What is Kitten Season? It’s the part of the year where female cats go into heat and breed with male cats. As a result, between May and November every year, animal shelters see a large increase in kitten intakes. The PEI Humane Society usually predicts around 200-300 kitten intakes in this period but in 2021, this number soared to over 450 kittens!

With a huge increase in kitten’s coming into the shelter last year, the PEIHS team is expecting that 2022 will bring even more with predictions hitting as high as 600 potential intakes.

In order to help us prepare for this huge intake of animals, we hold an annual baby shower for our kittens: a Kitten Shower!

This year, we are preparing to help Islanders shop locally for the Kitten Shower with kitten-specific shopping lists available at the shelter itself, at Global Pet Foods (both Charlottetown & Summerside) and at PetSmart Charlottetown. If you’re interested in getting involved, you can visit any of those locations or check out our Amazon Wishlist for items that are not available locally.

Here is a quick list of our most needed supplies and where you can find them:

• Kitten Milk Replacement (Available at Global Pet Foods and PetSmart)
• Unscented non-clumping litter (Available at Global Pet Foods and PetSmart)
• Nail Trimmers (Available at Global Pet Foods and PetSmart)
• Jingle balls and wand toys (Available at Global Pet Foods and PetSmart)
• Fleece Blankets (Available at Global Pet Foods and PetSmart)
• Oven Baked Traditions Kitten Food (Available at Global Pet Foods)
• Royal Canin Mother and Baby Cat wet and dry food (Available at Global Pet Foods and PetSmart)

If you’re interested in seeing what some of these items look like. You can visit our partners at Global Pet Foods and PetSmart to see some of the products in-person or check out our Kitten Shower Haul video on Facebook!

So, why have a Kitten Shower?

With over 600 kitten intakes, complications are more frequent than we would like. Our shelter staff and foster volunteers are ready to take on these kittens with all of their specialized care needs, but we understand that there will be a significant portion of these kittens who need even more specialized care. Illnesses such as coccidia, eye ulcers, worms and upper respiratory infections can be deadly for young kittens if left untreated and we see a significant number of these issues each year. Our Kitten Shower helps ensure we have enough supplies to handle both healthy and sick kittens quickly, sending healthy kittens to foster care and ensuring we have medications and supplies for sick kittens ready to go at a moment’s notice.

If you’re interested in helping support sick kittens in care, you can make a donation of funds to our shelter HERE. Please specify on your donation that you would like it to be used for kitten care and we will ensure it is sent to the correct fund.

How can you get involved?

If you are not able to donate to our Kitten Shower but would like to get involved, there are several ways to do so. Firstly, spreading the word about our shelter’s fundraising efforts on social media! By sharing posts, you help get the word out and help those who can donate do so.

Similarly, if you’re interested in becoming a Foster Volunteer, you can do so by applying on our website HERE or by attending our Foster Recruitment Event on May 14th at 10 a.m. This event will be hosted at the shelter (309 Sherwood Rd in Charlottetown) and you’re welcome to come learn about foster care from our foster coordinator and PEIHS staff. There will be a presentation all about foster volunteering where you can ask questions, learn about the shelter and sign up to bring kittens into your home while they await adoption.

If you’re interested in learning more about the Kitten Shower, contact Courtney Farrell at community@peihumanesociety.com