We won’t go full Sarah McLachlan here, but it’s hard to read this news and not feel a tug of the heartstrings. SPCA Tampa Bay is seeking volunteers in Pinellas County to temporarily foster animals in need, with hundreds of vulnerable kittens who need short-term love until a forever home can be found. Not only do you get to bring a sweet kitten home, but all expenses and any medical needs are covered by SPCA.
While many of us think of spring and summer as the return of sunshine and beach trips, local shelters know it’s also the unfortunate kickoff of kitten season, with hundreds of newborns in need of support. Every year at this time, a surge of kittens who are too young to live and thrive in a shelter environment are born in our community. Many require bottle feeding, frequent monitoring and structured care routines, making foster homes critical to their survival. Those interested in fostering a kitten can learn more here.
ADVERTISEMENT
Whether you’re interested in permanent pet adoption, curious what life with a cat would be like, or just open to providing critical temporary support, this is the time of year to put those thoughts into action. In 2025 alone, 333 cats and kittens were fostered through SPCA Tampa Bay’s volunteers, and the organization expects greater needs this season.
Not only do local shelters have more kittens than their staff can handle, but fostering a newborn cat provides more time and resources for shelters to maintain their ongoing care of the thousands of animals that come through their facilities every year. Volunteers who can care for kittens allow SPCA Tampa Bay to expand its capacity and save more lives.
Fostering even one kitten can help create space for another animal in need, and the good news is that foster placements are flexible and vary in length depending on the animal’s needs. Interested individuals can learn more and apply at spcatampabay.org/foster/.
Here are the key qualities for potential foster parents:
- At least 18 years old with reliable transportation
- Open to caring for a variety of animals and ages
- Comfortable following guidance and communicating with staff
- Flexible and responsive to urgent needs
Foster opportunities may involve caring for neonatal kittens, adult cats that need time to decompress and animals that are recovering from illness or injury. SPCA Tampa Bay provides all necessary medical care, supplies and training, requiring no out-of-pocket expenses from volunteers, along with ongoing support from staff and experienced fosters.
Learn more and sign up to foster a kitten with SPCA Tampa Bay here.
SPCA Tampa Bay welcomes all
Part of what makes supporting SPCA Tampa Bay so important is that they are Tampa Bay’s only For-All shelter, meaning they provide services and support for every animal. As a result, the animal shelter in Largo is not only home to cats and dogs, but rabbits, mice, iguanas, birds and much more. The center welcomes injured or ailing wild animals, as well, and treats them before returning them to the wild. SPCA Tampa Bay also provides low-cost vaccine clinics and pet food banks across Pinellas County.
SPCA Tampa Bay’s mission is to transform the lives of animals through passionate collaboration with the community, in order to create a community where every animal matters. Adoption volunteers work to match families with animals that are a good fit with the family’s home, lifestyle and personalities. As part of their goal to provide services and support for every animal, there is no time limit for an animal’s stay at the pet shelter, and every animal receives compassionate care, regardless of its breed or size.
Animals receive immunizations, medical care, behavior training, enrichment, and loving care while they live at the animal shelter in Largo, and the animal adoption office is open from 1-6 pm Tuesday-Friday, 10am-6 pm Saturday, and 10am-5pm Sunday. In addition to younger pets, SPCA Tampa Bay also has a Diamond Dogs program that offers special services and health screenings for any animal adopted over the age of seven.
Learn more at SPCATampaBay.org.
