DANVILLE, Ill. (WCIA) — This summer, the Vermilion County Animal Shelter is seeing an unprecedented number of animal surrenders and is now reaching out to the community for foster support.

The shelter is currently experiencing kitten season, which involves caring for numerous new litters and dealing with cats being surrendered due to reasons such as financial constraints.

“This morning, we have 166 cats and kittens in our facility,” stated Kate Suchodolski, the director of shelter programs. “We usually take in around 10 animals daily. Every kennel is occupied, and even our offices are filled with cats and kittens.”

The shelter highlighted that the overcrowding is stressful for the animals, and as an open intake shelter, they must accept every surrendered animal, which at times results in tough decisions.

“We are running out of space, and eventually, when we completely run out, tougher choices have to be made, including the possibility of euthanasia. We are doing everything we can to prevent reaching that stage,” Suchodolski explained.

The shelter is asking the community to foster animals for as long as they can to help avoid this problem. 

Dogs are available too. If you do not have space or time for a dog right now, sponsoring an adoption fee goes a long way.

To learn more about adopting with the Vermilion County Animal Shelter, visit their website or their Facebook page.