Karen Mullins describes an early summer morning, when the masses are lined up. They are camped out in lawn chairs, but they are not awaiting the premiere of a blockbuster movie. It’s all about the love for kitty companionship.

Mullins, manager of the Jackson County Humane Society, 95 Humane Rd., Murphysboro, said the crowds come to get vouchers to assist with costs that come with being a pet owner.

“We have seen people show up here two hours before we open,” Mullins said. “They sit in lawn chairs and the parking lot is completely filled with cars by the time we arrive. We sell out in about 15 minutes.”

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This crowd will be convenient for the feline population, because the U.S. Humane Society has declared June National Adopt A Cat Month. This time of the year was chosen primarily because of the inevitable onslaught of homeless spring kittens and cats. This is the time when most litters of kittens are born.

According to Mullins, there are currently 30 homeless cats at the shelter, with four black kittens with white faces that arrived Tuesday morning.

According to the National Humane Society’s website, eight million cats and dogs enter shelters each year, and five million are euthanized.

Approximately 5,151 animals entered the local humane shelter located outside of Carbondale in 2001.

Mullins said she is relieved to see there has been a decrease in those numbers, possibly because of the shelter’s “Pennies For Pets” program. The program offers a voucher that can be purchased for $35 to spay or neuter pets. Spaying or neutering usually costs around $80, but with the voucher comes a list of 15 area veterinarians that allows the Humane Society to match the rest of the cost of the procedure.

“We are always looking for funding,” Mullins said. “We are limited to only 30 vouchers a month, whereas before we didn’t have to set a limit in the amount of vouchers we sold.”

Mullins said there is a great demand for these vouchers, usually for low-income families and students who can’t afford to pay for spaying or neutering. The vouchers are sold on the first day of the month.

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Mullins said seeing the cats get homes will benefit her and the staff emotionally. Mullins has been at the shelter for five years, and she finds her work rewarding yet heartbreaking.

“This job gets to everyone at some point; it is something you never get used to,” Mullins said. “There are times it gets very rough. We try to know our limits, but it is hard not to want to take every animal home.”

Once an animal enters the shelter’s adoption program, it will have no risk of being euthanized unless it becomes gravely ill. Some animals have stayed for almost a year before being adopted. The biggest problem is usually small kittens that do not have a mother. Kittens can’t be adopted until they are weaned and are 12 weeks old.

“Without a mother, it is difficult for a kitten to survive,” Mullins said. “They have respiratory problems and they can’t smell to eat. They run a big risk of becoming deathly ill and then we have to euthanize. It is horrible to hold a crying kitten in your arms and have to do that. One time a lady brought in 37 cats who were all that sick.”

Mullins said there are also happy times at the shelter, such as seeing a pet adopted out every day. The shelter tries to screen prospective owners, especially students that are from out of town.

“We make sure that they are going to be able to keep them,” Mullins said. “We ask about breaks from school such as Christmas, and sometimes we even call parents to make sure they can take the pet home with them when they leave town. In general, students are not as big of a problem as people would think.”

Usually, the process takes from a day to a week when someone applies for an adoption. The animal is taken to a vet and tested for Leukemia, is spayed or neutered and micro-chipped – a process by which the animal has a micro-chip implanted to identify the pet if it is lost – with the adoptee paying the fee.

Spaying or neutering is vital in the fight against homeless pets since a fertile cat can produce three litters of kittens a year. According to the Humane Society, one cat and her offspring can theoretically produce 420,000 cats in seven years.

The shelter welcomes volunteers to spend time with the animals.

“We have families who come out to walk the dogs or play with the cats every week,” Mullins said.

The shelter is in need of donations to pay for the costs of caring for the animals. The shelter also needs donations of items such as paper towels, bleach, Pine-sol, Purina Cat and Kitten chows, Purina Dog and Puppy chows, cat litter, leashes and toys.

Mullins hopes the shelter can see an increase in funding, and the Pennies For Pets program can once again be an unlimited source of help.

“Anyone can mail a donation or drop something by,” Mullins said. “We are always happy to accept donations.”

Reporter Lena Morsch can be reached at [email protected]