It has been a little over a month since the BC SPCA received a call from a Houston man asking them to come and take over 200 cats that were living on his property.
Since then, SPCA teams have been hard at work providing care for the cats while also performing medical exams and spaying and neutering the lot.
Now, many of the cats are ready or nearly ready to be adopted – just in time for the SPCA’s ‘Adopt-a-Shelter-Pet’ week, where adoption fees are cut in half.
Jamey Blair, the SPCA’s Senior Manager of the Interior-North region, said the original estimate of 200 cats on the property was low and the actual total is above 260.
“The cats are still in varying degrees of being ready for adoption,” she said. “Some still require medical care, others have been adopted already.”
Even a month later, some cats remain on the property in Houston. The SPCA has given the owner food and supplies to continue to care for the cats in the interim.
“We are so grateful to the community for everything they have done to make this possible,” Blair said – citing cash and supply donations as well as a temporary location to house all these cats while they are treated.
“As you can imagine, the cost for caring for these animals is significant,” she said. “We are accepting donations towards the cost of the care, as well as the typical supplies you would need to care for a cat.”
SPCA locations across the province are hosting open houses today (Saturday) for people to take a tour and take advantage of the half-off adoption rate.