Love was apparently in abundance in Shelby County this spring, at least as far as our county’s feline population was concerned.

Evidence of that can be found at the Shelby County Humane Society, which finds itself caring for near-record numbers of cats and kittens.

In an effort to find loving homes for these shelter residents, the Humane Society is waiving adoption fees on all cats currently being cared for at the shelter in Columbiana.

That’s very good news for you if you are considering opening your home to a cat or kitten.

Plenty of evidence exists of the life-enhancing benefits pets bring to us. Pets adopted from a shelter give an unconditional love that lets us know they appreciate the second chance they’ve been given.

Consider, too, all cats adopted from the Shelby County Humane Society have been spayed and neutered; have received age-appropriate vaccinations; have received a medical checkup; come with 30 days of pet insurance; and have received age-appropriate de-worming.

That’s a deal that’s hard to beat.

Adoptions are limited to two per adopter.

Ronda Steciuk is executive director of the Shelby County Human Society. She said, while there are many benefits in adopting a shelter cat, the fact remains that there are more cats needing a home than there are those willing to adopt.

Even though fees are waived, the Shelby County Humane Society needs your donations. Contributions to help cover the cost of the care for each of the fee-waived cat adoptions are appreciated, Steciuk said.

Staff and volunteers at our Humane Society are working like never before to reduce the number of pets euthanized in our county each year, as well as the number of homeless, abused and neglected animals here in Alabama’s most prosperous county.

For more information, or to learn how you can help, visit Shelbyhumane.org.