Cuteness alert! Jacksonville Humane Society needs help with deluge of kittens

The Jacksonville Humane Society is accustomed to being deluged with kittens from spring through fall when warmer weather brings more feline births.

But kitten season 2024 has gotten out of hand.

So far this year, the private, nonprofit animal shelter has taken in about 1,000 more kittens than in 2023. Currently about 80 kittens need foster homes.

So the Humane Society is seeking public support: Spay or neuter pets and free-roaming neighborhood cats, become foster parents for society kittens and help financially.

"This has been a busier than usual year for kittens in Jacksonville and things aren’t slowing down yet," CEO Denise Deisler said. "We depend on our community’s compassion to help save the lives of these tiny cats and we need your help now. By working together, we can save these precious lives."

The society as of this week has 568 kittens, with 373 of those in foster care and 185 on site. Why the society has seen so many is uncertain.

"There are many factors that could be contributing to it, like other organizations’ intake, community awareness or lack of focused trap/neuter/return," Deisler said. "We are gathering data and taking all of these things into account to better understand and identify opportunities to address the source."

How can people help during Jacksonville's kitten crisis?

Spay and Neuter: Cats as young as 4 months old can reproduce, but it most commonly begins at 5 to 6 months old, according to PetMD and they can have multiple litters in a year. The American Veterinary Medical Association recommends all cats be spayed or neutered by no later than 5 months old.

Free and low-cost surgeries are available through the Spay Jax program at First Coast No More Homeless Pets: (904) 425-0005 or fcnmhp.org/help-pet-owners/spay-neuter-programs/spayjax. For other locations, go to shorturl.at/HbSyP.

The Humane Society also asks the public to get free-roaming community cats in their neighborhoods spayed or neutered via Trap Neuter Return, or TNR. This method involves using a humane trap to secure an unsocialized cat, bring it to a clinic to be altered and return it to where the cat was found.

For free assistance with TNR, go to Duval Cat Fix, a city-funded program that covers up to six free spay and neuter surgeries per month per household for community or feral cats. For more information, go to jaxhumane.org/pet-help/community-cats.

Become a volunteer foster parent: Temporary foster families bring kittens into their homes and raise them to 8 weeks of age when they are returned to the society for spay or neuter surgery and placed up for adoption. The society provides medical care, food and other supplies. For more information, go to jaxhumane.org/get-involved/foster.

Make a monetary donation to the society: To donate, go to jacksonvillehumanesociety-bloom.kindful.com. Through Dec. 3, all donations will be triple matched by other donors.

Best Friends Animal Society, a Utah-based animal welfare organization that tracks shelters' work across the country, commended the society's response.

"What Jacksonville Humane Society is doing right now is what we could encourage any shelter or rescue group in this situation to do," said Carolyn Fitzgerald, a senior strategist for Best Friends. "They should reach out to their community for help because the only way to solve for increased intake is if everyone in the community works together. The Jacksonville community has a long history of coming together to support people and their pets. I’m confident the community will once again unite to help the kittens in need."

bcravey@jacksonville,.com, (904) 359-4109