Yoga with cats raises money for orphaned kitties

There's hot yoga, laughter yoga and even yoga done on top of stand-up paddleboards.

But yoga with cats may just be the most fun, and the most distractingfor feline-loving yogis.

Yogis gathered at the Stretch Vancouver studios on Sunday morning for Cats on your Mats, a yoga class where eight kitties pawed and purred their way around the studio while participants did their stretches.

"This is the most distracting class I've ever taught!" laughed instructor Julia McCabe, who got her class to chant "meow" instead of the traditional "om".

The event was to raise funds fortheVancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association (VOKRA), and was jointly organized byCatf which plans to open a cat cafe in Vancouver by the end of the year.

"It's just a great way to bring cat lovers together in a unique way.People love cats and spending time with cats," said Catf founder Michelle Furbacher.

"Having this calm atmosphere ... makes it more comfortable for the cats to come to people as opposed to being chased by people."

The next Cats on Mats eventis planned for Jan. 17,2016.

To hear the full interview listen to the audio labelledYoga event for both cats and peopleonCBC's The Early Edition.