This sign is a fixture at Seal Beach Animal Care Center, because of the number of cats dumped at the all-volunteer shelter. During kitten season, it’s a sign of the times.
“Cats here, cats there, cats and kittens everywhere.” Wanda Gág’s Millions of Cats isa beloved childhood literary staplethat could be considered a cautionary tale about pet overpopulation. It’s about a man and his wife who were lonely and wanted a cat but couldn’t decide among the millions and billions and trillions of cats, so they took them all home, becoming possibly the first pet hoarders in juvenile literature. But this article isn’t about hoarders—it’s about kitten season, and it’s arrived with a kindle of vengeance, however unbearably cute.
Although it’s illegal to own an unaltered cat in Long Beach, our shelters and rescues are packed. “Every spring, the Long Beach shelter and other area shelters are inundated with kittens,” said Ted Stevens, manager of Long Beach Animal Care Services (ACS). “Similar to wildlife, a cats reproduction cycle kicks in as spring approaches, and a large number of kittens are born around the same time, placing a huge burden on shelters that have limited capacity. The most important thing that people can do is make sure their cat is spayed or neutered and encourage friends, neighbors and family to do the same with their pets.”
As shown on this chart, one unspayed female can be responsible for well over two million kittens in the course of eight years. Two million kittens! Times God knows how many cats roaming the streets without the benefit of life-altering (literally) surgery.
Annelle Baum and Deborah Felin (great name for a cat rescuer, no?), cofounders of Helen Sanders CatPAWS rescue, live these stats. Since their founding in 2010, they’ve taken in what seems like millions of cats; although they’ve been successful in rehoming them, there are always more, because cats breed like rabbits—after seven to nine weeks after bearing one litter, they can get pregnant again. And the results are often horribly sad—CatPAWS has rescued a litter found in a trash can (one of whom is now ours) and in suitcases (see Virtually Pets). Baum recently took in several kittens from a neighbor. One was starving and died; CatPAWS spayed the others but couldn’t get the neighbor to help get the mother, a stray, fixed.
“Do the math if [the kittens] hadn’t been spayed,” Baum said. “This all came from one cat and a person who tried to do something right and didn’t.”
Stevens stresses that to help with the cost of the spay/neuter surgery, ACS offers vouchers good for $30. Information about obtaining them can be found at ACS’s website or by calling (562) 570-PETS (7387). For extreme financial hardship cases, contact Fix Long Beach.Please tell anyone you know who has an unaltered cat about these options.
“And we want to encourage anyone that is considering getting a pet to choose to adopt rather than shop,” Stevens said. “Come down to the shelter Wednesdays through Fridays,10AM–5:30PM, and Saturdays and Sundays from 10AM–4PM.”
No matter how much cats fight, there always seems to be plenty of kittens.
~ Abraham Lincoln
Virtually Pets
These little castaways will look a lot better with just a little love and care—in fact, they already do. Wendy (ID#A498115) is the gray kitten in the rear, Tinkerbell (ID#A498116) is the tabby on the right, and Peter Pan (ID#A498117) is the beautiful black smoke at left. All are on the shelter side of Companion Animal Village at 7700 East Spring St., (562) 570-PETS.
These two Siamese-ish sweethearts are being fostered in a loving home but would like a forever location. Visit or call ACS to find out about adopting them–both!
“These babies were six weeks old when they were found, along with their mother, zipped up into a suitcase and placed by a trash can,” wrote Marianne Molloy, photographer for Helen Sanders CatPAWS. “A tenant in an apartment complex that the trash unit belonged to found them. After calling many rescues and being turned away, they found CatPAWS, and we took them and Mom in.” Read the first sentence again, and then visit the website to find out about adoption.
The Seal Beach Animal Care Center is also loaded with cats. Adopting any of these furry friends will make room for more of the results of human irresponsibility. (I’m venting—thanks go to all these rescues and shelters, and responsible, caring folks who adopt these cats). Photos by Sonia Eve.
Not so much to show that the Pet Post is an equal-opportunity adoption mentor, but this just came in, and I want to make sure he’s posted before I dive down to write the next article. Josie is a miniature poodle/shih tzu mix. He’s housebroken, is very smart, and loves everyone—kids, other dogs, cats (you can take Josie home and pick up a friend for him at one of the rescues mentioned above. He’d just been neutered and vaccinated when this photo was taken, and his rescuer would prefer that he go to a home with someone who’s there a lot, because he doesn’t like to be alone. Contact [email protected] if you’d like to take Josie home.
Pet Projects
Every Thursday in July and August, Free Yappy Hour, Long Beach Museum of Art, 2300 E Ocean Blvd, Long Beach, 5–8PM
LBMA’s Architecture for Dogs is celebrating human’s best friend in the best way. Yappy Hour, sponsored by Pussy and Pooch http://www.pussyandpooch.com provides doggie snacks, and leashed pets can play outside on models of the très modernes living spaces for dogs featured in the exhibit. Your dog is welcome to view the exhibit with you as long as you can carry him or her; a free pet valet by Wooftidoo is available for larger dogs to wait for their humans. L
Saturday, July 13, Foster Class, spcaLA, PD Pitchford Companion Animal Village and Education Center, 7700 E. Spring St., Long Beach, 10AM–noon
Help a pet better his or her chance at adoption! SpcaLA is looking for foster parents for pets of all ages and needs. Potential foster parents must fill out and submit an application prior to attending a foster class. Applications are available here.
Saturday, July 13, Fix Long Beach Free Mobile Spay/Neuter Clinic, Houghton Park, 6301 Myrtle Ave, Long Beach, 10:30AM–5PM
Fix Long Beach needs volunteers to help with its third free spay/neuter mobile clinic, sponsored this time by Eldad Hagar’s Hope for Paws animal rescue. Please sign up here to volunteer. The procedures for the animals are by appointment only; please do not bring your cat or dog unless you have made an appointment—call (323) 413-SPAY (7729) to schedule one. Even without an appointment, all of the following are available at each mobile clinic:
DOG VACCINES
– Rabies $10
– DHLPP $15
– Bordetella $15
CAT VACCINES
– Rabies $10
– FVRCP $15
OTHER
– Frontline (3 pack) $35
– Deworming $15
– Nail Trim $10
– Microchip $10 (free for S&N patients)
There will be activities for children, music, food trucks, giveaways and much more! Visit our fourth mobile clinic on August 10, at Cesar Chavez Park, 401 Golden Ave. Long Beach, CA.
Sunday, July 14, A Second Chance Pet Adoption and Summer Dog Days Pet Bazaar, Good Neighbor Park, 2800 N. Studebaker Rd., Long Beach, 10AM–3PM
The Pet Post (not this one) and Alpha Pet Care present another terrific event that has something for all ages, humans, and dogs to enjoy. A fun day is planned, with music, entertainment, youth games, shopping, pet parade/pageant, eating, giveaways, and more to support a very important cause—pet adoption! Of course!
Thursday, July 18, Friends of Long Beach Annual Meeting, Long Beach Playhouse, 5021 E. Anaheim St., Long Beach, 6–8PM
The public is invited to Friends of Long Beach Animals’ (FOLBA) http://www.folba.org 24th annual meeting. Find out how you can help support spay/neuter programs, humane education and our shelter through fund-raising, community activities and educational seminars as well as work toward zero euthanasia of any healthy, adoptable animal. The meet and greet with refreshments and entertainment begins at 6, followed by our business meeting. Become a part of our leadership team, and be a voice for animals!
Wednesday, July 17, Secrets of a Pet Whisperer Book Signing, Apostrophe Books, 4712 E. Second St., Long Beach, 5:30–7:30
Animal communicator and author Terri Steuben will offer tips to pet owners and sign copies of her book, Secrets of a Pet Whisperer: Stop Telling Your Animals to Misbehave. The signing will be held during the Belmont Shore Stroll and Savor event, and dogs are encouraged to come with their humans! Steuben, a Long Beach resident, developed an easy communication technique to help pet owners, called “Talking Pictures,” that she describes in her how-to book. The communication approach involves saying the right words while picturing the right behavior in your mind. “If your cat or dog is acting up, you may be the problem. Most owners give their pets mixed messages that actually encourage bad behavior,” Steuben says. Read about Terry Steuben on this Pet Post article.