The Ottawa Humane Society is hoping pet-lovers will take home a cat for International Homeless Animals’ Day.
International Homeless Animals’ Day is held on the third Saturday of August and seeks to raise awareness about pet overpopulation.
OHS receives many animals during the summer months. “As soon as warm weather hits, our numbers start to climb,” says executive director Bruce Roney. “And we could easily have 40 or more intakes every single day.”
OHS is over-capacity with cats, with more than 100 available for adoption, while only nine dogs are ready to be taken home.
“We don’t typically see boxes of puppies coming in,” says Roney. “We do see boxes of kittens every single day, all summer.”
Owners tend not to spay or neuter their cats, allowing them to breed indiscriminately.
“There’s all sorts of reasons,” he says, “but at the end of the day, creating homeless animals is not responsible.
The society is marking its 125th anniversary by reducing the adoption fee on grown kittens to $125 throughout the month of August. The fee includes a health guarantee, microchip, spaying or neutering, and six weeks of pet insurance.