Dakin’s Black Friday Feline ‘sale’ a success

Date: 12/5/2011

Dec. 5, 2011

By G. Michael Dobbs

Managing Editor

SPRINGFIELD — With economists excited about the estimated national receipts from this year’s Black Friday sales, the management at the Dakin Pioneer Valley Human Society is pleased as well with their own Black Friday sale, “Black Friday Felines.”

On Nov. 25, all of the adoption fees were waived for any cat that had black fur on his or her coat, Candy Lash, director of Community and Media Relations for Dakin, explained to Reminder Publications.

Doors opened at noon and by 12:30 p.m. the lobby of the shelter’s Union Street headquarters was packed with people filling out adoption papers. Inside the two areas where cats reside while waiting for adoptions, prospective pet parents peered inside the cages, looking for a favorite feline. People were holding and playing with the cats to make sure there was a good match.

Lash said by the time the shelter closed its doors at 7 p.m., 55 cats had been brought to a new home between the Springfield and Leverett shelters. Between the two locations there were 150 to 200 cats, she added.

This was the second year for the event, which came about last year because there were actually “huge number of black cats” at the two shelters, Lash explained. The event was such a success, the Dakin management decided to repeat it.

The fees are normally $95 for adult cats and $150 for kittens, Lash said. The fee includes spaying or neutering, necessary vaccinations, an implanted microchip, foods, collar and an identification tag. The shelter provided all of these features for the cats adopted during the “sale.”

Lash said that many years ago this time of the year the birthing season for cats was winding down. However, it has now been extended and the shelter had many cats seeking a new home.

What was beneficial to adopting a cat on Nov. 25, she noted was the long holiday weekend gave the pet and family some additional time to get to know one another.