Alachua County Animal Services has reduced its feline fees in response to the over-crowding of cats.
In honor of Adopt-A-Cat Month, the shelter has cut the usual cat adoption fee of $67 to $33 for the month of June.
The shelter has placed all of its cats and kittens on the New Hope program, which normally lowers the cost for sick or older cats who have not been adopted, said Dr. Julie Levy, director of Maddie's Shelter Medicine Program at UF.
According to the shelter's Web site, the $33 includes vaccines, spaying or neutering, a microchip and de-worming of the cats.
David Flagler, director of Alachua County Animal Services said this year's over-crowding of cats is not only due to the annual kitten season but also because of the poor economy.
He said the majority of the pets at the shelter are brought in by owners who can no longer afford to keep them.
To ensure survival, kittens at the shelter must be transferred to approved rescue groups.
Some kittens and cats who are not transferred or adopted are euthanized to make room for new litters.
Because of the limited space, nursing mother cats and their kittens have to leave after only a few days.
In a joint effort to alleviate shelter over-crowding, the Alachua County Humane Society takes kittens from Animal Services and places them in foster homes.
The Humane Society offers a program where members of the community can foster litters until they are 8 weeks old.
The kittens are then eligible for adoption and brought back to the Humane Society to be placed in the kitten room where litters are usually placed together in pink cages, said Jaime Willson, animal care manager.
For those fostering, the Humane Society provides food, litter and medical care for the animals.
Although they try not to split the litters up, Willson said those who want to foster kittens can request the amount they prefer.
"They can specify if they want a single kitten or a mother with babies," she said.
Willson said fostering is a great way for students to care for animals if their housing contracts allow pets.
For those who are graduating soon, foster care is a smart alternative to adopting a pet because students might not be able to take the animals with them after they leave, she said.
Those interested in adopting or fostering kittens can contact Alachua County Animal Services at 352-264-6870 and the Alachua County Humane Society at 352-373-5855.
