Cat Issues

Due to the fact that very few laws pertaining to cats are in place, cat overpopulation is a major problem in Lewis County as in all of New York State. We provide a humane way of handling this overpopulation by maintaining a shelter area for cats and kittens to stay until a home is found for them. Since we receive no funding for our shelter and operate on Grants, Memberships and Donations as well as the Boarding Kennel, cats are taken in on a cage available basis with a donation to help defray the cost of their care until we place them. The Humane Society is considered a No-Kill Shelter in that we only put animals down that are too sick, too injured or too aggressive. If a cat is too aggressive, it is spayed or neutered, vaccinated and placed on a farm. We then have a win/win situation with population control, rabies control and rodent control on the farm and the cat has a home.
 

Spay/Neuter Program
The Humane Society participates in the New York State low cost spay/neuter program. This program permits the adopter of either a cat or a dog that is adopted from a participating shelter to get a State voucher, if available. With the voucher, the cost of spay/neuter is only $30.00. On November 1, 2001 New York State passed a law mandating that when adopting any unspayed cat or dog from a shelter a mandatory $35.00 deposit must be paid at that time. After the pet has been spayed or neutered, within 30 days after adoption, and proof is submitted, the deposit is refunded to the owner. If the deposit is not claimed, the money is turned over to the Department of Ag & Markets Spay/Neuter Fund.