“I Adopted a Cat… Now What?”
This year at CatCon, Best Friends Animal Society will be joining us in two areas of the con! First off, they will be bringing hundreds of cats and kittens for adoption in our adoption lounge, and then, Lead Adoption Specialist KylieRose Melville and Cat Behavior and Enrichment Lead Samantha Bell will take the stage on Sunday, June 30th with the seminar I Adopted a Cat…Now What?
We spoke with KylieRose and Samantha about what to expect at this year’s event, their work with Best Friends, and what it was like being at the very first CatCon five years ago.
CatCon: Can you tell us a bit about your lecture at this year’s CatCon?
Samantha Bell: We will be answering all kinds of questions about bringing a new cat into your home! We want adopters to have the absolute best experience with their new kitties, and help those kitties stay in their homes, forever! I am so unbelievably honored and excited to be speaking at CatCon!
A little April Fool’s fun from @bestfriends…
What are some of the biggest challenges you face in your role at Best Friends?
Samantha Bell: A big challenge I have is work/life balance. Animal rescue doesn’t sleep or get weekends or holidays off; it’s a 24/7/365 career. If you’re passionate about what you do (and why else would you be doing this?), you tend to think about the animals all the time. It’s tough on your heart and it’s tough for friends and family outside of the rescue world to understand what you go through.
What are some of the biggest misconceptions about Best Friends, or perhaps shelters in general in LA?
KylieRose Melville: The biggest misconception that I come across is that the LA City shelters are not No Kill because they do not want to be. The general public doesn’t realize that the people at the city are doing everything that they can to help these animals.
The other big one is that there is something wrong with animals that are turned into shelters, which couldn’t be further from the truth. We get pets that were once part of a family and acclimate really well to being in a home again. All they need is a second chance.
What percentage increase in shelter cats do you see from May – October, aka ‘kitten season’?
Samantha Bell: This time of year is referred to as “kitten season” because the warmer weather means that female cats go into heat, and one cat can produce a couple litters of kittens per season. Come the beginning of summer, shelters across the country are bombarded with stray cats and kittens.
In May through October of 2018, Best Friends’ lifesaving nursery in Mission Hills took in 2,237 kittens. The rest of the year (Jan, Feb, Mar, April, Nov, and Dec), Best Friends took in 774 kittens. So it’s about a 300% increase during kitten season.
Best Friends is also the adoption group of record – returning for year five at CatCon. Were you one of the people onsite year one? What was that like?
Samantha Bell: I was there onsite for year one and every year since! It was unbelievable being the adoption group the first year of CatCon. We had no idea how packed it would be or how many kitties would find homes. We brought like 70 cats and kittens and actually ran out of cats, so we had to go back to get more! To have that many cat lovers gathered in one place for the first time was truly amazing. We had confidence that our cats were going to great homes, so many happy tears were shed that day!
Each year CatCon does a large number of adoptions onsite – to date, over 500! How many kittens is BF bringing this year, and where do you get them from?
KylieRose Melville: Best Friends will bring 200 cats and kittens to CatCon this year, from the six Los Angeles Animal Services shelters and other local rescues/groups.
What are you looking forward to at CatCon this June?
Samantha Bell: I am so unbelievably honored and excited to be speaking at CatCon! I’ve attended all five years; sometimes as staff, sometimes as a guest, with my cat friends and fellow rescue workers, and always had such a wonderful time. Being able to speak at a lecture is truly a dream come true for me!
Best Friends will be bringing cats and kittens of all ages from Los Angeles shelters for you to meet and fall in love with at CatCon. Learn more about how you can prepare for your new family member, and get a head start on your adoption application at
https://www.catconworldwide.com/adopt-a-cat/
You can see the seminar I Adopted a Cat… Now What? Presented by Best Friends Animal Society at CatCon Sunday June 30th. All seminars and workshops are FREE with your CatCon admission!