Kitten Yoga: A Purrfect Class Helps Find Cats Furr-ever Homes

CUTCHOGUE, NY — Kitten yoga, perhaps the most adorable way to spend a stormy morning, drew a cat-loving crowd to the North Fork Saturday for a purrfect class.

Cats traipsed across the yoga mats at JABS in Cutchogue watching the class doing Downward-Facing Dog and other poses and getting in on the fun. The class, which included kids and adults, was a combination of instruction, kitty play, and education — with a goal of finding the four-footed cuties furr-ever homes, since all the kittens are adoptable.

The North Fork Country Kids: Rescue And Preservation Through Pedagogy is a not-for-profit animal rescue organization based in Aquebogue and founded by Virginia Scudder.

The group teamed up with JABS of Cutchogue for an hour of kitten yoga Saturday morning, which included a quick lesson in TNR, or "trap/neuter/return," Scudder said.

The group is made up of locals, educators, parents, realtors and animal lovers, "all advocating for feral cats on the North Fork and all animals needing help," Scudder said. "We are a local group — and we are blessed to have local support. We are currently working on several large colonies on the North Fork that need help and support."

Veterinary care and colony food is expensive, Scudder said. "And what better way to get the word out than taking a yoga break at JABS?"

Kitten Yoga is a great way to bring awareness to the rescue organization and is also a therapeutic session for everyone involved, said Jill Schroeder, owner and head trainer at JABS. "Yoga allows you to be in the moment. Everyone had smiles, pure contentment — and a few laughs — while kittens played and purred with participants. We also hope this gets the kittens adopted to find their furr-ever homes. JABS always strives to bring fitness and community together," she said.

Photos by Virginia Scudder and Lisa Finn.

Video by Virginia Scudder.