Shane is a 15-week old Siamese mix cat who came in as a stray. He is going to be big when he grows up. He tends to be a bit shy, but with a little extra attention he should grow out of it. See more photos inside story.	Brooke and her brother arrived at the shelter as strays. They are about 11 weeks old. When Brooke first arrived she hissed a lot but now she is a wonderfully loving kitten.

July 13, 2012 — The Lassen County Animal Shelter (LCAS) is overflowing with kittens — big ones, small ones, brown ones, black ones, males, females, young ones, old ones — you name it, they have it. Some of them have lived there since May and more get dropped off on an almost daily basis.

Most of the kittens are friendly and would make cute, cuddly family pets.

A few are loners and would prefer a home of their own with no other pets.

Other kittens would be best off living on a farm and catching rodents in a barn.

According to Laurie Rondi, a kennel aid at the shelter, all of the kittens they have right now are classified as domestic shorthaired cats, but they have a variety of breeds from which to choose.

The oldest kittens — three Siamese mixes — have been at the shelter since mid May and are now about 15 weeks old.

The youngest kittens are a group of six mixed-breed male and female kittens about eight weeks old.

Frito is a 15-week old Siamese mix cat. He and his brother Cheeto came in as strays. Frito is a little smaller than his brother, but he is a sweetie. He loves attention, to play and especially to be held. Dunn and his sister Brooke arrived at the shelter as strays. They are both about 11 weeks old. Dunn is a very loving kitten. He is gentle and loves to have is belly rubbed. Photos courtesy of petfinder.com

They include a black cat, a calico or two and three tortishell tabbies.Shelter workers are not sure if they are from the same litter as they were left there after hours.

Rondi said she suspects some of the cats that end up at the shelter are lost pets and she urges owners to call the shelter when a pet goes missing.

She said pet owners do not have to spend money on a tag to keep their pet safe at home. She recommends pet owners get a light colored tag and write their phone number on it with a permanent marker.

She said the Lassen Humane Society (LHS) has been helping them spay and neuter the adult cats for the last nine months because the shelter doesn’t have the funds to do it itself.

“The Humane Society uses grant money to pay for the rabies shot and the procedure,” said Rondi. “And we have a 100 percent adoption rate with the cats who are already spayed or neutered.”

Rondi said she really wants to educate the public about the local feline overpopulation problem. Lassen County offers a spay/neuter rebate program and LHS offers a reimbursement program, so there is no reason not to take care of your animals, said Rondi.

By law, the shelter has to keep an animal for four days and can euthanize it on the fifth day if no one claims it. Rondi said, the LCAS is at capacity and will have to start disposing of some of its animals soon.

“We keep cats and kittens much longer than we are supposed to,” said Rondi. “I hate picking cats to euthanize. We do it ourselves and it ruins our whole day.”

For more information, call the LCAS at 257-9200, email animalshelter@co.lassen.ca.us or stop by the shelter at 472-000 Johnstonville Rd. in Susanville (out by the Susanville Municipal Airport) during business hours: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday. To view adoptable pets, visit petfinder.com.