As Kitten Season quickly approaches, The NOAH Center calls on the Greater Seattle community to help care for the upcoming influx of litters by giving needed supplies or funds and signing up to foster underage and orphaned puppies and kittens.

Kitten Season is a commonly used shelter term for when newborn kittens and puppies flood animal shelters and rescue groups nationwide. These vulnerable young animals need special care and attention, as they have underdeveloped immune systems and are still very fragile and at risk of disease. 

Influx Incoming

As one of the leading animal welfare organizations and animal shelters in our region, we expect a large influx of neonates in the coming weeks and months, which will need the community’s help to survive. 

We already see an incredible increase in the number of animals needing help. So we are planning ahead and preemptively asking for the community’s help to ensure these vulnerable animals receive the care and attention they need. 

“In my ten years of transferring homeless dogs and cats for The NOAH Center, I can say without a doubt that the transfer demand for homeless puppies right now is the highest I have ever seen.” Said our Transfer Coordinator, Randy White. “COVID caused a lot of staffing and funding issues for spay and neuter programs all over the country, so those surgeries became out of reach for many people, which could definitely be a contributing factor to the increase we’re seeing.” 

Well-intending individuals typically surrender underage kittens and puppies to overcrowded shelters hoping they will be cared for and later adopted. However, these shelters often have no choice but to euthanize to create the space required for even more incoming animals. Since underage animals are incredibly resource intensive, they are tragically at a very high risk of euthanasia. 

Community members can make a valuable difference, though; the more individuals who send in supplies and funds, or step up to foster for The NOAH Center, the more we can partner with these shelters to save underage animals.

Saying Yes!

When one of our partner shelters calls to ask for help with underage animals, we can only say “yes” when we have available foster homes on standby. But, unfortunately, when our fosters are all full, the “no” may have devastating consequences for the animals who need help.

“Without our fosters providing the daily care these kittens need – from bottle feeding every couple hours to socializing with cuddles for some of the weaned babies, we couldn’t do this without people stepping up to help foster,” says Sara Bradshaw, our Operations Director. “We are always looking for more foster families because they really are our daily superheroes!” 

Fostering is an enriching experience for empty-nesters or seniors and an excellent way for families with kids to teach about responsibility, gentleness, and compassion. 

We encourage families to consider opening their hearts and homes to neonates; volunteers to serve as foster parents for these young animals. Foster homes extend our walls – they provide a nurturing environment for the kittens and puppies to grow and thrive and play a critical role in preparing them for adoption.

“Fostering for The NOAH Center is such a rewarding experience. Although it can be hard work, seeing the positive changes that providing nurturing care can bring to the babies is truly priceless,” says Emily, one of our invaluable Fosters in our Facebook group for our Fosters. 

The NOAH Center provides all training and supplies needed for fosters to be successful, and each new foster gains access to our Facebook group exclusively for our fosters, plus our cloud-based resource center.  

Each year an average of 1,000 underage animals find refuge with families through our Foster Care Program, and since the program’s inception in 2010, we have saved over 13,000 kittens and puppies.

Learn more about fostering for The NOAH Center here.

Support With Supplies

Even if a community member is not in a position to foster, folks can still make a big impact on the program by sending supplies or funds.

Donations such as “mother & baby cat” food, both wet and dry, keep mother cats and their kittens nourished with healthy food formulated specifically for their life stages; formula and nursing kits support fosters bottle-feeding orphaned puppies and kittens; wet cat and dog food of any brand are a must for babies transitioning from formula or milk to solid food; heating pads keep orphans without their mothers warm before they can regulate their temperatures; and kitchen scales help our fosters keep track of the weight of each of their growing babies. 

See our most needed items and learn how you can send them directly to our Foster Office here.

“The supplies we receive really makes a big difference in the care we can provide. Without formula, heating pads, and scales, we couldn’t help the younger animals,” said Elizabeth Booth, our Foster Care Assistant. 

These items will help us care for the many kittens and puppies during Kitten Season. In addition, when individuals send needed items in for our Foster Program, we can reallocate funds to spay and neuter surgeries, medical care and treatments, or say yes to even more homeless animals. 

 

On a Mission 

“We are committed to providing the best possible care for the animals in our community, and especially the most vulnerable. We rely on the generosity of our community to help us achieve this mission, and we are grateful for any donations or support we receive,” said Stacie Ventura, our Executive Director.

Our mission at The NOAH Center is to save healthy, adoptable, and medically or behaviorally treatable animals at risk of euthanasia at overcrowded shelters and provide them with a safe place, medical care, and a chance to find a loving home. 

Our team of compassionate staff and volunteers ensure that every animal that comes through our doors receives the best possible care and outcome. Still, the community’s support is what makes it all a reality. 

Visit our Foster Care page on our website to learn more about fostering or how you can support the program by donating items or funds. We are grateful for the generosity of the local community and look forward to saving as many underage animals as possible this kitten season!