Kitten season is here, and her name is Miso
When one of our staff members took her dog out for a walk recently, she wasn’t expecting to come home with a kitten. But there one was on the ground, no bigger than the palm of a hand, no littermates and no mom in sight. Just a tiny, dark-furred kitten too small to know she’d been left behind.
Meet Miso. She was about three days old.
Kitten Season at PIN
Every spring through fall, kittens like Miso begin arriving at our doors. Some come in litters, tucked closely together, eyes barely open. Others arrive on their own. No matter how they come to us, the reality is the same: they are young, vulnerable, and in need of immediate care.
As the season unfolds, our foster community rises to meet that need. Last year, more than 100 families opened their homes to care for kittens in their earliest, most fragile weeks. We anticipate that same level of support this year, with each foster home playing a critical role in giving these kittens the chance to grow, heal, and ultimately find their way home.
A Bottle Baby’s First Days
At three days old, Miso is far too young to eat on her own, regulate her own body temperature, or go more than a couple of hours without care. Bottle babies like her need feeding every two to three hours. They need warmth. They need gentle stimulation to help with digestion. They require close, attentive care to ensure any changes in their health are addressed quickly.
Kittens this young simply thrive better in the warmth of a home environment, with the steady comfort of someone close by. That kind of round-the-clock attention is something only a foster family can provide, no matter how much our shelter aunties and uncles wish we could recreate it on site.
From the moment Miso arrived, it was a team effort: our intake staff welcomed her in, our medical team got her the care she needed, and a foster family quickly opened their home, where she's been growing a little stronger every day.
Fostering Is Everything
For kittens this small, fostering isn’t a nice extra. It’s their lifeline. A quiet room, a cozy bed, a person willing to set their alarm for the middle-of-the-night feedings. That’s what gets a three-day-old kitten to four weeks, to six weeks, to the moment she’s ready to meet her family.
Our foster families are provided with everything they need to get started: training, supplies, and ongoing veterinary support. Our Foster Team is ready to support any questions along the way. The only thing we can't provide is the home itself. That part comes from people in our community who open their doors when a kitten like Miso needs one.
We’re Just Getting Started
Kitten season is well underway, and the summer months will bring even more kittens through our doors. Some will need urgent medical care from day one. All of them will need the same things: formula, bottles, blankets, heating pads, kitten food, and people in our community willing to help.
If you've been thinking about jumping in this kitten season, this is the moment. Here are three ways you can help:
Our foster program is the heart of how kittens like Miso make it through their first weeks. We provide the training, the supplies, and the veterinary support. You provide a quiet, warm place to grow. Whether you're up for a bottle baby or older kittens batting at squeaky toys and chasing the feather wand, we'll match you with what fits your home and your lifestyle. Every playful pounce and curious leap starts with a foster family. They're the foundational building blocks that get kittens ready for their adoption day.
Our Amazon Wish List is the fastest way to get supplies straight to our shelter and into the hands of our foster families from bottles, formula, kitten food, blankets to heating pads.
Give to Our Kitten Season Fund
A gift to our Kitten Season Fund goes directly toward the medical care, surgeries, supplies, and round-the-clock costs of raising hundreds of kittens throughout the season. Every dollar goes straight to the kittens who need it.
Miso is still growing. She’s about two weeks old now and still has a long road ahead before she’s big enough, strong enough, and old enough to meet her family.
But she’s only here today because people chose to step in.
You can be that person. The kittens arriving over the coming months don’t need a miracle. They need us. They need you. Every bottle, every dollar, every quiet room with a heating pad is a life that gets to keep going.
This is how a community saves lives, one Miso at a time.
Thank you for being part of it.