The black tiger-striped kitten is just one of 38 cats and kittens currently in residence at the AniMeals warehouse, awaiting a new home as part of a new rescue and adoption collaboration between AniMeals and Missoula City-County Animal Control.
“With this phenomenon where there is no local kitten season anymore, our shelters are just overrun with cats,” said AniMeals founder Karyn Moltzen.
Moltzen and crew still serve the needs of a growing number of the state's counties. Last year, the organization collected and donated 219,000 pounds of pet food to shelters across the state. Only now, the pet food collection and distribution center will also add “cat adoption center” to its laundry list of services.
A year ago, Moltzen approached county commissioners to plead for the right to guardian a portion of Missoula County's overflow of cats when numbers exceed shelter capacity, and was granted immediate permission.
“I think the county knew it was a big problem,” said Moltzen, stroking a purring teenage cat who answers to the name Baxter. “So when they saw my passion and dedication to it, they agreed.”
For several months, AniMeals has quietly shouldered that overflow in seven large kitty condos - 6-foot by-10-foot chain-link enclosures that house small communities of compatible cats. Since then, the organization has adopted out 276 cats and kittens as a result of the partnership, and it hopes to do many more.
But if adopting out cats to the public requires awareness, why has AniMeals been so quiet?
Moltzen said “flying under the radar” has been an intentional plan to avoid anonymous drop-offs that would put her adoption center past its 45-cat capacity, and endanger them in cold weather.
Just last week, she came into work to find a skittish cat lingering at the doorstep of her Rankin Street warehouse - clearly a drop-off, she said. Though staff continues feeding the shorthaired silver-and-black tabby to coax it indoors, the cat is still too frightened to come in from the cold.
“People don't understand, it's getting bad out there and the average house cat isn't equipped to weather the season,” she said. “That's why you shouldn't ever leave a cat on anyone's doorstep.”
Because AniMeals is not a place to surrender cats, and does not do business as a shelter, the city's shelters are still the best chance for strays to have the chance to find a home, she said.
The story of homeless and stray cats in Missoula is nothing new. Cats have always outnumbered dogs, according to shelter numbers.
The Humane Society of Western Montana reports taking in a total of 1,092 animals last year. Cats accounted for 640 of that number, according to interim director Lora O'Connor. With work on foster care programs and programs that focus on trap-neuter-release of feral cats in cat colonies, she said just 54 of those cats were euthanized last year - a lower number than in previous years.
Animal control chief Ed Franceschina said that his facility on Butler Creek Road took in 677 cats last year. Of those, 375 were adopted out and 140 were euthanized. So far this year, 627 cats have come through the door - a combination of city-county pickups, owner surrenders, strays and injured animals. Adoptions so far have totaled 293, with a population of 161 sick and injured cats euthanized.
According to Franceschina, few euthanasias occur because of space, but having an overflow adoption center such as AniMeals may help ensure numbers remain low, he said. But lower-than-average annual adoption numbers and lengthier animal stays still worry him.
“We've had cats for five or six months here at times,” Franceschina said. “We make space for them, but the space problem is acute for cats.” Normal capacity there is 65. Currently, cats housed there number 80.
According to the Feral Cat Coalition, a pair of breeding cats, which may have two or more litters per year, can exponentially produce 420,000 offspring over a seven-year period. Franceschina, who partners with the humane society and AniMeals on low-cost spay-neuter clinics throughout the year, said reducing the number of kittens is where it starts.
“We're getting a lot this year, so it makes you wonder if you hadn't focused as many efforts on spay-neuter, what would the numbers really look like,” he said.
That's also why O'Connor said she welcomes new options to address the cat overpopulation problem in Missoula and surrounding counties.
“Having more safe places for homeless animals to be will be great for the community - both human and animal,” she said.
Moltzen may partner with both shelters on low-cost spay-neuter clinics, and by providing food donations for feral cat colonies throughout the year, but so far said her collaborations in adoption have strictly been on the side of the city-county shelter.
“The humane society hasn't yet shown any interest in having me take the overflow in their shelter,” Moltzen said.
O'Connor confirmed her shelter has not made any decisions about turning resident cats over to AniMeals - mostly for the same reasons they don't take food donations from AniMeals. With 71 available foster homes, and 26 cats and kittens currently in foster care, a pet food bank for low-income families and an in-house Science Diet feeding program for residents, she said needs are currently being met.
“We're really excited to have another option in the community - there are still far too many cats,” O'Connor said.
As the organization expands its mission of feeding hungry animals to include a cat adoption center, a trio of tuxedoed cats sat purring, testament to their status: “All dressed up with no place to go but a good home.”
The black and white trio have that luxury because of Moltzen's “no-kill” adoption center model.
“We are an animal-loving people,” said Moltzen, “but I believe if it was known how many animals were dying, people would be outraged.”
Moltzen said she hopes her burgeoning adoption center can someday become a fully-staffed sanctuary with its own location.
Reporter Lori Grannis can be reached at 523-5251 or lori.grannis@lee.net
Adopt a cat
AniMeals cat adoption center is located at 1700 Rankin St. and is now open Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Thursday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. The new facility will be closed on weekends until after the holidays. In January 2009, the center will be open Saturdays. For more information, contact AniMeals at 721-4710.
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