Blount Animal Center offering $20 cat adoptions
By Wes Wade | (wes.wade@thedailytimes.com)
Those looking to add a furry feline to their home might consider visiting the Blount County Animal Center where, for a limited time, a special $20 adoption fee is being offered on all cats.
The money will also cover vaccinations as well as spay or neuter operations, said center Director Lynn Burchfield.
The shelter has more than 60 cats in need of a permanent home, Burchfield said, especially adult cats, which are harder to adopt out than kittens.
While there are many reasons people are attracted to kittens, the most obvious example being their cute and cuddly ways, there are several advantages to choosing adult feline companions. Kelli Johnson, a Maryville resident with experience fostering animals for the shelter, advised that people looking to adopt — canine or feline — should consider choosing an adult.
“Most kittens’ personalities are the same, they’re hyper and loving,” Johnson said. “But every single adult cat has a different personality — all of them.”
She explained that it’s much easier to discern compatibility with an adult cat because you know exactly what you’re getting. Johnson also cautioned prospective adopters that the shelter environment can sometimes mask an adult cat’s true personality. One reason is stress, she said.
“Kittens and younger cats are just so carefree that the shelter doesn’t really bother them,” Johnson said. “Just because you go into a shelter and an adult cat is hovered in the back of the cage, scared to death, it doesn’t mean it’s not sociable. It just means it’s in a shelter and there’s so much going on. It’s not really in a cat’s nature to be in a really busy environment.”
Those looking to feel out a cat’s personality in a home environment might consider fostering. But Burchfield said the shelter’s biggest need is getting their animals, especially cats, adopted.
Both Burchfield and Johnson added that another major advantage to adopting adult animals is they’ve had plenty of time to learn the rules of being “house broken.” Johnson said this can be a Godsend to those people who have little to no experience training animals in this area.
Burchfield said that need has gotten so great that he decided to slash the adoption fee to $20 for November. Those interested in adoption can browse available animals on the shelter’s Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com , or by visiting the shelter, which is located at 233 Currie Ave. in Maryville.
