Kitten Nursery welcomes visitors: Peninsula Humane Society hosts educational fundraiser Saturday

Attendees can watch volunteers syringe-feed kittens, ask questions of staff about what kind of work goes into rescuing and rearing the young ones, and learn about potential foster care opportunities.

“These ones wouldn’t survive on their own and there are very few shelters in the Bay Area that have an onsite nursery,” said PHS Communications Manager Buffy Martin-Tarbox. “We basically teach them how to be cats because they don’t have their moms to show them.”

The event, which also serves as a fundraiser, allows PHS to show off its nursery where it rescues nearly 130 cats during the roughly April to October kitten season, said Lisa Fogleman, who coordinates the nursery and barn cat programs.

These kittens are “highly adoptable because they’re so well socialized,” Fogleman said.

Attendees are encouraged to bring gifts for the kittens, such as liquid kitten formula, baby wipes, paper towels, cotton balls and other items on the society’s Amazon registry, Fogleman said.

Started in 2008, the nursery has helped nearly 1,135 kittens and is run by staff as well as 167 volunteers. On Friday, a handful of dedicated volunteers gathered in the nursery to feed, socialize and play with litters of kittens.

Lisa Dornell said she’s been volunteering since the nursery first opened and keeps coming back because she recognized how influential her own cat was in her life.

“She just brought so much love and insanity, and I just wanted other people to have the same opportunity,” Dornell said.

Volunteer Debbie Lloyd agreed, adding “you get to give back to the community too, and these guys get a good home.”

Although the kittens at the nursery aren’t ready for adoption, the PHS has a wide variety of others looking for their forever homes. Through the weekend, the nonprofit will be waiving adoption fees for cats 7 years and older, as well as bonded pairs of cats.

Taking care of a kitten is a commitment, and some may find they’re more suited to providing a loving home for an older cat, Martin-Tarbox said.

“If you want something a little more mellow,” she said, “an older cat might be a good bet.”

While the length of kitten season fluctuates each year, there is undoubtedly an uptick around spring and summer. The nursery typically groups cats by litters, but if one comes in solo they’ll attempt to introduce it to a group of similar-aged kittens.

The cats often come from areas outside San Mateo County as PHS is one of the few equipped to handle the uptick of kittens in their nursery department. They may arrive at just weeks or even days old. They receive a medical evaluation before being allowed to join other kittens in the nursery, she explained.

One recent example of a litter that is currently recuperating at the PHS is the group of 3-week-olds found in Redwood City earlier this month. The trio of kittens were miraculously discovered and then strategically rescued from the underside of a boom lift utility vehicle using a specialized camera. Despite appearing to be without food or water for possibly days, the kittens are now doing well and will be ready for adoption soon, Martin-Tarbox said.

Once the kittens grow to weigh at least 2 pounds, they can be spayed or neutered and put up for adoption, Fogleman said.

Although many adore the sight of kittens, the PHS is urging people to do their part in curbing feral cats from overbreeding. There are trap and release programs, and the county also may offer vouchers for spays and neuters as well as disease testing, Fogleman said.

So while one might first be excited when they see a litter of newborns in their backyards, a feline’s just two-month gestation period can quickly grow out of hand.

“Left unchecked, a cat can have three litters in one season,” Fogleman said. “So we really talk a lot about our spay/neuter program.”

The Kitten Nursery Shower runs noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 20, at the society’s Center for Compassion, 1450 Rollins Road, Burlingame. Visit phs-spca.org/kittenshower for more information or a list of needed gifts.

samantha@smdailyjournal.com

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Twitter: @samantha_weigel