Ben Madilynn
ASHWAUBENON – Like all good slumber parties, there was pizza, snacks, games and giggles, but this one came with the cutest of twists.
The guests spent the night in their pajamas sleeping alongside the cats and dogs at Happily Ever After Animal Sanctuary’s Green Bay Adoption Center. Each person was paired with an animal awaiting adoption, snuggling up by them in dog kennels and cat rooms they transformed into their overnight accommodations with blankets, camping mattresses and favorite pillows.
They read their roomies a story before bed, treated them to some “spa time” brushing before it was lights out and woke up beside them the next morning for the shared experience of morning breath. The real perk? Companionship.
Martin and Mathias, a pair of brothers adopted as kittens from HEA years ago and now recently back in the fold as seniors after the death of their owner, got company for the night as they adjust to shelter life. Cats Coco and Cookie just arrived at HEA the day before as a bonded pair and got to sleep with Kappa Beta Gamma sorority sisters from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay
You might say Parker, a 3-month old Australian Kelpie mix puppy, hit the jackpot. He was sharing his kennel with local celebrity and “Jeopardy!” Tournament of Champions runner-up Ben Chan, who joked that maybe he didn’t read the fine print when it came to the tight sleeping quarters.
“It was an easy yes,” said Chan, a St. Norbert College assistant professor of philosophy who has two rescue dogs of his own, Ruthie and Chester. “I liked the idea of expanding humanity’s capacity to care for its companion animals.”
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Sixty animal welfare groups across the country participated in Shelter Slumber Pawty
HEA was one of 60 animal welfare organizations nationwide who participated in Saturday’s Shelter Slumber Pawty, a once-a-year fundraising event in which people give a glimpse in the lives of shelter animals by spending the night with them. The event has been around since 2018, but it was HEA’s first year of participation.
Each guest shared their experiences on social media to raise awareness and funds. While there was no set amount for each person to raise, $500 was the encouraged goal.
Ten-year-old Colin Layden of Ashwaubenon was able to raise $550 when he told people he and his dad, Phil Layden, were going to be spending the night. Their family adopted their dog Luna from HEA five years ago, and on Saturday night, father and son slept with a puppy named Kaylin.
“As a family, we love shelters and shelter pups and just want to do everything we can to support places like this that are making a good home for these dogs,” Phil Layden said. “Love what they believe in.”
Colin Layden came well-equipped for the night ahead.
“Two inflatable beds, an inflatable pillow, a heavy blanket, books, toiletry bag, a water bottle — and a science encyclopedia. The essentials,” he said.
Chris Sikowski, a Green Bay native living in Brookfield, and her daughter, Sophie Kiefer, a UW-Green Bay graduate in Sheboygan, made the drive up just to sleep over. They both have a history of animal shelter volunteering. They brought foam pads to sleep on the concrete floor in a room with dogs Milo and Tippy.
“We love dogs, so seriously these are the creature comforts we have,” Sikowski said, motioning to the dogs in their laps. “It’s a great opportunity to just be around dogs and help dogs. Anything to promote adoption.”
Sydney Einsweiler, a sophomore at UW-Green Bay and a member of Kappa Beta Gamma, loves to hang out with the cats at Safe Haven Pet Sanctuary in the Broadway District, so getting to spend the night with an 11-week-old border collie mix named Pacheco too adorable to resist.
“He is a sweetheart, oh my God,” she said. “I got so lucky.”
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The Cat Pong Tournament of Champions was a highlight of the night
Guests arrived at 5 p.m. to meet their pets, take photos and make colorful posters to put on their kennel and room doors. There was a meal and bingo before three rounds of the Cat Pong Tournament of Champions. With one person wearing an oversized plastic vet collar (commonly known as “the cone of shame”) and the other blindfolded, teams of two competed to see who could catch the most balls.
Team Sorority Rats won the competition — a feat that earned them free HEA T-shirts and the right to brag about beating Chan in a Tournament of Champions. (His team came in third.)
Guests were free to stay up as late as they liked and enjoy movies, board games, and frozen pizzas and sodas. Laundry services were available throughout the night in case of unforeseen pawty accidents, and shelter staff and volunteers provided “butler service.” Guests said goodbye to their animals at 9 a.m. Sunday.
According to the Shelter Slumber Pawty tally page, HEA had raised $4,145 from 91 donors as of Sunday morning. The national total for the event was more than $835,000.
Kendra Meinert is an entertainment and feature writer at the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Contact her at 920-431-8347 orkmeinert@greenbay.gannett.com. Follow her on X@KendraMeinert.
