By Marcus Uhe
Throughout March, PETstock Clyde North and Cranbourne will once again host their annual National Pet Adoption Month – an initiative led by PETstock Assist – to help change the lives of rescue pets in need of a permanent or temporary home.
Every year 80,000 urban stray cats are killed by councils as a way of managing unowned animals, according to PetRescue.
Killing cats has the opposite effect of councils desires as the remaining cats produce larger, healthier litters due to less competition for food sources, PetRescue says.
At PETstock in Clyde North, a litter of eight kittens received over the weekend of 5 and 6 March after being surrendered at a quarry was already committed to being adopted by keen foster parents by the following Monday, 7 March.
Summer is considered a popular time for kitten breeding and up to 20 have been adopted from the store in 2022 so far.
Becky Davis is a vet at PETstock Clyde North and said adopting is cost-effective, as well as helping to solve a significant societal issue.
“When these ones get adopted, they’re already de-sexed and had all the work done,” Ms Davis said. “It actually works out cheaper if you adopt them from a rescue group, because the fee is $200, but if you worked-out how much it would cost to get a cat microchipped, vaccinated and de-sexed privately, it ends up costing a lot more than that.
“These kittens are already born and already need homes. Some people are out there wanting to buy from a breeder or something, whereas these kittens are here and ready and need a home and some love.”
Becky Coleman is the store manager at Clyde North and said that the pandemic has also had an impact on pet ownership practices.
“Covid-19 made people being at home really realise that they wanted a pet in their life,” Ms Coleman said. “There was a lot of interest in adopting and having that furry companion at home, for sure.
“But then as they go to work, unfortunately the numbers in the shelter are getting quite high and (owners) are realising they can’t provide the care when they go back to work.”
Saturday 19 March is PETstock’s national pet adoption day with prospective owners are encouraged to attend their stores to meet potential adoption candidates, chat with local rescue group representatives and learn more about saving lives through pet foster care.
PetRescue Co-Founder, Vickie Davy, says that while they often take a back seat in adoptions compared to dogs, cats make fantastic pets.
“PetRescue has more than 36,000 cats listed for adoption annually, and of those, 92 per cent will work well with families with dogs, and 82 per cent of cats can go to families with children under the age of five years old,” says Vickie.
“Every cat has a unique personality, and they love their humans just as much as dogs do.
“Cat adopters are often surprised how quickly they form a special bond, it’s almost as though they know you’ve saved their life.
“We hope at the end of March, that together we’ve made a change in the very big and very real issue at hand.”
For more details on PETstock Assist’s National Pet Adoption Month visit petstock.com.au in March.
