COVID-19 has been a death sentence for many small businesses.

Even if a business survived the initial lockdowns, a second wave creeping into the end of the year threatens small business owners’ livelihoods once again.

The K.A.T. Cafe in downtown New Market opened its doors to cats and cat lovers just a year ago. Although the business is new, the New Market community has embraced its unlikely furry neighbors with enthusiasm.

The K.A.T. Cafe plans to have nine lives and survive this pandemic.

COVID-19’s Effect

Due to the various restrictions that COVID-19 has brought to the world, the K.A.T. Cafe has had to make changes to survive.

Along with limiting the number of guests to six in the building at a time, the staff has also increased cleaning procedures, extended times in between reservations, and, unfortunately, the cafe has had to restrict most of their food that they serve in hopes to ensure that customers will feel comfortable. 

During the spring months of lockdown, although K.A.T. was closed to the public, the cafe’s staff was still working tirelessly to make sure that the cats were receiving quality love and care. Online adoptions took place during this time, which turned out to greatly increase the adoption rate, much to Foland’s surprise. 

“People being home all the time has brought about wanting a pet. I thought it would have the opposite effect, I was like ‘Oh, this is a stressful time, I have a lot more responsibilities, the last thing I want is another responsibility in my life,’ but that has been very much the opposite… Our adoptions have skyrocketed because people are home all the time,” said Diane Foland, the cafe’s owner.

Besides adoptions, K.A.T. has also been a source of comfort for the New Market community throughout this stressful time. Many families have made walking past the K.A.T. Cafe and trying to spot a friendly cat a part of their daily routine. 

Looking forward to the holiday season, Foland is optimistic about the business that the K.A.T. Cafe will attract since they sell gift cards and apparel aside from cat play sessions. Cat cafes are still a rare business in many areas, so the unqiue experience may just be the perfect gift for any holiday.

The Owner’s Inspiration

Diane Foland, the owner of the K.A.T. Cafe, is a 2004 LHS graduate who turned vegan seemingly overnight.  In an unusual journey, veganism led to opening the feline-focused cafe.

“Three years ago I was sitting in bed reading a magazine, and the title of the magazine was ‘Cage Free vs Free Range.’ Back then I was a bacon, cheeseburger, steak-loving lady, but [reading this article] took me down a rabbit hole of finding out more about the life of chickens and factory farming. After reading this article I swore off eggs, but after exploring more about factory farming and animals in general, the very next day, I became a vegan,” said Foland. 

Discovering a passion for animal rights then caused Foland to become an undercover investigator for PETA. During her time of being an undercover investigator, she saw another cat adoption business and was inspired.

“I was in Georgetown walking around and came across Crumbs and Whiskers… and my animal rights alarms were going off, like is this a pet shop? What is this place? So I went in as an undercover look into what they were doing. I went in suspicious and left in love,” said Foland. 

Kitties, Adoptions, Treats: K.A.T. in New Market

K.A.T. in New Market is a vegan (for people), cage free facility that works with the Frederick County Animal Shelter to allow people to meet different cats and play with them. All of the cats at K.A.T. are available for adoption; although, most visitors who come to the cafe do not come with the intention of adopting. 

Well. . . not at first.  Who can resist the affections of a kitten?

“The [Frederick County Animal Shelter] is wonderful to work with. Sometimes shelters in general get a bad reputation of ‘They’re going to kill a cat that’s too old or too sick or when they get too full,’ but Frederick County Animal Shelter is wonderful. They don’t put down animals because they’re there too long or because they’re too full,” said Foland.

Foland knew that she couldn’t help but fall in love with her temporary furry friends, but she never would have guessed that she would fall in love with the families that visit, too.

“We’re really just a place for people to come and have fun as well as an opportunity, if someone is interested, for adoption. We get a lot of families that come in in the grieving process of losing a pet, and they find it therapeutic to spend time with the kitties and work their way through that. I knew I would love being a part of the adoptions, but I never knew how much I would love being a part of the memories that these families are making,” said Foland. 

COVID-19 has taken so much from so many people, and it is far from over, but one thing it has not taken is the beacon of hope that is the K.A.T. Cafe in New Market.