Have fun with the cats and enjoy relaxing time!

By Shahd Alhamdan Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — A social interactive event for cats and animal lovers has come to Jeddah that gives people a chance to play and spend time with over 200 cats. The events, called a Cats’ Play Day, are organized by Huriarah, a non-profit volunteering group that helps pets and animals in the Kingdom. A Cats Play Day held on Sept. 3 saw 16 attendees having an opportunity to play with cats, ask cats experts questions, and have a free drink and relax. Entry to the events is SR150, and they are open to girls 10 years and older. According to the group, all money raised at any event goes to support Hurairah's cats, from food to vet expenses. Hurairah Volunteers Group founder, Amal Faqeeh, said that the event concentrates on giving visitors a chance to have a new weekend activity by interacting with cats, having fun, relaxing, and playing after a long work week. “We have different rooms at Hurairah all filled with cats. We split in groups, distribute toys and allow people to play, pet the cats to their hearts content, we have breaks in the middle to have snacks and drinks then go back to playing in a different area,” she said. Faqeeh said the idea for the event was part of a drive to raise awareness about the group's responsibilities toward rescuing pets and taking care of them. “We are trying to raise awareness in our community. We need people to actually see and feel animals’ situation here in Saudi Arabia. We are trying to spread the idea of adoption and to show that it is not all in the breed, color or how long the fur is,” she said. “At the moment Hurairah is in need of all the help we can get and we are trying to at least stabilize the situation by having people get involved and actually see how huge the responsibilities are, hence the Cats’ Play Day.” Faqeeh said she was hopeful that people would stop breeding cats so that less would be abandoned. “People will actually see the situation for what it really is and not what they want it to be. We at Hurairah are looking forward to seeing more people enjoy the company of cats as much as we do,” she said.