Charlie loves to be pet and snuggled and is very playful.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Are you looking for a feline friend? Search no further than Pittsfield animal shelters.
Both Berkshire Humane Society and the Eleanor Sonsini shelter have a variety of cats available for adoption ranging from large to small, young to old, and short-haired to fluffy.
There is currently a waitlist for cat surrenders at both of the facilities because of the large volume of felines in-house and there are some distinguished senior residents looking for forever homes.
"A lot of these animals come in for no fault of their own," said Catherine Hibbard, the society's marketing and communications manager.
Circumstances such as an owner dying or becoming unable to care for the animal and a change of living situations can lead to a furry friend entering the shelter.
"We have a ton of great cats right now, we really do," feline supervisor Jenn Zartowski added, "Everyone is like, perfect."
Senior cats — or ones over the age of 7 — are overlooked even though they can have years of life ahead of them.
iBerkshires met some available shelter cats to hear about their stories, give them some pets, and show the community what the local shelters have to offer.
Available for adoption at Berkshire Humane Society:
Cole the 11-year-old domestic shorthair tabby is said to be "the most perfect cat" by shelter staff and was described as the "sweetest cat in the world" by his previous owner. He was brought to the shelter in April and has a clean bill of health. Cole will also be featured on Steve Caporizzo's "Pet Connection" on News10.
Jerry is a midnight black 2-year-old domestic longhair mix that arrived as a stray in April. He is on the smaller side of the medium-weight designation and is very friendly. In addition to being easygoing, Jerry has a clean bill of health.
Creed the black and white domestic shorthair mix was brought to the shelter in May because of circumstances out of his control. He has been around children ages 10 and up and has done well with a dog. Creed is an energetic and curious cat and has no health issues and weighs about 12 pounds.
Garfield and Reptar are a bonded pair of brothers who came to the shelter in June because their owner passed away. They are 2 years old and are orange domestic medium hair and domestic short hair mixes.
Garfield has a longer coat and Reptar a shorter coat, which is a result of female mother cats being able to have multiple partners and often having a litter of kittens with different traits. The shelter wishes to adopt out the duo together.
Another pair of siblings, Cassie and Charlie, have essentially grown up in the shelter since May. The 4-month-old kittens are both domestic shorthair mixes with tabby and white spots. They are considered special needs because they require a wet food diet but that doesn’t stop them from being playful and curious companions.
Unfortunately, the siblings had a previous adopter lined up but it fell through.
Available for adoption at Eleanor Sonsini:
Pootie is a 14-year-old orange and white domestic medium hair male who takes some time to adjust to new settings but is the sweetest companion when he does. His previous owners had to surrender him two months ago after moving to a unit where pets aren’t allowed.
Pootie does require a special diet and shelter staff asks that potential adopters give him the time to adjust to a new home. He has been around kids and the shelter is unaware of his relationship with other animals.
Beaufort is a 9-year-old Siamese mix who recently arrived at the shelter because of adjustments within his previous household. He loves catnip and is a curious cat despite his senior designation. Beaufort also has striking blue eyes because of his breed.
Snickers the 7-year-old tabby and white domestic shorthair has been at the shelter for quite some time despite her loving and extremely friendly disposition. She was adopted for a short while but returned within the shelter's 14-day trial period for reasons that were not her fault.
Snickers is an attention grabber and she knows it. She loves to be pet and snuggled and receive any attention she gets.
Adopting from local shelters directly helps them rescue and give a new homes to pets in the area. Both the Humane Society and Eleanor Sonsini accept donations of food, supplies, and funds to continue advocating for local animals.
