By Thirty-seven cats were taken to the Aberdeen Area Humane Society during a recent 24-hour period.
The influx prompted the shelter to put out a request on social media for donations of wet kitten food, dry cat food and clumping car litter.
“It’s the time of year that we get a lot of cats,” said Elaine Schaible, the shelter manager.
The flurry of felines on Friday, June 6 is the result of a hodgepodge of circumstances, she said, adding many were sick or injured.
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One cat that was taken to the shelter had a newborn litter of kittens. They were found by a person in a window well, Schaible said.
Another cat, she said, gave birth to kittens hours after it arrived.
“The ones that have come in this past week are on medical hold or are too young to be adopted out,” Schaible said.
She said the highest number of cats the shelter has ever taken in on one day was 52 about a year ago.
“It’s one of those things where we have to keep taking in the ones that animal control brings to us. We have that commitment to the city pound, so those cats don’t have to be euthanized for space,” Schaible said.
Aberdeen Area Human Society has contract with city
In fall 2021, the Aberdeen Area Humane Society took over the contract to serve as the city pound. It obligates the humane society to shelter and care for every animal picked up by the city animal control officer.
“Before we took over the city pound, the abundance of cats were generally euthanized because there were just a lot,” Schaible said.
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That no longer happens, but she said it could happen again if people don’t spay or neuter their cats.
There are resources in the community to help offset the cost of spaying or neutering pets, including cats and dogs. PAWS for Life is a newly formed local organization that offers gift certificates to help offset the procedures, though there are requirements. For more information, visit shorturl.at/WZSac.
Schaible said another way to address the problem is for people to adopt one of the cats at the shelter.
“We have a lot of farms that help us out, but we’re getting to the point where the bathrooms are full of cats again. We do have five rooms of cats who have been checked by a veterinarian and are ready to go,” she said. To begin the adoption process or for more information, visit anewleashonlife.net.
Last fall, the human society had more than 100 cats.