A Message from the Director

As I write this OAHS is in the beginning of kitten season.  That essentially means, because of warm weather approaching, cat breeding is about to explode in Wisconsin.  Soon every shelter including ours will be full of homeless kittens.  Kittens that were "accidents."  Kittens being born because someone's indoor cat got out "just once."  Many people don't realize the impact one accidental litter can have on a community.  A cat can begin producing as a young as 4 to 6 months.  One unspayed female cat can have an average of four litters every year.  Each litter is an average of five kittens.  If those kittens are left unaltered they too can reproduce several times a year.  You can see how one unintended pregnancy can result in thousands of cats in just a short period of time.   Plus, the reality is most of those cats will never find permanent homes. Some will live very short lives as outdoor cats, subject to the perils of traffic, animal predators, illness and cruel people (outdoor cats live, on average, just 2 years).  Many will take up precious space at shelters because owners can't afford to keep them all or can't find them homes. Because some shelters have limits for time and capacity, some of them in shelters will end up being euthanized because of space restrictions.  Some will find homes only to be surrendered to the shelter in a few months because they are spraying or not using the litter box due to not being fixed. Innocent, helpless kittens will add to the already countless number of cats and kittens currently waiting in shelters for homes. That is the reality they face because of one "accident."  But it is preventable.