In New York, at a storage unit parking area, animal rescuers came across Strawberry, Blueberry, JoJo, and Mazzy, four kittens coaxed out of narrow metal pipes at just about six weeks old. Meanwhile, Meatball, a lone kitten, was discovered amidst a semi-feral cat community in a chilly garage. Spaghetti, Macaroni, and Rigatoni were barely two weeks old when the compassionate team from LIC Feral Feeders in Queens took them under their wing, providing bottle feedings essential for their growth and survival.
Welcome to kitten season 2025, a time that generally coincides with warmer weather when a significant number of cats birth their litters. This leads to a surge of fragile neonate kittens, overwhelming shelters as they scramble to provide the necessary 24-hour care for these young animals. Many of the approximately 4,000 shelters across the United States find themselves in need of foster homes due to a lack of time and resources for such intensive care, explains Hannah Shaw, a noted animal welfare advocate and Instagram personality known as the Kitten Lady.
According to Shaw, about 1.5 million kittens make their way into shelters annually, predominantly arriving in May and June. During this period, shelters must mobilize all available resources, including fosters, to manage the influx. Mistakenly, the misconception persists that fostering incurs significant personal expense, yet most shelters cover costs related to food, supplies, and medical needs. Shaw emphasizes that fostering primarily demands personal time and love.
Lisa Restine, a veterinarian with Hill’s Pet Nutrition, suggests adopting kittens in pairs for optimal bonding, as cats often form close connections early. She poses a rule for deciding how many cats a household should host: for example, a two-adult household can feasibly manage four cats, or a two-to-one ratio of adults to cats. Restine also highlights the importance of space, recommending two cats per 800 square feet with an additional 200 square feet for each new feline to prevent territorial disputes.
Restine notes that siblings, such as Macaroni and Rigatoni, frequently share stronger bonds, though even unrelated kittens raised together, like Meatball and Spaghetti, can bond. However, introducing an adult cat to a young kitten might not yield the desired companionship if the kitten is over three to four months old.
Typically, fostering kittens lasts from a few weeks to several months. Although statistics on foster family ‘failures’—where families decide to permanently adopt their fosters—are lacking, many shelters report success rates of up to 90%, redefining ‘failure’ as a triumph. Shaw identifies the belief that fostering is a complex skill as another perceived barrier. Her mission is to demystify this process through accessible educational resources on her site, kittenlady.org.
Corporate collaborations are also taking shape. For instance, Hill’s pet food company’s Hill’s Food, Shelter & Love initiative has contributed over $300 million in food support to support over 1,000 North American animal shelters engaged in fostering efforts. Despite the daunting statistic of a quarter-million kitten fatalities in shelters each year, Shaw encourages prospective fosters, stating that the support from shelter mentors makes fostering an approachable undertaking, offering reassurance for newcomers. “Once you do it, you’ll find it’s not as scary as it seems,” she advocates.