Imagine everything CAT under one roof; a space that is big enough to spend the day at and intimate enough to meet others and chat about your favourite subject, Cats. I found this when I visited the Cat Show Live at the NEC in Birmingham on Saturday 14th September 2024.
Conveniently located at the NEC in Birmingham I drove up on the day of the show and easily parked. I was excited as I waited in line to walk through the green entrance way, where a mural artist was using an air sprayer to create a stunning Maine Coon cat portrait.
I meandered through the stalls of cat toys, bed, food and health products with all the other cat lovers, happily adorning various cat t-shirts and other cat lover clothing.
My first stop was at the Dot Dot Pet stall. My cats love treats, Dreamies being among their favourites, but I always wonder if they are good for them. I was happy to see the stall selling the Immune Boosting Cat treats to help a cats’ immune system as Elsie, one of my cats can get immune system issues that affect her skin.
Next on my tour was Little Paw Products. On a recent visit to the vet, I was reminded how important cat dental health is and that I’m probably not addressing it as well as I can for my cats. Little Paw Products nifty little gadget created by the stall holder seemed to be exactly what I needed. As you will see from the video, you simply fill the tube with a licky stick or cat toothpaste and the knobbly attachment that will hopefully massage away any debris and tartar in the cats’ teeth.
I then toddled along to the Happytumz stall and was met by some lovely ladies who explained their brand of dried cat food to me in a way I could easily understand without getting overwhelmed. I don’t know about you, but I find the whole pet food arena overwhelming, terms such as: grain-free, meat content, digestibility, protein raw food, vegetable…. It’s too much for me to comprehend. My cats eat Whiskas wet food which I don’t think is the best food. They also eat Burgess dried cat food for neutered cats which is a good price and made in the UK. What I loved about Happytumz was that they DNA test the food they get before they do anything with it so they know exactly what meat is going into each food, so if they say it is chicken, they can 100% say that the meat is chicken, duck, salmon, beef etc. There is also a guaranteed meat content of 65% in their dried foods, which in turn, should mean you can feed less of it to keep your kitties’ bellies full.
Not only did I buy a 4 pack of dried food for the cats, but I also bought a bag of dog food for my little PomSki mix, Leia. Here she is gobbling it all up! I also got this HUGE box of natural dog treats for the dogs for just £20! Amazing!
I was then off to the Speakers’ Corner to see Animal Behaviourist Sarah Whitehead discuss common issues people have with their pet cats. One of the phrases that stuck out was cats are “Not Socially Obligate”. I laughed out loud and was inspired enough to create this funky little t-shirt. It was so refreshing to hear people talk about cat ownership and behaviour and be given options on how to improve it.
Then I spent a good hour wandering around visiting the kitties who were there as part of the show and partaking in the meet the breed sections. I was so pleased to learn that cats can be shown if they have been spayed or neutered and that we can even show our moggies! The cats are treated well but they do need to be used to being handled. Below I have added a carousel of images of the cats I met, but as you may imagine it was hard to get good pictures as lots of people were politely waiting to ask questions and meet the kitties. How many breeds of cat can you name? Let me know in the feedback section.
The cat’s welfare always came first and all cats were allowed to take a break on their secure kennels away from the hustle and bustle. People meeting the breeds were also asked to sanitise their hands before touching each cat in case diseases spread between the animals.
After another little shop, I went back to the speakers’ corner to partake in a wonderful group conversation with Diana Saunderson about Feline Asthma. My little cat Deniro has Asthma, so it was lovely to sit and talk to someone who has treated her cat through the health condition and learn what to look out for as well as tips and tricks on managing the condition.
My last stop was with Kittilit Cat Litter, who sell wood pellet cat litter. Not only is it made in the UK using sustainability, quality and service values, they will also deliver. Charity work is a huge component of this business, and the fabulous thing about this company is that they will donate to cat charities, you can check them out here.
Then it was time to go! I had such a fun day and fully recommend any cat lover add it to their calendar! What do you think are you heading to the Cat Show Live next year? Let me know by using the feedback button below!
The Green Cat Cafe 