Pet shelters and animal adoption agencies across the country have been at or near capacity since the COVID-19 pandemic, and in Northeast Ohio many facilities report having more animals than new families to adopt them.
Shelters and humane societies often see a cycle in adoption patterns, said Kate Lumsden, shelter coordinator at the in Seville.
鈥淚n the summer, you'll see a lot of kittens get adopted because it's kitten season and everyone wants to keep kittens,鈥� Lumsden said. 鈥淚n the winter, a lot of our adult cats and dogs will go home. So it kind of just varies.鈥�
But one new year-round trend is emerging, she said: More people are looking for cats than dogs, a pattern that's also been reported nationally, especially among . Gen Z cat ownership 25% in 2024, and in 2025, cat adoptions increased 2%, while dog adoptions decreased 1%.
Shelters in Lorain, Summit and Cuyahoga counties have all an influx of dogs they aren鈥檛 able to handle. Lumsden says she鈥檚 seeing a similar trend in Medina, where the SPCA has more than 100 cats and only about 15 to 20 dogs.
鈥淲e don't really get a lot of dog adopters here. We're definitely more in the cat business,鈥� Lumsden said.
Cats are also the biggest movers at in Novelty, said Executive Director Ken Clark. But unlike at some shelters, he said one of his goals is to help current pet owners hold on to their pets rather than giving them up for adoption. To that end, Rescue Village now runs a pet food pantry to help local pet owners deal with rising pet food prices.
鈥淲e get a lot of calls from people who are food insecure and that might be a reason they need to give up their pet,鈥� Clark said. 鈥淪o we offer a food pantry because people who are food-insecure, generally their pets are too.鈥�
He, like others, said part of the reason shelters are filled to bursting is that adopters need more support. Pets take a lot of money, resources 鈥� and especially patience.
鈥淭hey're a stranger in your house,鈥� Clark said. 鈥淭hey don't know your routines, they don't know where they are. They don't know anything, other than they're adapting to being in a new house.鈥�
He said he recently heard from one couple who adopted a cat that hid in their closet for three weeks before coming out.
"And at the end of that three week period 鈥� and I don't think it's a magic number 鈥� the cat came out and now they are telling me this is the most friendly cat they've ever had," Clark said. "They just gave the cat the time."
