Although there are many ways to reduce the length of stay (LOS) of cats at shelters, in this article I look at some information from studies with the goal of reducing LOS.

In the first study they found that the average LOS was 61.2 days for both cats and kittens combined that was partly because one cat took 730 days to be rehomed whereas some cats only remained at the shelter for one day.
Some further facts:
- lighter coloured cats were generally adopted more quickly than older more darkly coloured cats.
- as for kittens, the colour of the coat did not have an influence on LOS.
- coat patterning and the breed of the cat (if the cat was of a certain breed) influenced LOS for both cats and kittens. Comment: obviously purebred cats are rare in shelters.
- male cats and kittens had a shorter LOS than female cats and kittens respectively. Comment: People prefer male cats? Because of perceived better characters?
- the physical appearance of a cat affected LOS.
In another study which looked at a process called the Capacity for Care they assessed how effective this process was for reducing LOS. The Capacity for Care program is described below in a quote from the study.
- exotic breeds were found to have an LOS that was 64% shorter than domestic shorthairs. Comment: in the summary they don’t describe “exotic breeds”. I would take that to mean purebred cats of which there are very few at shelters as mentioned. Ultimately this preference is about appearance which is the prime factor in adoption and therefore LOS.
- male cats had a length of stay that was 20% shorter than females. Comment: this squares up with the study finding above.
- adult cats’ LOS was 13% shorter than kittens but this surprising statistic was the result of calculating LOS from date of admission rather than date available for adoption.
In a further study, the following facts were gleaned:
- The reasons for surrender when nearly always owner-related which I take to mean that the cat’s behaviour was just fine but the owner’s circumstances had changed to the point where they saw it fit to relinquish their cat, rightly or wrongly. RELATED: 3207 Reasons To Relinquish Your Cat.
- The reason for surrender of the cat at the shelter and their coat colour affected LOS significantly. Comment: I interpret this to mean that when an adopter goes into a shelter they enquire as to why the cat is at the shelter and customer services tell them. Judging by the information received they may or may not adopt a particular cat. It colours their opinion and it would seem that adopters are interpreting owner-related relinquishments as cat behaviour relinquishments instead. I don’t know for sure; I’m just speculating.
- white cats had a longer LOS than black cats in this study which goes against the grain. It also tells us that there are people who love black cats and do not take on board the black cat profile i.e. the distant association with witches in the Middle Ages.
In a further study, the following facts were gleaned about LOS at shelters:
- cats at 31 shelters in Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic United States were placed into three categories: interactive, approachable and unapproachable.
- the LOS for interactive cats was 37 days.
- the LOS for approachable cats was 51 days.
- the LOS for unapproachable cats was 119 days.
- for each additional year in age of the shelter cat, the LOS increased by four days.
- the age of the cat and the behavioural category into which they were placed worked together to affect LOS except LOS of interactive cats was not influenced by age.
In a further study of LOS at animal shelters, this time in Ireland, they studied the effect of cuteness on LOS. The following facts were gleaned:
- they found that “subjective cuteness” influenced LOS but only when it was measured together with the “social nature” of the cat. Comment: this doesn’t seem to be very useful to me because it doesn’t differentiate between the impact of the cat’s social nature i.e. sociability and the cat’s cuteness.
About the Capacity for Care programme
The fundamental goal of the C4C program is to maintain the shelter cat population at or below the shelter’s capacity at all times with the goal of reducing illness among shelter cats and decreasing LOS (CFHS, 2012). The C4C program promotes several strategies to control the flow of animals through the shelter system including: reducing intake through appointment-based relinquishments, expanding the physical capacity of the shelter, and reducing LOS by reducing overcrowding and providing alternatives to unadoptable cats (Karsten, 2015). The C4C management program suggests that improving housing conditions is an ideal starting point when introducing the C4C program into a shelter (Karsten, 2015). Not only can housing improvements enhance the overall welfare of cats in a shelter environment, but improved housing can subsequently lead to decreased risk of disease, which in turn, helps decrease LOS, allowing more cats to be adopted because cats remain visible to the public in adoption rooms rather than spending time out of sight in recovery rooms.
Although the information here is from three studies, it is not comprehensive. There will be other factors such as how creative the management is in finding ways to encourage adoption of their cats and also, let’s say, finding ways to reduce the intake of cats through better informed caregiving. The use of foster homes and the use of campaigns to promote adoption and so on are all important in reducing LOS.