CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A population boom this kitten season has CMPD Animal Care and Control asking for some help taking care of its incoming babies.
The shelter said it is running out of room to house all the young cats, calling for fosters to take one or more home until the animals can be adopted out. People interested in helping can apply to be a foster, then, come to the main Byrum Drive location during business hours and tell the front desk how many kittens they are willing to take.
Fosters may choose to bring a carrier for easier transportation.
Those wanting to help but unable to take a kitten home may choose to sign up as a volunteer and feed and socialize the cats at the shelter. Right now, there are "bottle babies," or very young kittens needing help feeding. There is an application and training process required before volunteers can begin handling the cats.
According to animal advocacy group Best Friends, "kitten season is the time of year when animal shelters are overrun by kittens because birth rates are higher." The nonprofit notes that certain factors, including warmer weather, make it more conducive for cats to mate and give birth in spring and continue reproducing during warmer months. It calls kitten season one of "the most challenging time of the year in shelters around the country."
Best Friends states:
One reason for this massive influx is that well-meaning people often scoop up litters of kittens that they find outdoors and rush them to shelters, wrongly assuming that will save their lives.
Unfortunately, these good intentions may actually put kittens in greater danger of being killed. What many people don’t realize is that the safest plan for the kittens ― and one that also decreases the burden on shelters ― is to leave the kittens where they are, keep an eye out for the mother cat’s return to make sure she’s caring for her babies and, once they’re old enough, humanely catch the family for spay/neuter surgery.
Contact Vanessa Ruffes at vruffes@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.