Free and cheap cats and kittens could be to blame for low AWLQ adoption rates
THE Animal Welfare League will hold a $20 cat sale this weekend after a drastic drop in the number of cats and kittens being adopted. And it all comes down to one reason.
Pets & wildlife
Don't miss out on the headlines from Pets & wildlife. Followed categories will be added to My News.
SOCIAL media promoting free and cheap cats from unwanted litters could be to blame for fewer adoptions at the Gold Coast’s largest animal shelter.
Since January 1 this year, 281 fewer cats and kittens have been adopted from the Animal Welfare League of Queensland.
While 1066 cats have been adopted from the Gold Coast and two Brisbane shelters from January 1 to April 20 this year, 1397 were adopted in 2016 during the same time frame.
Full to the brim with cats available for adoption, the shelter still has 84 cats and 295 kittens hidden away in foster care until space becomes available in the rehoming centre.
Another 757 cats are in care across the shelters, unavailable, as they are either sick or injured.
There are 110 cats and 59 kittens available for adoption.
AWLQ State rehoming manager Melinda Phipps said while they hadn’t pinned down exactly why the rehoming numbers had dropped, a vicious cycle of undersexed cat giveaways could be a major part of the problem.
“We’ve noticed the presence of a lot of cats and kittens online,” Ms Phipps said.
“It could be the free cats and giveaways ... as the length of stay is about the same and we take as many cats as we possibly can.”
A quick search on Gumtree shows that there are just under 50 kittens — un-desexed — available on the Gold Coast, and then a further 20 adult cats, the majority of which are also un-desexed.
Ms Phipps said cats could breed from four months of age and breeding season had been extended this year, beginning December 2017 instead of January or February.
If the pets were allowed to roam, they could add to the already overpopulated numbers of felines on the Coast.
To help cope with the influx of cats and to allow new cats to find a home, the shelter is holding a cat sale this weekend with adult cats just $20 to adopt.
They are all vaccinated, desexed and vet checked. The sale runs until Sunday.
Disturbing discovery: Bush turkeys shot with arrows
A pair of native bush turkeys have been spotted on the Gold Coast impaled by arrows, sparking an urgent search by wildlife authorities.
Outrage as ibis seen caged beside pub’s rubbish bins
Images of an ibis caged beside bins at a popular Gold Coast pub have caused uproar on social media. Now authorities have weighed in. Here’s their verdict on what happened.