Did you know that June is Adopt a Shelter Cat Month? This weekend, I had the pleasure of celebrating by attending an awesome cat rescue event in North Brunswick, NJ called Super Cat Adoption Day.
The event was sponsored by the North Brunswick Humane Association, and was the first of its kind in the area. It brought together a dozen local shelters, and over 100 adoptable cats and kittens in once place, providing a virtual feline shopping mall for those interested in adopting a pet.
Sweet lil' babies Onyx & Raven from NBHA!
I spoke with NBHA President, Jay Soloway, about how the innovative idea came about. He told me NBHA has been trying to raise money for a no-kill facility in the area, but since the fundraising process was slow, they decided to put the project on the back burner in favor of using the funds they had already raised to help out the community in other ways. NBHA currently provides spay and neuter subsidies, has a pet food bank to help out local families in need, provides humane education to elementary schools, and raises funds to assist local animal shelters and groups. Out of this idea grew the concept for Super Cat Adoption Day, where they would foot the bill, and invite local area rescues to come together and adopt out their cats.
The venue, Our Lady of Peace Recreation Center, was kindly donated by Father John, and they also received awesome free "cat starter kits" to distribute to adopters from Katie's Pet Depot. Raritan Animal Hospital kindly donated their time to talk to potential adopters and to make sure all of the kitties were ok, and local radio station Magic 98.3 also showed up to help promote the event.
Litter Box Cake (Those are just tootsie rolls, don't worry!)
When I arrived at noon, Jay told me that 25 to 30 cats had already found their forever homes - which is pretty impressive considering it was only two hours into the five hour event! I was also treated to his delicious kitty litter cake, that while looked a bit TOO realistic, was absolutely delicious (you can find a version of the recipe here).
Preliminary numbers show that 43 cats were taken home on Saturday, with 8 - 9 applications still pending, for a total of 51 or 52 adoptions in all! All but one of the rescues I spoke with told me that they had adopted out or taken applications for at least one cat (if not several more), and many of the volunteers expressed enthusiasm and gratitude over the chance to get together with the local community to help raise awareness for their organizations.
At the event, I stopped by each of the tables and chatted with the volunteers about a cat they would like me to feature, and also got the scoop on their biggest needs in addition to monetary donations. Here's what they had to say!
Featured Kitty: Princess. This 9-year-old black beauty was surrendered after her owner had a baby who was allergic to cats. She has been at the shelter for around three months and is in desperate need of a forever home.
Needs: Food, litter, wet kitten food (the township doesn't provide it), toys
Featured Kitty: Tasha has a neurological disorder called Cerebellar Hypoplasia and has been at the shelter since she was a kitten. She is now 6-years-old, and was resting very peacefully in her bed on a table throughout the event.
Needs: Cat food, litter, detergent
Featured Kitty: Vexz. When I asked volunteers Roseanna and Tamara which cat I should feature, they both lit up and immediately pointed to 5-month-old cow kitten, Vexz. The adorable kitten had been working it all day for the crowd without taking a nap! He was taken in as a stray with a medical condition that has since been treated. Roseanna says, "You can't break his spirit."
Needs: Cat food and volunteers
No, Christie isn't available for adoption, but I was so excited that she was wearing the rhinestone studded cat ears I posted about on Catster, I nearly forgot to ask her about the adorable group of "fairy kittens" she brought along (Glimmer, Rumble, Periwinkle, and Tinkerbell). You can check out one of the sweet babies peeking out of the cage in the background, though! Needs: Foster homes and wet cat food
Robyn's motto is "you feed you breed" and believes that fixing feral cats is the only way to solve the overpopulation problem. The group does not have a facility, and focuses primarily on TNR efforts, however they occasionally take in cats such as Camille who was rescued from Hurricane Irene (and who happily found her forever home at the event).
Featured Kitty: Sierra is two years old, and was given back after her owner was diagnosed with cancer. Her cage had a sign on it that said she is very sweet, and is a good TV companion!
Needs: Foster homes, and they accept donations of any kind of old jewelry, which they sell on eBay with 100% of the profits going to the rescue.
Check back tomorrow for part two, featuring kitties from Liberty Humane Society, Happy Paws Rescue, Lost Paws Animal Rescue, Second Chance for Animals, and TLC Rescue!
Super Cat Adoption Day Part 1: Kitty Litter Cake, Kittens & More!
