Cats & dogs are Canada's most popular companion animal species and, while cats are actually found in more Canadian households than dogs, sadly, they do not receive the same care & consideration as their canine counterparts. In most of Canada, there is no dog overpopulation &, in some areas, there is even a shortage of dogs for adoption, while cat overpopulation continues to challenge communities across Canada with cats languishing in shelters long term & succumbing to stress related illnesses.
Five years on, there are still twice as many cats being admitted to shelters as dogs, and the fraction of those cats who are juvenile (puppies or kittens) is also twice as high as for dogs, pointing to the continuing problem of unwanted litters. Though many stakeholders are implementing best practices in their spheres of influence to address the overpopulation issue (spaying and neutering all adoptable animals, providing them with permanent identification and improving shelter management practic
Capacity For Care is a management model that helps shelters humanely care for the animals in its facilities by encouraging shelter staff to think differently about the concept of "capacity". Under the model, 'capacity' is no longer defined by a shelter's physical space; it is determined by how many animals can be provided adequate care. C4C capacity is defined by factors such as incoming & current populations, individual animal needs, human resources, training, physical capacity & design.
Below are some of the inspiring results of putting Capacity for Care into practice in Canadian shelters: Our first 3 organizations that fully implemented Capacity for Care witnessed a remarkable decrease in the number of sick cats at their shelter - a 40-87% decrease depending on the shelter. Length of stay at these shelters went down by 29% -51%. Feline euthanasia decreased by 29% - 63%