Several veterinarians from Botoșani County have opened a special place. It’s a cat cafe, an area where people can enjoy a coffee, but also free feline therapy. Most of the animals were rescued from the street or from abusive environments.
The cafe where cats and coffee become a form of therapy PHOTO Cosmin Zamfirache
In the municipality of Botoșani there is a completely and completely special place. It is a cafe where you can serve a hot drink, but you can relax playing with an impressive number of extremely affectionate cats. The concept belongs to a group of veterinarians from Botošan, a kind of penniless doctors of animals traumatized or thrown on the streets.
“La Mâtze”, the place with 100 cats and spiritual therapy
The story of this place begins with two veterinarians who are extremely passionate about their job. They are Daniel Bejenariu and Dănuț Bratu, two young men of about 35 years of age, who have dedicated their entire lives to saving abandoned, abused and neglected animals. Since 2013, since they finished university in Iași, the two doctors have managed to sterilize more than 30,000 dogs from Maidan, precisely to solve the phenomenon in a humane way. All at their expense. Daniel Bejenariu also turned his house into a professional shelter for abandoned animals. He saved horses, dogs, cats, storks, deer, goats, and any animals that came to a critical situation, especially due to the cruelty or negligence of people.
Doctor Daniel Bejenariu PHOTO Cosmin Zamfirache
In 2021, Daniel Bejenariu and Dănuț Bratu were taking care of over 180 cats rescued from the streets. Meanwhile their number has increased. Daniel and his colleague ended up buying animals from abusive owners just to save them. They managed to get in touch with associations abroad and since then they are effectively “doctors without money” for abused animals. Together they also have a modern veterinary clinic in Botoșani, but they have not given up volunteering and the idea of bringing people and animals together in a harmonious way. This is how the cafe “La Mâtze” was born, located exactly in the veterinary clinic.
The cats in the cafe PHOTO Cosmin Zamfirache
It’s a rather intimate place, more like a rustic cafe, but home to no less than 100 cats. All are rescued from the streets or from borderline situations. They have been cared for, treated and maintained. At the moment they are a real treat for animal lovers. The cats are accommodated in over 10 special rooms with everything they need, all around the cafe’s serving area. Customers can serve a hot drink and at the same time come in and play freely with all the cats. All are friendly and eager for affection.
Cafe with cats PHOTO Cosmin Zamfirache
“Anyone can come and serve a coffee, for example. He relaxes in the created environment and at the same time he can play with the cats in the adjacent rooms. They crave affection. They are all shelter cats that have been with us for a long time. They came to us for various reasons, found on the streets, with various problems. They were treated, taken care of. And they still are, but in the shelter we didn’t have time to give them proper attention. There were too many. Here they have this chance”says Daniel Bejenaru.
A place for people and cats
The cafe is therefore not only a place for people to play with their cats, but also a space for therapy, the Botošan doctors testify. More specifically, cats, experts say, are actually a powerful anxiolytic and antidepressant. In a stressful society, a few hours spent with cats can have the effect of real therapy. Studies also show that cats generally have a calming effect, reducing stress. Those who have constant contact with cats are 30% less prone to cardiovascular diseases. Studies also show that the noise produced by cats’ torsos falls in the range of 25-240 Hz, the frequency that actually speeds up the healing process of wounds, bones and tendons. It was precisely on this idea that the cafe with cats of the Botošan veterinarians took shape.
Children have fun in the cafe with cats PHOTO Cosmin Zamfirache
The benefit is mutual. Cats get the affection they need, and people get the mental stability they need. “It’s a concept well thought out to be good especially for cats, but also for people. Cats get the affection and attention they need and people get that extraordinary therapy that contact with cats can give you. I have already received very good feedback from several people who really needed it, I don’t want to go into details, but they really needed the help of cats. And the results were incredible, after a few days of staying with us. It is an extraordinary form of therapy. A mutual benefit”says Daniel Bejenariu. Since the opening three weeks ago, many Botošan residents have come to seek relief or relaxation in the company of cats.
The family of white cats found in the garbage PHOTO Cosmin Zamfirache
“I have lived in London for 15 years, but I come to see my mother. I came out of curiosity. I had an incredible feeling of relaxation, as if I had repaired areas of my soul that had been damaged for a long time. It’s incredible as a space of discovery”confesses Adelina. For David, an hour of “therapy” in the company of cats equals a day off: “I actually come and order a coffee or a tea. Then I go in and socialize with the cats. They are very affectionate, they purr, they seem to envelop you. I come out a different person, it’s like I’m taking away my worries”.
“Cats are said to ward off negative thoughts”says the doctor Daniel Bejenariu. In addition, anyone who wants a cat can adopt it. Not anyway, but only if he assumes he can take care of them and has the proper space. In addition, there are certain conditions set by doctors precisely so that the animal does not return to a shelter.
