Watercolor kittens, rainbow paw-prints and hamster illustrations were just a few choices that patrons could get permanently inked up with at the Tats for Cats animal fundraiser over the weekend.
Fallen Angel Tattoos partnered with Salt Lake County Animal Services to offer $60 customizable pre-selected tattoos on June 4 and 5, with half the proceeds — amounting to $2,300 — going toward the county’s Injured Animal Fund, which helps with the costs of caring for homeless and injured animals in its shelter.
Fallen Angel, Utah’s only all-female tattoo studio, has helped put on Tats for Cats for the past four years, said Terrina Francis, owner of Fallen Angel Tattoos. The first year was a great success, raising $3,900 for Salt Lake County’s Animal Services, so they’ve continued the event annually.
“Several years ago our foster coordinator approached the owner of Fallen Angel Tattoos and asked if they could do a fundraiser for us with the tattoos being mainly cat-related,” wrote Callista Pearson, Salt Lake County Animal Services Communications Manager, in an email. “The artists at Fallen Angel Tattoo were on board because they are passionate about all animals and liked the idea of helping injured pets that come into the shelter.”
Over the years, the event has raised “several thousand dollars” to benefit injured pets coming into the shelter for special medical attention, Pearson stated. This year, with five tattoo artists on hand, the studio received a steady flow of customers throughout the two days of tattooing.
“Several of us have adopted animals and rescues, so it’s just a cause that we all could get behind,” Francis said. “It felt really good to just be able to do some good and do social things after COVID and everything — to have people getting back together and raising money for a good cause again.”
