With a fresh coat of purple paint on its walls and gleaming new stainless steel kennels, the Whidbey Animals’ Improvement Foundation’s Cat Cottage in Freeland is back open for business this week.

After being closed for nearly three months for renovations, the little animal shelter bustles with activity. Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed residents stand ready to greet visitors at the door, treading nimbly on the resurfaced floors. One cat sprints across the computer keyboard set up on a desk used to complete adoption paperwork.

The Cat Cottage has undergone much change recently, including the retirement of longtime manager Judy Dewing earlier this year. Donna Dunn, WAIF shelter manager, made it her mission to give the Cat Cottage its first makeover in 17 years.

Before, wire crates on card tables crowded the room. Now, new steel cages provide a more sanitary environment for feline inhabitants. Yet it’s still an undeniably cozy place to cuddle up with a cat or kitten.

Sam Thomson, an animal care technician, said the plan is to add a new enclosure for the kitties to roam freely without the fear of escaping out the door. Adding to the cat cafe atmosphere, there will also be a coffee station.

“We wanted to keep the charm here that Judy brought when she worked here,” Thomson said. “We want people to feel comfortable just to come and say hi.”

The very first adoption in the revamped Cat Cottage happened to involve a longtime resident. Mittens, a handsome 6-year-old tuxedo cat, was surrendered to WAIF earlier this year on Jan. 31. He shuffled between various shelter locations in Coupeville and Oak Harbor before catching the eye of adopters visiting the newly reopened Freeland Cat Cottage. He was subsequently adopted on Dec. 15, just in time for the holidays.

Dunn said that a change in venue can really help with adoption success stories like Mittens’.

All WAIF adoption fees are only $34 until Dec. 22.