Lee County Domestic Animal Services will join the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) throughout the month of June in asking our community to open their hearts and homes to a new feline companion. To encourage as many cat adoptions as possible, Animal Services is offering a $50 discount on all cats and kittens. This means adopters can take home an adult or senior cat for free or a kitten for only $25 with an approved application.

The adoption fee, a $500 value, includes:

Spay/neuter surgery Age-appropriate vaccinations; Rabies vaccination and county license; 30-day pet health guarantee; Microchip ID; Feline Leukemia and Aids test; Flea treatment; Worming; Training DVD; Bag of Science Diet Cat Food.

Kitten season begins in May and usually runs until November. It is during the summer months, however, that shelters experience the highest intake of cats and kittens. Animal Services took in almost 7,000 cats and kittens in 2008. The only way to reduce the births and ultimate deaths of nearly 6,000 cats each year in Lee County is for cat owners to keep their cats from straying and to spay and neuter their pets.

Lee County’s recent ordinance change now allows for Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) of community feral cats. This means that cats that live in neighborhood colonies can now be legally trapped, sterilized and returned to the community from which they came. Successful TNR programs in other areas have been extremely effective in eventually reducing the number of feral cats in those communities.

For more information about adoption, TNR, or low-cost spay/neuter programs call 533-7387 (LEE-PETS) or go to: www.LeeLostPets.com.

Photos and information about lost pets or pets for adoption are also available online