MOUNT VERNON — Despite Mother Nature’s efforts to keep dumping snow on us, spring has arrived. But the Knox County Humane Society has another name for it — kitten season.
Every year in the spring the society ends up with “litters and litters” of kittens, said Humane Society Manager Tina Ballentine. “During the winter we might get 40 a week. During kitten season it can be 40 a day.”
It’s an ongoing struggle.
“We can only do so much,” Ballentine said. “We try to get the word out about the importance of spaying and neutering and we try to find funds to help people pay for spaying and neutering if they can’t afford it.”
The society recently worked with the charitable organization Interchurch to have 150 pets spayed or neutered.
“The only way to cut down the number of stray cats and dogs is to spay and neuter,” she said.
Fifty-five cats and kittens are currently housed at the shelter. That number will be up to its maximum of 150 by the end of the month. The society also typically has about 30 dogs it has rescued from the Knox County Animal Shelter in its canine facility awaiting adoption.
