Paws right here to read about the purrfect place

By STU CLAMPITT
news@readthereporter.com

Pawz Pet Café, 481 Gradle Drive, Carmel, is a lot of things all at once. It is a boba and coffee bar, a pet supplies store, a place for parents to bring kids to color pictures for free, and a business that lets you pay a small fee to hang out with friendly cats for a while. Of course, if you do that, you just might want to take one home with you.

Over 130 cats have been adopted from Pawz since it opened in July 2024.

Reporter photo

The Reporter visited Pawz Pet Café to speak with Stacia Sokol and get a tour of all this business has to offer.

All the cats at the café come from Paws On My Heart Inc.

“They are a local rescue non-profit,” Sokol said. “They foster and rescue all of our cats, they get them vetted, they get them spayed or neutered, and they make sure they’re socialized and ready to be in here and hang out with everybody.”

The cat room has a huge, one-of-a-kind cat tree that was made specifically for Pawz Pet Café.

“In order to enter that room and actually hang out with the cats it’s 10 dollars for half an hour, 18 for a full hour,” Sokol said. “That’s actually fairly cheap for the industry standard for cat cafes. People can come in pay 10 dollars just for half an hour then if they fall in love with a cat they can take that same cat home today. We do offer same day adoptions as long as we are able to look through your application.”

While the cats are the big draw, they also offer a full selection of cat products for people who already have pets, as well as a café area with coloring pages for the little ones and a menu full of tasty beverages including coffee, boba drinks, teas, hot cocoa, and lemonades.

“We’re even expanding our menu soon to include slushies,” Sokol said. “This part [the lounge area with tables and kids activities] is all free. You don’t even have to order a drink to do this. We just like that people come in. We have free WiFi, free coloring pages, and free games.”

Photo provided by Jay Skinner

In the retail area, Pawz has much to offer.

“We are a distributor for Petkit and Pidan,” Sokol said. “Petkit is our automated supplies – so our automatic litter boxes, our automatic water feeders, and our pet backpacks with heating and cooling. We use Pidan tofu litter at the café. It is honestly probably one of the best things we do for the cats. It is essentially dust free. It clumps really easily so it doesn’t get everywhere. Once you enter a cat lounge, you’ll see how clean the floor is, and honestly, I say that is because of our tofu litter.”

Got a cat you need supplies for? Want to adopt a cat? Just want to hang out with cats for a while if you live in an apartment that doesn’t allow pets? Pawz Pet Café has you covered.

Learn more online at pawzpetcafe.com or just stop by 481 Gradle Drive, Carmel, from noon to 8 p.m. any day except Monday. And yes, even when they are closed on Mondays, they send employees to the store to make sure the cats are all safe, fed, and happy.

Photos provided by Jay Skinner / Reporter photos