Last cat standing: Record-breaking year for adoptions at Exploits Valley SPCA

It's almost impossible to have an empty cat section at the Exploits Valley SPCA, but that's what nearly happened on Wednesday, when there was just one feline left at the shelter available for adoption.

Christmas — a five-year-old orange and white short-hair female — came in just before the holidays.

She was the lone cat in need of a home for about a 24-hour period, which is unusual for the Grand Falls-Windsor shelter that had been overcrowded for most of last year.

"[At] any given time 60 to 70 cats needed homes," said Sarah MacLeod, a volunteer at the shelter for almost two years.

In fact, a lot of felines found new homes last year, making 2016 a record breaker for the shelter, with 353 animals adopted, including cats, dogs and one rabbit.

"I guess the closest we've ever come to that was in 2006 with 257, so this year has been a record year," said MacLeod.

The nearly empty building is great news for staff and volunteers, especially since the shelter dealt with two outbreaks of a respiratory virus in 2016.

"That can happen when conditions are overcrowded, when they're all together and you're trying to separate them, and medicate them all, and get them all cleaned," MacLeod told CBC Radio's Central Morning Show.

"It can be overwhelming for them and we had to shut down twice because of it."

Focus on feral

The additional space means the shelter now has the resources to help feral cats, something it normally doesn't have the space to do.

Eight cats — ranging in age from four months to four years — were dropped off from a colony in Ming's Bight on Thursday.

"It's amazing because now we actually have time to rehabilitate them, that's the whole point right. We don't want to get down to zero, we don't want to stay at a low number, we want to get to a low number so that we can go and help these colonies and bring them in and get them adopted because they really need it," said MacLeod.   

"These cats came in with thick fur and their ears are frostbitten. It's awful to think of how they were living outside this whole time."

It's not just cats that are finding new homes.

"We're doing really good with dogs. We can't keep them in the shelter, which is awesome."

While numbers are low right now, MacLeod said shelters usually start filling up a few months after Christmas, once those cute kittens and puppies given as gifts start growing up.

Lifetime commitment

"It's just like having a baby in my opinion. It's not fair to say, 'We're going to have an animal until we have to move, until we have a new baby, until I get another job.' As soon as you get an animal, it's going to stay with you for … life. That's the commitment that you're into."

Rather than dumping unwanted animals and leaving them to fend for themselves outdoors — which leads to problems such as feral cat colonies — MacLeod said the shelter is happy to take them.

"We want them to come in to the shelter. It's a positive thing. If you don't want them, we'll find somebody who does."

There's more information about Christmas and the other animals available for adoption on the Exploits Valley SPCA Adoptables Facebook page, or you can call the shelter at (709) 489-3604.