Fun Freetime: Jackson Galaxy's Cat Camp

 Jackson Galaxy’s Cat Camp, the acclaimed event for cat lovers of all stripes, is shifting this year’s event to online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and will stream live through CatCamp.com on September 26 for free. Although in-person events cannot take place, Cat Camp has embraced the opportunity to connect with animal lovers around the world by educating, entertaining and empowering through an @Home event that will deliver even more inspiration, engagement and a sense of community to a larger audience, at no cost to attendees. With a lifesaving investment by Petco Foundation, a national, nonprofit animal welfare organization working to inspire and lead change for animals across the country, Cat Camp @Home will feature diverse voices in the advocacy community, games with exclusive prizes, and interactive “learn along” content that includes building cat toys, editing the best photos of cats and even painting with a cat portrait artist!

Hosted by co-founders Jackson Galaxy, renowned cat behavior and wellness expert and host of Animal Planet’s “My Cat From Hell,” and Christina Ha, co-owner of NYC’s first Cat Café, Meow Parlour, and president of its affiliated non-profit adoption group, Meow Parlour, Cat Camp is a celebration of all things feline, and will feature speakers from the feline world, including Galaxy himself and Hannah Shaw (aka Kitten Lady), who will participate in an “Ask Me Anything” for fans, as well as speakers who will discuss advocating for community cats, how to be allies with Black communities, and optimum behavioral and physical wellness in cats.

“The pandemic has really changed the landscape of in-person events for the foreseeable future, but going online gives us the opportunity to create something different - thoughtful content that is timely, relevant and educational, with more visibility on diverse voices in animal welfare,” said Ha. “As a child of immigrants and a person of color, I am grateful we can seize the moment and showcase diversity in the cat community on a national level."

The feline-focused festival started in 2017 and has celebrated three successful years in New York City, attracting campers from 31 states and eight countries, and expanded to Las Vegas in 2019. Cat Camp was created to bring together the country’s first community defined by their passion for helping America’s most popular companion pet, and has now trained over 9,000 people from all over the US and other countries to become more involved in their community to save lives. Events in New York and San Diego were set to take place in Summer 2020 before the pandemic hit.

“As we've adjusted to a world of social distancing, we’ve witnessed a monumental moment of action-taking on behalf of cats, including more people stepping up to foster and adopt, and cat guardians asking what new things we can do for cats in our homes, now that we’re spending more time together,” said Galaxy. "The mission of Cat Camp has always been to embrace the chance to change with the moment, and this virtual event gives us an opportunity to give even more people a sense of community and belonging during this trying time at no cost - and yes, have fun doing it!”

Cat Camp is sponsored by Petco Foundation, a valued longtime partner of Meow Parlour and Jackson Galaxy, dedicated to creating a lifesaving nation.

For additional information and to register for the event, visit CatCamp.com.

About Jackson Galaxy
Popularly known as “The Cat Daddy,” Jackson Galaxy is the host and executive producer of Animal Planet's long running hit show “My Cat From Hell.” Jackson, an animal advocate and cat behavior and wellness expert, is also a two-time New York Times best-selling author with more than 25 years of experience working with cats and their guardians. He is on a mission to educate people about cats and deepen the human and cat bond, while reducing the number of animals that end up in shelters. He is also the founder of The Jackson Galaxy Project, a Signature Program of GreaterGood.org, a public 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, that seeks to improve the lives of animals at risk and help the people who care for them through innovative programs that educate, inspire and empower staff, rescuers and adopters to continually raise the bar for  animals at risk and reduce the number of animals that end up in shelters.

About Jackson Galaxy’s Cat Camp
Jackson Galaxy's Cat Camp is a weekend-long adventure devoted to exploring and celebrating your love for cats. The immersive experience with a summer camp-like atmosphere includes a cat cafe, cat yoga, speakers, arts & crafts, adoptable cats, workshops and more! Cat Camp is about celebrating cats, connecting with the cat community, and cultivating advocacy.

About the Petco Foundation
At the Petco Foundation, we believe that every animal deserves to live its best life. Since 1999, we’ve invested more than $250 million in lifesaving animal welfare work to make that happen. With our more than 4,000 animal welfare partners, we inspire and empower communities to make a difference by investing in adoption and medical care programs, spay and neuter services, pet cancer research, service and therapy animals, and numerous other life saving initiatives. Through our Think Adoption First program, we partner with Petco stores and animal welfare organizations across the country to increase pet adoptions. So far, we’ve helped more than 6 million pets find their new loving families, and we’re just getting started. Visit petcofoundation.org to learn more about how you can get involved.