Our cats and kittens most urgently in need of foster are listed below. If you are new to fostering with us, please apply here to get started. If you’ve fostered with us before, you can call each location directly at the phone numbers listed below. When you arrive to meet or pick up potential fosters, please bring a carrier with you (if you do not have a carrier, let us know). We will provide you with a sample of what the cat has been eating here in the shelter, along with the cat’s paperwork and any meds they may be on.

For a refresher on PAWS’s foster policies and procedures, view our online orientation here

Every time an animal leaves into foster care, it opens a space in our shelters to save another in need. You are truly changing lives: not just for these cats, but also for others whose lives depend on a spot at PAWS. Read on to find your next foster kitty!

(updated July 31st, 2025)

 

Urgent Medical & Behavior Cats

These cats need to finish their medical recovery to become healthy enough for adoption. They will heal faster and be much happier in a home than in the shelter. 

	Name: Bingo *URGENT, special placement needed* Location: Old City Adoption Center Date of Arrival: 5/04/2025 Bingo was the name-O! ….of a cat needing foster. This sweet guy is in need of a special foster home! Unfortunately, he has some odd snacking habits- fabric, shoelaces, human food, blankets, rugs, etc.. We suspect he may have Pica, but would love to see how he is doing in a foster home that can house him in a restricted space with limited fabric options for him to chew, with folks who are Type A about tidyness, and who are able to still give Bingo the mental and physical enrichment he needs. (MINIMALISTS! We need you!!) We are hoping by greatly removing his options to chew and instead subbing in playtime, enrichment, and attention, Bingo will feel less inclined to get “creative” about how to keep himself busy. His previous owner also said he is the biggest love bug! Bingo is a little under a year old, already neutered, and while he has previously lived with cats, we think -for now- it may be a better option to have him in a pet-free foster space, to rule out stress from other animals as a contributing factor for his past behavior. update 5/11: We’re trying Bingo on a hypoallergenic diet (no treats, PAWS will provide the diet) to see if potential GI issues could contributing to his suspected Pica issue. The diet will be until further notice, but if it’s not making a difference in his ‘taste testing’ we will try him on anti-anxiety medication, to see what helps!
	Name: Kiddie *URGENT* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/27/25 Gorgeous little floofer Kiddie is a super senior around 15 years young! She’s a special gal looking for a special foster home. She has an autoimmune condition called pillowfoot, or pododermatitis, which cannot be cured but can be successfully controlled by a daily dose of an antibiotic. Kiddie also has very early onset kidney disease, so once she transitions into foster care we’d like to try and gradually move her onto a renal support diet, if she’s amenable. This is to try and make things as easy as possible for her kidneys when helping to process food, which can extend her lifespan. And since she’s a shy little cowgirl, we’ve started her on Gabapentin to ease some of her shelter stress.
	Name: Kuzma *URGENT* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/28/25 Poor Kuzma was surrendered after his family had to move. He is understandably not excited about his new digs at the shelter, but his owner had such wonderful things to say about how he is in a home! He’s a super chill, laid back couch potato baby who is mild mannered and fairly low maintenance overall. Here at the shelter, Kuzma is wide eyed and hiding in the back of his cage. But we see lots of promise- after a few minutes of one-on-one quiet time, cat nip, and some temptations, he starts to loosen up! Do you have a quiet home where he can settle in? Check out Kuzma’s little baby biscuits from our recent hangout!
	Name: Kodama *FeLV+, URGENT* Location: Old City Adoption Center- but needs foster asap! Date of Arrival: 7/03/25 This bobble-headed sweetheart really would benefit from going into foster care! She’s like our resident Miss Congeniality, seriously. You would love her personality. Kodama is a flirty little birdy of a tortie around 2ish years old. She’s already spayed, and came to us with a funky head tilt. Turns out she has/had an infection in her middle ear! She started an extended course of an antibiotic, which is wrapping up this week, and our next step is recheck her ear at our Grays Ferry clinic, and potentially perform a sedated ear flush. The head tilt may end up being a permanent quirk of hers, but this is still TBD. She doesn’t let it bother her, though! She gets around just fine and doesn’t realize there’s anything ‘odd’ about her. Kodama is also FeLV+, so she’s effectively immunocompromised, and would best awaiting her forever home in foster care as a solo kitty. She can be retested in early September to confirm it’s a true FeLV+ status, but she does not need to wait for this test in order to be adopted out. Interested in helping Kodama? Email foster@phillypaws.org! You can see her recent feature on our Facebook page here!
	Name: Roberto Rigatoni *URGENT* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 6/17/25 Look at this handsome little hunk! Roberto comes from very humble beginnings at PAWS (he was found outside our clinic a small wildlife trap) and truthfully we weren’t sure how friendly he would be at first– but he’s turned out to be SUCH a flirt! He loves attention and pets and would love to roll on out into foster care. We think Roberto’s around 6-8 years old and we are hoping to get him neutered asap. The mean Philly streets were not kind to poor Roberto- after some diagnostics we’ve learned he has an old hip injury and what we suspect might be a BB in one of his legs, though it’s hard to be 100% sure about the BB. The head of his left femur is damaged from said injury and isn’t sitting in his hip socket properly anymore, so we’d like to get him in at a partner vet (Glenolden Animal Hospital, around 20 minutes southwest of our Grays Ferry Clinic!) for a special surgery, called a Femoral Head Ostectomy. Post-op recovery may take ~6 weeks, give or take pending recovery progress. In the meantime Roberto is taking some pain medication to keep him comfy. update 7/31: Roberto was recently treated for Ringworm and it’s now resolved! He just tested negative today. Now he desperately needs a foster home so that he can get his FHO surgery on 8/21! PAWS can assist with transport vouchers if needed, though if his future foster can drive him to/from his appointment themselves that would also be super helpful.
	Name: Lancelot Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/27/25 Always dressed to impress in his perma-tuxedo, Lancelot is a spirited little guy around 10ish years old who returned to PAWS after being found stray. He was previously adopted out back in 2019 and apparently may or may not be a little door-dashy in his past? (We recommend he go to a home where there are no doors he can access that lead immediately outside, like if he’s on his own floor, in his own foster home, in an apartment that leads to a hallway instead of outside, or in a rowhome that has a vestibule before the front door, etc.) Lancelot is presently fighting off a kitty cold but also will need a dental procedure in the semi-nearish future! He’s also a bit thin and scrungly looking, but with a nice diet and time to recuperate in foster care he should be feeling right as rain soon!
	Name: Natty Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/11/25 Lovable goober Natty recently returned from our adoption center when he popped with a kitty cold! He’s already neutered, around 4 years old, and just needs to kick this cold’s butt so he can restart adoption promo! Natty was very nervous when he first arrived at our shelter but he’s truly quite affectionate and interactive once he’s used to you. He does seem stressed in his current room due to a nosy/rude neighbor cat, so he may appreciate having a cat-free space to start in. update 7/29: Natty’s suspected brother, Gansett, recently arrived at PAWS! We can’t reunite them while Natty has a cold but we’d love to try once he’s feeling better, so if you’re open to a pair let us know!!
	Name: Deep Space Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/20/25 This cutie is Deep Space! No idea where that name came from, though! She’s about 4 years old, already spayed, and is being treated for a kitty cold. She’s also really skinny, so we’d like to get a blood draw done to make sure there are no underlying causes aside from her cold contributing to her body condition. Deep Space also has some corneal scarring that gives her that ‘crystal ball’ eye look, but she is getting drops to fight off a potential eye infection as well.
	Name: Snickers Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/27/25 This big guy is Snickers! He was found stray and came to PAWS after his owner declined to retrieve him because they hadn’t seen him in a year and when they did have him, he door-dashed. He’s SUPER friendly, and super chunky. He’s around 18lbs and needs to be 14lbs for his frame, so diet and exercise it is! (But indoor exercise only, please.) In case of door dashy-ness which hopefully won’t occur, we recommend Snickers go to a foster home where he won’t have access to any doors that lead directly outside (like an apartment, rowhome with a vestibule, or if he’s living in one room/floor as opposed to the whole home).
	Name: Sphinx *URGENT* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/24/2025 Sphinx is a handsome little gent around 3ish years old He’s already neutered and theoretically ready for adoption on paper, but emotionally he could use a little help. We’ve started him on Gabapentin for shelter stress, which he takes in food, but we think he would very likely show better for potential adopters in a foster home, as opposed to at the shelter. Sphinx is so shy and nervous at the shelter.
	Name: Xanadu *URGENT* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/20/25 Glorious senior Xanadu is here! (*cue Olivia Newton John singing softly in the background*) She’s estimated to be around 15 years young and couldn’t be sweeter! This darling gal just recovered from a kitty cold and is ready to get out of the shelter. She just had a dental surgery on 7/31 and would love to recover in a foster home! While having her procedure, our surgeon noticed a tumorlike growth in her mouth and removed a sample to send out for biopsy. Results can take about a week on average to come back, but if it turns out to be cancerous, we will consider Xanadu a hospice kitty, and work to keep her as happy and comfortable as possible via palliative care until she tells us she is ready to retire from Catdom and choose her next adventure, so speak. Hospice kitties get posted for adoption sometimes, too, so if Xanadu is doing well and her health is stable we will consider promoting her for adoption to find an understanding family.

Cats/Kittens in Need of Foster Transfer or Sitter

These kitties are already in foster but could really use a new foster home, to avoid having to come back to the shelter!

	Name: Crash & Scout *URGENT FOSTER TRANSFER NEEDED BY ~8/7, CH KITTIES!* Location: foster care – these pets are not at the shelter! Please email foster@phillypaws.org for more info about how to help them! Look at these handsome li’l babes! Ugh, too cute. These two will need transfer by ~8/7, since their fosters will be traveling. Crash and Scout are a sweet, affectionate, and playful duo full of love and floppiness! Both kittens have Cerebellar Hypoplasia (CH), a non-progressive neurological condition that affects balance and coordination. While their wobbly walks may look “different” from your average cat’s, they don’t let anything slow them down! These siblings love playtime, snuggling, and offering gentle affection to those they trust. Their favorite activities include batting around toys, cozying up in soft blankets, and being around their favorite humans. They also love a good butt scratch! These wobbly friends need a safe environment with no stairs or high places they might fall from, and lots of soft surfaces/ carpet to help them grip while moving and grooving. They could potentially live with other cats after a slow introduction, and would thrive in a home with adults +/- gentle kids over age 10. They will need a mindful litterbox set up, which PAWS and/or their current foster can assist with, so that they can easily navigate in and out of their litterbox and lean against its side for balance while using. You can see more of the kitties’ shenanigans via youtube here!!

Kitten Litters (Including Nursing Moms)

These young kittens need a foster home until all are ready for adoption. Some have come in with a nursing momma! Kitten Litters (Including Nursing Moms)

	Name: Paulia +4 (Pedro, Polkadot, Pringles, Prinsta) *URGENT* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/11/25 Pretty Paulia is about 1.5 years old and her four kittens are just over 3 weeks old! These little kittens were recently started on erythromycin eye ointment and doxycycline and for a kitty cold. Mama is doing a great job so far feeding these kittens, but their weight will need to monitored. These sweet kitties would love a foster home where they can recover and grow into their best kitten selves!
	Name: Adele + 2 (Aquilla and Adilla) Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/31/25 Halloween has come early this year with this trio of black kitties (okay one is a tuxie but we think it still counts!) Teen mom Adele is a just 10 months old and taking great care of her two darling kittens, Aquilla and Adilla. This poor little family was found in a cardboard box outside of the city shelter, but thankfully they found their way to PAWS and things are looking up! Both kittens are about four weeks old and are learning about solid food. We expect they will be eating kitten food on their own soon, at roughly 1.4 lbs will be ready to be spayed and neutered soon!

Ringworm Cats and Kittens

These cats are recovering from a skin infection that’s easily treatable in an isolated home environment. Caring for these kitties is easy and just takes careful persistence and a separate space in your home. Read out our foster parent guide to ringworm to learn more!

	Name: Salsa, Guac, & Poblano *SUPER urgent, ringworm* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 6/5/2025 These classy little crumb bums are Salsa, Guac, and Poblano and they’ve been in our ringworm trailer since the BEGINNING OF JUNE! Suffice it to say, they’re simultaneously going stir-crazy from lack of space as they’re growing up, but are also still a little socially awkward from being in the ringworm trailer all this time. (And there are only so many times we can go into the ringworm trailer a day, y’all.. It is NOT the same as being in a home!) They accept pets after a few minutes of warm-up time, but are skittish and will need some socialization bootcamp with lots of positive reinforcement *cough* +/- bribery *cough* in the form of treats, toys, etc., to get them to realize that not every single time a human interacts with them is going to lead to scary lime sulfur dips or icky medication. They show so much promise but REALLY need a change of scenery, stat. These kittens are about 3ish months old and have started Pre-Adopt promo, plus their 2 most recent diagnostic ringworm cultures are trending negative *thus far,* but not finished ‘cooking’ in their incubator– fingers are super super crossed they stay that way and the babies can get their first negative test of two, but we’ll be keeping an eye as their cultures continue to ‘cook’. You can learn more about how to treat ringworm here! Check out how these cuties here! These three may be nervous but they’re curious about toys!
	Name: Barca *Urgent, ringworm* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 5/18/2025 Lovely lady Barca is a former momma who just got cultured for ringworm on 7/9, and separated from her kittens to minimize the chance of them becoming ‘fungal friends’ as well. Barca is also being treated for an upset stomach, so having her separate from her babies will open up more options for treatment for her! Barca is around a year-ish old, and can be spayed once her ringworm is either confirmed as negative, or she finishes treatment. We are awaiting her diagnostic culture results to confirm whether she truly has the fungal infection or not. Check out how cute Barca is! You can learn more about how to treat ringworm here!
	Name: Sid *Urgent, ringworm* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/13/2025 Meet the handsome and charismatic Sid! He’s around a year old, still needs to be neutered, and just began treatment for suspected ringworm! We’ll be doing a mix of lime sulfur baths for his body and a special liquid antifungal dropper (normally used for ears!) to address the lesions on his face, just since the face is a more sensitive area. Sid is a gorgeous fluffy guy, though he needs some little mats trimmed from his fur upon arrival- so would really benefit from regular brushing to keep his floof looking its best! Since Sid is doing well aside from his ringwormy predicament, he is also eligible to start promo for pre-adoption! Check out Sid being a ham and a half! Sid loves his scritchies. Check out how cute Sid is! You can learn more about how to treat ringworm here!

Shy Cats and Safety Net Program Cats

These cats are very sensitive to the stress caused by the loud shelter environment and need a loving home setting to relax and let their personalities emerge. Learn more about our Safety Net Foster Program here.

	Name: Honey & Mochi *Safety Net foster candidates* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/24/2025 Meet Honey and Mochi, two new friends who are part of our Safety Net program. This means they have a family who loves them and wants them home, but who are experiencing a personal hardship at this time and need the support of foster care for their cats until they’re back on their feet. The tentative reclaim date for these two is 10/28/2025, but ideally a potential foster would be able to hang onto them for a few extra weeks if needed, since reclaim date extension requests are pretty common in our program. Honey is a spayed female around 6 years old; Mochi is a neutered male about 2 years old. We are still getting to know them!

Old City Adoption Center

These cats are waiting for foster care from our Old City location!

	Name: Ms. Brady Location: Old City Adoption Center Date of Arrival: 6/30/25 Ms. Brady is looking for a home to spread her wings and fly like a peacock! She was adopted from PAWS as a teen kitten, but surrendered to us at the end of June due to issues with her consistently trying (and succedding) in getting outside. We’d love to get her into a foster home to guage just how much wandering she is prone to, and to help with her shelter stress. She likely needs to be an only pet, and wouldn’t do well with children due to her getting easily overstimulated.
	Name: Binky Boo **tripod** Location: Old City Adoption Center Date of Arrival: 6/10/2025 Binky Boo is looking at you! Chatty, social, and a bit of a food hawk, Binky Boo would love a foster home to help him settle into a routine and learn more about his quirky ways. He was found as an injured stray and had his front left leg amputated, but has recovered well from that and only needs a little more time to fully rebuild the strength in his back legs.
	Name: Pearl Location: Old City Adoption Center Date of Arrival: 7/27/2025 Pearl’s a super cutie around 6-7ish years old and she’s already spayed. She’s also super shy and could use some TLC time in foster care to help her come out of her shell! We’re still getting to know her, since she’s a new arrival, but we think she’d show better in a foster home than at the shelter.
	Name: Conga Location: Old City Adoption Center Date of Arrival: 7/13/25 This is Conga, and Conga has allergies! You may notice the fashionable little gap in her upper lip- this is from a ‘rodent ulcer’ (no actual rodents were involved in the making of this ulcer) that is essentially her lips swelling in response to an allergen. She also has a history of some overgrooming, so we’re keeping an eye on her grooming habits and her lip’s downsizing, since she recently received a steroid injection on 7/12! Depending on her response we may try other things to help keep her itchies controlled, but we’ll take her comfort and care one step at a time. She is otherwise already spayed and around and 2ish years old.

Social Cats (including FAST Candidates)

These sociable cats need a foster home! NOTE: If you are taking a foster cat that’s a FAST program candidate, it will be slated to be dropped off at our PetSmart or Old City locations for adoption within 2-3 weeks, since we need to keep those locations filled with adoptable kitties!

Please check back later!