REGINA — Three weeks ago, Scott Tresek, owner of CNG Stone Products, decided to adopt a cat from the Regina Humane Society (RHS) as part of its Working Cats program.
Tresek said his daughter, who works for the RHS, recommended he bring a cat into the work environment.
“I was a little hesitant to do it at first,” said Tresek.
Tresek eventually decided to adopt Walter, whom the humane society found at Northgate Mall.
What happened next surprised Tresek, as Walter started becoming part of the family.
“I’ve actually been quite surprised with the reaction of my staff and how much Walter’s almost become part of the family.”
Tresek said his staff and customers come in looking forward to greeting Walter and cuddling him.
“I feel he’s played a super big role in the work environment.”
How the program works
Working Cats, formerly known as Barn Buddies, targets felines living in rural or barn areas that have never really been around humans.
“A lot in cats that come in are not really suitable as house cats,” said RHS director of marketing and public relations Bill Thorn.
From a lack of social reaction, Thorn said these cats can have difficult personalities and wouldn’t be suitable for a normal home.
“So the solution that we came up with was these barn situations, rural situations, and then further to warehouses and shops and stuff for cats to live in,” he said.
Thorn said this allows cats to be happy and live out their own lives.
On average, Thorn said the program sees about 100 cats adopted each year.
“That is about seven to eight per cent of cats we adopt each year,” he noted.
The RHS works with businesses through an application process.
“We want to know what the situation is, what kind of environment the cat will be living in, this type of thing, the business’s ability to look after the cat and make sure that its needs are looked after — ideally veterinary care and that kind of thing.”
Businesses in the City of Regina are required to have a cat licence. Spaying and neutering for cats are handled by the RHS.
Seeing how Walter has changed his business, Tresek highly recommended people look into the program.
“It’s a fantastic program, and we were happy to take him in, and now he’s got a place, and we’re happy to have him,” he said.
As for future programs for placing animals into new environments, Thorn said the RHS is having discussions about allowing pets to come into offices for a day.
