Nearly 375 cats in need of homes, Windsor-Essex County Humane Society to host adoption event

While major strides have been made in addressing cat overpopulation in Windsor and Essex County over the past decade, the Windsor-Essex County Humane Society is still packed with cats.

Officials say summer is traditionally a slower time for adoptions, so to help encourage people to take a feline home, the biggest cat adoption event of the year returns on Thursday.

“We have a lot of cats in our care right now,” said executive director Melanie Coulter.

“We are in a much better place than we were a decade ago. So we've made progress. There's still room to improve and move forward, but we're taking great strides.”

Windsor-Essex County Humane Society executive director Melanie Coulter with a cat at the humane society in Windsor, Ont. on Wednesday, July 26, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)

Coulter said stray cat intake at the humane society decreased dramatically by more than 50 per cent between 2011 and 2022. Currently, there’s roughly 375 cats and kittens available for adoption, despite nearly 900 being adopted out so far this year, and more than 300 being transferred to other shelters or returned home.

“This is a lot of cats because it's kitten season and it's also a slower time for adoptions because summer, people tend not to be thinking about bringing an animal into their home. But the reality is, over the past 10 years, this number is dramatically lower than it was 10 years ago,” Coulter explained.

“In 2011, our clinic opened which provided greater access to spay neuter in our community, and that really is what turned the corner.”

The Windsor-Essex County Humane Society is gearing up for their largest cat adoption event of the year. Poster pictured in Windsor, Ont. on Wednesday, July 26, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)

Coulter noted that earlier this month, a similar adoption event for dogs was a complete success.

“We adopted out every dog we had available,” she said. “Thirty-three dogs found homes in three days. It was very exciting. We're really hoping we can do the same for cats. We might not be able to adopt all of them out, but we're hoping to put a big dent in that number.”

The special cat adoption event will take place on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, July 27-29 from 1:30-6 p.m. each day at the humane society.

For the duration of the event all cat adoption applications will be accepted in person only. Online applications will be paused for cats, but will still be available for dogs and small animals.