Barrie’s Petsmart was bursting with adorable furry friends looking for a new home this weekend as part of the Furry Friends Barrie’s Kittens in Mittens Adoptathon.
“We are working with Petsmart Charities of Canada and this is nationwide adoption week. We are celebrating it today here in Barrie with 40 cats and kittens waiting to be matched with their forever families,” Furry Friends Barrie volunteer Sherri Helsdingen told BarrieToday in between helping new owners fill out their adoption paperwork.
The event, which took place at Petsmart on Mapleview in Barrie’s south end, is also scheduled to take place tomorrow (Sunday, Nov. 14) from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
“This morning we had 22 adoptions,” said Helsdingen. “We are always overwhelmed. In fact, this morning at 9 a.m. we had 15 or 16 people - couples and families - lined up all the way down the side of the store with numbers and completing application forms. There’s great interest. Sometimes we associate it with this time of year…it’s getting colder, Christmas is coming but this has actually been a bit of a pattern. There have been so many changes and people are really looking for that comfort at home.”
Helsdingen said what has been particularly surprising this year, is that they’ve seen more older cats “beat out” kittens for new homes.
“That’s not usually the way it goes. They have tough competition with the cute kitty’s, but some of our older cats have been adopted today.”
One of the cats who found her new home was Kiska, a domestic orange tabby - who was adopted by Colin Birch, Shannen Black and Colleen Black. They told BarrieToday they earned about the adoptathon online and were drawn in by a photo of Kiska’s adorable face
“(Shannen) had an animal pass away a little while ago, and we’ve had a cat by himself for quite a while,” said Birch, adding the new addition to their family is not just for them but for their other furry friend. “We needed a friend for our other cat and we needed another family member.”
“They need a good home and that’s the biggest driver… I wish I could take them all home,” added Shannen Black.
Helsdingen said anyone interested in adopting is being asked to come to fill out an application online or in person and then come into the store. Once a match has been made and a contract has been completed the family is provided with the feline’s medical file, she added.
Adoption fees - which are $200 for an adult cat and $240 for a kitten - covers the cost of having the cat spayed or neutered, bringing them up to date on their vaccinations, treated with deflea and deworming medication, and even microchipping.
Furry Friends Animal Shelter is a non-profit, no-kill organization dedicated to providing shelter and love to abandoned, lost or rescued animals in the Barrie community.
