The ASPCA’s Kitten Foster Program in Los Angeles hit a milestone last week when they took in their 1,000th pee-wee kitten for fostering. (Pee-wee kittens are classified as kittens that are four to eight weeks in age.) The kitten, now named Caramel, came to the program after a member of the community brought her and her three siblings, Chocolate Chip, DB and Fuzzy, to Baldwin Park Animal Care Center. The small, neonatal kittens had been found on the street without their mother, but are now six weeks old and spending time in a foster home where they can gain their strength and grow before being placed for adoption. 

The foster efforts put forth in Los Angeles for kittens like Caramel are part of the ASPCA’s Feline Pilot Project, a program launched in April 2017 in partnership with Baldwin Park Animal Care Center. Kittens and cats in the Los Angeles area are a vulnerable population, and kittens under eight weeks old are too young to thrive in a shelter because of the great resources and space needed to care for them. Kittens in L.A. have an increased risk in shelters, as their immune systems are not fully developed, which make them particularly vulnerable in overcrowded shelters. This program helps to increase the number of cats and kittens saved, giving them the opportunity to move on to become beloved pets. 

“ASPCA data shows cats in Los Angeles shelters are the most at-risk,” says Tina Reddington, Director of the ASPCA Los Angeles Volunteer Program. “We are thrilled to have given 1,000 kittens a new chance at finding loving homes by placing them into foster homes until they are healthy and old enough for adoption.”

One component of the Feline Pilot Project is kitten fostering, an act that diverts weaned kittens, like Caramel and her siblings, from entering the shelter, and instead places them in foster homes until they are old enough for adoption. 

As we increase our life-saving efforts in California, we are thrilled to have crossed this important milestone. We hope to see more kittens like Caramel thriving and eventually finding loving homes.