Black Cat Still Waiting for Home After Spending 588 Days in Shelter

A cat who has spent most of her life in a shelter is still searching for her forever home after a 19-month wait.

Seized from a hoarding situation in June 2022, Saltine, also known as Salty, has spent an incredible 588 days at the Tuscarawas County Humane Society in Ohio.

When Salty first arrived, she was in a sorry state, with severe flea infestation and suffering from significant hair loss. Thanks to the love and care of the staff at Tuscarawas County Humane Society, she has made a remarkable recovery.

A loving and playful cat, she loves to be petted and showered with attention, and still has a kitten-like enthusiasm for playtime.

Tipping the scales at a petite 6 pounds, she is spayed and has all of her vaccinations, as well as flea and tick preventatives, up to date, but still hasn’t found a home of her own.

“Saltine is our longest resident in our building,” Tuscarawas County Humane Society explained in a recent post on its Facebook page, alongside a picture of a notably forlorn-looking feline.

Each year 6.3 million pets enter U.S. shelters, which is an average of 17,260 a day, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

The number of dogs and cats taken in by pet shelters hit 46,807 during January 2023, an increase of 1,744 compared with January 2022, the 24Pet ‘Shelter Watch Report’ found. Around 920,000 surrendered animals are euthanized every year. Shelters are striving to minimize euthanasia rates by promoting adoption campaigns, spaying and neutering programs, and behavior rehabilitation.

Despite arriving at the shelter in a sorry state, her once patchy fur is now a luscious black coat, yet there has been no interest in adopting her.

Statistics indicate that black cats often take longer to be adopted than their lighter-colored counterparts. This is thought to be due to the enduring superstition that black cats are associated with bad luck.

Black cats take longer to be adopted and have a higher likelihood of being euthanized than animals of other colors.

“This breaks my heart,” said a commenter after seeing a recent post about Saltine. “She’s a beautiful lady.

While another wrote: “Black cats have awesome personality.”

Salty’s adoption fee is $85, and anyone interested in offering her a home should contact the humane society.

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