proud cat mama!
Due to unforeseen circumstances our BIG CATS and Wildlife Educators session has had to be modified to include a short pre-recorded video of the San Diego Zoo Tigers (no Wildlife Educators / Q&A)
About the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance
The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance is an international, nonprofit conservation organization with two front doors: the San Diego Zoo and the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. They integrate wildlife health and care, science, and education to develop sustainable conservation solutions and is committed to saving species worldwide by uniting expertise in animal care and conservation science with dedication to inspiring passion for nature.
Watch adoptable kittens playing, sleeping and just generally existing LIVE. 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 Community Cats Edmonton.
Join instructor Janelle Snow (She/Her) (200-RYT) in-studio OR online for gentle Hatha yoga.
This is a hybrid cat yoga class. Limited tickets will be available for the in-person session at Yogalife Studios (separate from the virtual Cat Festival) while anyone with a virtual Cat Festival ticket can join in at home.
Only 15 spots are available per in-person session (15 on Caturday May 28, 15 on Sunday, May 29).
Janelle will guide you through breath work and moving your body, with an emphasis on accessibility.
Folks who join in-person will have the additional treat of meeting some furry rescue friends (kittens from Little Cats Lost)!
Caturday, May 28 In-person Cat Festival takes place at Yogalife Studios North – Namao (15823 97 St NW #208).
* Please note photos and video will be captured at the Cat Yoga session.
About Yogalife Studios
Yogalife Studio‘s vision is simple. Make it easy for anyone to experience the benefits that yoga has to offer. To achieve this, we created a beautiful facility, hand-picked instructors, and created an environment with spa-like amenities. There is a broad world of yoga within our walls, waiting to be explored.
Yogalife is following COVID-19 precautions. Masks are optional and they continue to operate at reduced capacity to allow for mats to be distanced.
About Janelle Snow (the Instructor)
Janelle Snow began practicing meditation and yoga after giving birth in 2009. She struggled with the disconnect she felt with her mind and body and yoga was one of the steps she took to reintroduce herself to movement. Janelle’s approach to teaching is creating an accessible space for everybody. She likes to think of her classes as a ‘choose your own adventure’, where she is just the narrator and each student has their own story. Janelle describes herself as a macabre bohemian swamp witch, meaning she’s a whimsical romantic who doesn’t take herself too seriously. She’s a writer by trade and loves animals, a good cup of coffee and connecting with others. She also might be the only yoga teacher who hates the beach and sunshine, but don’t hold that against her. You can catch one of Janelle’s classes at Yogalife Studios.
Meet local cats Sirius and Draco, and hear the harrowing tale of Draco, who spent seven weeks lost in Jasper National Park before being rescued and reunited with his family. Learn about taking cats on adventures, safety precautions, and more.
In this pre-recorded session, local cat loving musician Jon Capus will perform a few tunes and do a meet & greet with his cats, who inspire his music!
Cat Festival Committee Member and Cat Sitter Extraordinaire Brittney LeBlanc will share about life as a prolific cat sitter. What makes a good cat sitter? What should you be telling your cat sitter? What happens if you’re cat sitting a cat who hates you? Brittney will be sharing some of her interesting adventures in cat sitting, how to handle different cat temperaments, things to keep in mind when hiring a cat sitter, and more!
Ever wonder why your cat does THAT? Ask renowned Cat Behaviourist and best-selling author Pam Johnson-Bennett! Does your cat have an odd quirk? How do you stop a cat from behaving a certain way? Get all your cat behaviour questions answered in this session.
About Pam Johnson-Bennett
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.
How much do you know about CATS?!
In this session, put your knowledge to the test in Virtual Cat Jeopurrdy and find out!
Join Estate Planning Enthusiasts Amanda McCloy and Ariel Lekas to hear “tails” of cats who have inherited millions and the keys to the castle (litter-ally). And how and why you should make sure that your pets are provided for in your estate planning.
Ariel Lekas, BSc, JD (she/her) is a lawyer, volunteer, and estate planning enthusiast. Though she doesn’t have a cat (her husband is allergic, allegedly) she is the proud dog parent of a Boston Terrier named Cricket and loves all animals, big and small.
Amanda McCloy CFP®, CLU®, TEP (she/her) has two passions in life, financial planning and cats! Back in 2018 part of her feedback during her annual review was she talked about cats too much.
Amanda and Ariel met while doing a presentation to the Society of Trust and Estate Practioner’s (STEP) in Edmonton and quickly bonded over their shared interest in Estate Planning and their love of their fur babies.
We’re excited to welcome you to Day 2 of the 2022 #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.
Human-cat petting interactions are generally thought to provide a positive opportunity for human-cat bonding. However, not all cats enjoy petting and it can lead to negative outcomes such as petting-related aggression. Some approaches to petting (e.g., touching preferred areas, respecting individual limits), can improve cat responses to petting in the moment.
Kristina O’Hanley and her team examined whether a 4-week training and education program incorporating these approaches improves petting tolerance in cats with a history of avoidance and threatening behaviour during petting.
Hear findings of this Cat Petting Study led by Kristina O’Hanley, a PhD candidate in Epidemiology at the University of Guelph.
About Kristina O’Hanley
Kristina O’Hanley is a PhD candidate in Epidemiology at the University of Guelph. Her thesis is on companion animal behaviour and welfare, with a focus on feline behaviour concerns that arise during petting interactions. Kristina also has worked in the animal shelter industry for over 8 years in various capacities, and is currently employed at the Guelph Humane Society (Ontario). Additionally, Kristina provides behaviour consults to cat and dog owners for various behaviour concerns and she is working towards her Certified Applied Animal Behaviourist certification (CAAB).
Let’s make some cat crafts! Join Cat Festival Committee Member Samantha in creation of some ameowzing cat crafts (supply list will be shared prior to the festival).
Write an ode to your cat! And get tips for how to do it from purr-fessional cat loving writer Nikki Reimer. Attendees are invited to read aloud their poems or short cat stories in this session as well.
About Nikki Reimer
NIKKI REIMER (she/her/they/them) is a multimedia artist/writer and lifelong cat enthusiast. She has been involved with art and writing communities, primarily in Calgary and Vancouver, for over 20 years. Checkout her cat photography project, East Van Cats.
But I thought cats groom themselves? In this demonstration, Certified Feline Groomer Lynn Paolillo, of Ask A Cat Groomer, will go through common coat and grooming issues seen based on a cat’s age from kitten to super senior. She’ll also answer your cat grooming questions!
About Lynn Paolillo
As one of only a few hundred Certified Feline Master Groomers worldwide, Lynn Paolillo does a lot more than just groom for the kitty population of central New Jersey. With almost 2 decades of grooming experience, she’s obsessed with improving the lives of both cats and their owners through creating a positive relationship through grooming. After getting certified in 2011, Lynn’s been a Certifier and Instructor with the National Cat Groomers Institute for the last 10 years. Her New Jersey business, Cat Naps Cattery, provides cat only boarding and grooming and the filming location of her popular TikTok cat grooming videos. When not up to her eyeballs in cat hair, she travels and teaches cat groomers at workshops, seminars, hands-on training and mentoring.
Join instructor Janelle Snow (She/Her) (200-RYT) in-studio OR online for gentle Hatha yoga.
This is a hybrid cat yoga class. Limited tickets will be available for the in-person session at Yogalife Studios (separate from the virtual Cat Festival) while anyone with a virtual Cat Festival ticket can join in at home.
Only 15 spots are available per in-person session (15 on Caturday May 28, 15 on Sunday, May 29).
Janelle will guide you through breath work and moving your body, with an emphasis on accessibility.
Folks who join in-person will have the additional treat of meeting some furry rescue friends (kittens from Little Cats Lost)!
Sunday, May 29 In-person Cat Festival takes place at Yogalife Studios South Edmonton (2065 98 St.)
* Please note photos and video will be captured at the Cat Yoga session.
About Yogalife Studios
Yogalife Studio‘s vision is simple. Make it easy for anyone to experience the benefits that yoga has to offer. To achieve this, we created a beautiful facility, hand-picked instructors, and created an environment with spa-like amenities. There is a broad world of yoga within our walls, waiting to be explored.
Yogalife is following COVID-19 precautions. Masks are optional and they continue to operate at reduced capacity to allow for mats to be distanced.
About Janelle Snow (the Instructor)
Janelle Snow began practicing meditation and yoga after giving birth in 2009. She struggled with the disconnect she felt with her mind and body and yoga was one of the steps she took to reintroduce herself to movement. Janelle’s approach to teaching is creating an accessible space for everybody. She likes to think of her classes as a ‘choose your own adventure’, where she is just the narrator and each student has their own story. Janelle describes herself as a macabre bohemian swamp witch, meaning she’s a whimsical romantic who doesn’t take herself too seriously. She’s a writer by trade and loves animals, a good cup of coffee and connecting with others. She also might be the only yoga teacher who hates the beach and sunshine, but don’t hold that against her. You can catch one of Janelle’s classes at Yogalife Studios.
Watch adoptable kittens playing, sleeping and just generally existing LIVE. 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 Community Cats Edmonton.
Settle in for an energetic live reading of cat-themed books with the Edmonton Public Library!
About Christine
Christine LOVE cats. She had a beautiful kitty when she was little, named Mitsy. Then in adulthood she was mom to another angel named Zia – but she always just called her Kitty. Zia was the best cat ever, everyone said so! Even people who claimed to not like cats loved her (and she is not biased at all ;p). Zia passed away last year but will always be in Christine’s heart. She misses her immensely.
About Allie
Allie (she/her/they/them). Allie has never had a cat, but she does have a super cute minpin-chihuahua who thinks he’s a cat! He even meows 🐱
Tell purrticipants about your cat! In this session, you’re invited to come on screen to show off 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 meow-re!
In this session, meet Steve the “Talking” Cat and mom / animal behaviourist Kristiine Wilson.
Kristiina will share about how she trained Steve to “talk”—using associative concept training (what speech button training is and what it isn’t (it is NOT language or speech acquisition), how to train your pet to use speech buttons, and more!
Kristiina Wilson, CCBC, MA, has spent over 20 years working with domestic cats, rescuing, socializing and fostering ferals as well as raising bottle babies and placing over 400 abandoned cats in permanent homes. She recently completed her Masters Thesis work in Hunter College’s Animal Behavior and Conservation department.
During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, she taught her best friend (a 13 year old tuxedo cat named Steve) to use AAC speech buttons and he became an internet sensation, even appearing in People magazine!
Join local artist Robin Good for a live painting demonstration of celebpurrty cat guest Great Grams of Gary! Sharing her acrylic painting techniques in a step-by-step process. Create your very own mini painting of your favourite kitty alongside, or just relax, share cat memes, and enjoy!
Someone will also be able to purrchase the live painting—with 100% purrceeds donated to CURE Animal Rescue. * Robin will be selling her other cat themed artwork as part of the Virtual Vendor Marketplace presented by ATB Financial.
If you’d like to paint from home with Robin:
About Robin Good
Robin Good (she/her) is a full-time freelance graphic designer, illustrator, and fine artist from Edmonton, AB. Her work is inspired by her love of all creatures, especially cats – big or small!
Join celebrity adventure cat Great Grams of Gary on an adventure in the Canadian Rocky Meowntains and tune in for a live Q&A with Gary and his social media meownager James!
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 Community Cats Edmonton and Little Cats Lost, 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, all prizes except for Homes Alive Pets requires Edmonton-area pick-up.
Homes Alive Pets does ship across Canada—so you can use your gift card to shop online if you win that prize and aren’t local.
🎁 2 x $100 gift cards to Homes Alive Pets
🎁 6 x $50 gift cards to Homes Alive Pets
🎁 1 x Pet License Gift Pack from Animal Care & Control Centre
🎁 2 x Cat Themed Prize Packs from Majesty & Friends
🎁 2 x Cat Tree/Condos from the Edmonton Humane Society
🎁 1 x Self Cleaning Litter Box from the Edmonton Humane Society
🎁 1 x 1 Year Supply of Kidney-Chek strips from sn biomedical
We will announce prize winners in a blog post the week of May 30, and 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.
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.
YOU DO NOT NEED A FESTIVAL TICKET TO SHOP!
Stay tuned for festival exclusives from vendors and a ONE STOP SHOPPING link to the Virtual Vendor Marketplace presented by ATB Financial.
The Virtual Vendor Marketplace link will go live on May 28, 2022!
Programming Sponsor
City of Edmonton Animal Care & Control
Ameowzing Sponsor
Homes Alive Pets
Ameowzing Sponsor
Hellas Custom Catios
Virtual Vendor Marketplace Sponsor
ATB Financial
Prize Sponsor
Edmonton Humane Society
Prize Sponsor
Majesty & Friends
Prize Sponsor
SN Biomedical (Kidney Chek)
Bringing together cat lovers to celebrate cats and cat culture, while raising money and helping cats in need. Learn more about our story, success, and find frequently asked questions about the festival.
The Edmonton International Cat Festival is run by a board of volunteers who live on Treaty 6 Territory and within the Michif / Métis homelands and Métis Nation of Alberta Region 4. As cat-loving settlers who live, work, and play on these lands, it’s important for us to acknowledge this land as the traditional territories of many First Nations such as the Nehiyaw, Dene, Nakota Sioux, Anishinabae and Niitsitapi. We encourage you to visit Native-Land.ca and learn more about the traditional lands you live on.
As a festival founded by an Asian woman and run by volunteers of different backgrounds, abilities, sexualities, and identities, we know that society is better with more diversity and inclusion. We do not tolerate or condone hate speech of any kind and want to ensure that the Edmonton International Cat Festival is a safe event for all.
