June is Adopt-A-Shelter-Cat Month. Spring marks the beginning of kitten season, and shelters are bursting at the seams with lots of new cute kittens, of all colors and flavors, in addition to mellow, older cats, and many that are in-between.
Here are ten reasons to adopt a cat from a shelter during June’s Adopt-A-Shelter-Cat Month.

1) Cats are just the best – give them lots of love, good food, and a clean litter box – and they’ll become your best buddy in no time.

2) Summer can be busy for all of us – with barbecues, lawn work, gardening, and summer concerts and theater. But the cats won’t care because they can be self-sufficient. They tend to like to sleep in the sun, so they won’t mind your gone for the day, and back to play with them by night.

3) Did you know that cats are actually therapeutic? Spending time with your cat after a stressful day at the office can actually reduce your stress level.

4) Cats bring out the kid in us. Playing with kitty, whether it be with a catnip cat mouse or a feather on a string at the end of a wand, can make us laugh. Cats can do the most incredible stunts and in play, are very amusing.

5) Cats bring people together. Have you ever noticed that when you start talking about your cats, other cat people start listening. The result: you meet cat friends, and you can mutually enjoy each other’s cat stories.

6) Become a part of the number one pet owning community. There are more cats in households across American than dogs.

7) Prevent one or two cats being euthanized because shelters are strapped for space. Over 3-4 million cats and dogs are euthanized in shelters each year – that’s 10,000 animals put down every day. Sixty percent of all dogs and 70 percent of all cats that end up in an animal shelter are euthanized.

8) Have an excuse to visit your local shelter and find out just how much devotion that shelter workers give to the shelter animals. Get an inside look for yourself. It’s not depressing – it’s energizing.

9) Shelter cats come in all colors and flavors. It’s not uncommon to see a Bengal, Siamese, Himalayan, Russian Blue, a calico, and many other beautiful kitties.

10) You have a huge number of personalities from which to choose. Cats, like people, have different personalities. An elderly or disabled person might not want the hyperactive kitten, but be more compatible with older calmer cats. Shelter employees have a good idea of the cat’s personality and can help direct you to a cat that best suits your needs.

And as an added bonus, don’t forget kitty tends to pick you, so with a large number of kitties at the shelter, you’ll have a chance to find the one that’s the best match for you.