A mother and two kittens at Keysborough’s Animal Protection Society are looking for homes.By Sarah Schwager
UNWANTED animals in the south east have reached a record high as the changing weather brings about a burst of kitten litters.
Volunteer and committee treasurer at the Animal Protection Society in Keysborough Viv Williams said they had seen an unusual increase in kittens this year.
The Keysborough animal shelter recorded a 24 per cent rise in their August cat numbers from last year.
Ms Williams said the fluctuating cold and warm days this winter had not allowed them a break from kittens all year.
She said normally they had a break between June and September, when the cats did not breed, but this year they had to bring in extra staff to deal with the unwanted animals.
“It is very, very busy at the moment,” Ms Williams said.
“We’ve got all sorts of cats from geriatrics to babies and lots in between.”
She said their busiest season, spring, was yet to come in another few weeks.
“As soon as we have a few warm weeks the cats will start breeding,” she said.
Ms Williams said the shelter was always looking for potential owners but could not meet the demand at the moment.
“We’ve got far too many cats for the number of homes that want them,” she said.
Ms Williams urged people to consider adopting kittens.
She said they usually had fewer problems finding homes for dogs at the shelter, which were brought in all year round.
