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 August 21st, 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: Clyde *URGENT* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/29/25 Poor Clyde’s having a rough go of things! He’s about 13 years old and already neutered, and he was surrendered to the city shelter when his owners were no longer able to care for him. He’s a bit thin, and very shy, and is struggling with shelter life mentally, so we’ve started him on Gabapentin for anxiety support- it can go in his food if he’ll eat it this way! We are also running diagnostics to nail down some litterbox issues he’s been having as of late. It could be an anxiety response, or he could be ‘missing’ over the edge of a box if it’s not tall enough, or struggling to inside a box if the entrance isn’t low enough, etc– all of which PAWS can help with troubleshooting! He’ll need a very patient and understanding foster to help him decompress before he is greenlit for adoption promo.
	Name: Atticus Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 7/29/25 What a handsome guy! Atticus is around 2 years old and was found as a kitten. His previous family noted that he’s an independent cat who isn’t a big fan of petting (head pets only), but we’d love to get to know him better in foster care. He’s very stressed at the shelter and would love to head out asap. He has chronic rhinitis which a lifelong condition that causes his eye to be a bit weepy, especially when he’s stressed. He’s currently on a twice a day eye ointment to help with this, but based on the info from his owner, this is an ongoing thing. He’s noted to be tolerant around kids but we’d love to see him in a quiet, adult only home. He’s lower energy, and loves snacks and lazing around! Let us know if you can help us get to know him better!
	Name: Gaya  *URGENT* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 8/10/25 Petite and sweet, but admittedly a little nervous in her new surroundings, little Gaya is at least 9 years old, potentially older, according to her surrendering owners. She was brought to the city shelter after developing a possible mammary mass that her owners did not feel logistically equipped to treat. We have sent out bloodwork for her, and pending results we plan to sedate and remove/biopsy any masses we find to rule out mammary cancer vs benign bumps. We will also spay Gaya at the same time. She was described as very sweet and great with humans, but nervous around other kitties.
	Name: Misu Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 8/10/25 Misu here is around 8ish years old, give or take, and his teeth were in rough shape when he arrived, causing him have pain and difficulty eating! He just had a much-needed dental procedure on 8/19, and he would love to recover post-op in foster care! He is also working to kick a newly-arrived kitty cold cold. We’ve started him on an appetite stimulant for the cold and he received an injection of a longer lasting antibiotic, but he ultimately would benefit from heading out into foster care asap, so he can recover in a less stressful environment. To keep his mouth comfy post-dental procedure, he’s also taking some nice pain meds. While he’s a secret goofball, he’s not loving shelter life- hence how he likely stressed himself into catching a cold. He is also a little underweight and will hopefully fill gain some weight in foster care, especially once his dental care is done. He could also use some routine gentle brushing, since his mildly poofy coat could use some TLC.
	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 have been 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.) UPDATE: Lancelot had dental surgery on 8/15 and had a few teeth removed. He also had his sinuses flushed out to hopefully help with his ongoing sniffles. He may be a ‘chronic snuffler’ and may always have a little sniffle that waxes and wanes, but it would be nice to have him recover in foster care and see if his sniffles clear up!
	Name: Dairy Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 8/17/25 Handsome and orange and fabulously charismatic, Dairy is a teen kitten around 5-6 months old who has a broken leg! We are trying to heal the leg via crate/playpen rest for several weeks, and in about a month we’ll recheck his leg xrays to see his healing progress. This is not a foolproof plan, though, since he is still growing. If the leg isn’t healing as we hope our plan B is to amputate the leg – so we would caution against falling in love with said leg. Dairy is already neutered so once his leg is sorted he can start adoption promo.

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: Feather Jones *SUPER URGENT, Safety Net Cat needs transfer by Saturday 8/23*  Location: foster care – this pet is not at the shelter! Please email foster@phillypaws.org for more info about how to help them! Gorgeous gal Feather Jones is looking for a new foster, ideally starting this Saturday 8/23! Feather is currently part of our Safety Net Program, and her owner plans to reclaim her at the end of September (give or take a week or two). Feather is around ten years young and a total sweetheart. She currently takes daily oral prednisolone to manage some skin allergies, and may need rechecks at Grays Ferry from time to time to ensure her allergies are well managed. We also would like to remove a (non-painful) bump/mass on top of her head before she returns to her owner. Feather has lived peacefully with cats, small dogs, and older kids. Plus, she is combo tested negative for FIV and FeLV! If Feather doesn’t find a new foster before Saturday, we’ll need to keep her in our Grays Ferry shelter. We’d love for Feather to find a soft place to land in a foster home instead!
	Name: Quartz *SUPER URGENT, needs longterm foster transfer by 9/14/25* Location: foster care – this pet is not at the shelter! Please email foster@phillypaws.org for more info about how to help them! Meet Quartz, our special super senior! Originally adopted from PAWS almost a decade ago, Quartz was found as a stray during the winter, and sadly we have not been able to get in contact with her original owner. She’s around 12 years old and already spayed,  and she has hyperthyroidism, for which she will be taking a twice-daily transdermal medication called Methimazole. (Transdermal in this case means it will be a small amount of ointment that gets rubbed into her ear.) Quartz also has a seizure history, including full seizures occasionally -maybe a couple times a month- and ‘focal seizures’ that manifest as facial twitching. For these she’ll be taking a special medication called Keppra, which is given three times daily for optimum effect. If you work from home and/or have multiple folks in the home who can help get her medication to her during her morning, mid-afternoon, and late evening dose, that would be fantastic! Given that she is an older gal, Quartz’s little legs aren’t as strong as they used to be, so while Quartz often enjoys a good nap on the couch (perhaps with some help getting up) jumping and climbing is sometimes a little tricky for her nowadays. We suspect she has arthritis, so for this she’ll be taking Gabapentin! While she certainly has a little laundry list of senior kitty conditions we are treating, Quartz really is a gem- she loves attention and can be SUPER sweet. She’s not the biggest fan of other cats at our shelter, and thus would appreciate being the only animal in her foster space. You can see more of Quartz’s shenanigans via her Instagram: @philly_foster_pets Quartz loves her catnip! Here you can see Quartz being a goofball~
	Name: Chip *Needs foster sitter on 8/30 and 8/31* Location: foster care – this pet is not at the shelter! Please email foster@phillypaws.org for more info about how to help them! Gorgeous tuxie gal Chip is always dressed to impress! She’s around 9ish years old, give or take, already spayed, and has been living it up in foster care. Her current foster is going to be away for Labor Day weekend (8/30 and 8/31) and needs sitter coverage so Chip can get her twice daily Methimazole to keep her thyroid happy! Her foster lives in the Fishtown area of Philly and Chip should be fine to just get a couple visits daily, since moving her to another home for such a short period may be too stressful for her. She takes her Methimazole (a teeny tiny tablet) in a bit of food with her meals, easy peasy. Chip’s foster also has a friend who may be able to do evening check ins on both 8/30 and 8/31, so if you can’t come twice daily but can cover Chip’s morning medication/feeding shift on both days, or even if you can come twice daily to help out Chip, let us know!
	Name: Xena & Penny *Need a sitter from 9/1 – 9/14* Location: foster care – these pets are not at the shelter! Please email foster@phillypaws.org for more info about how to help them! These two senior ladies need a sitter for a couple weeks in early September! If you can help them out please email foster@phillypaws.org! Per their foster, they are both sweet princesses that mostly just sleep everyday. They take Gabapentin for transitional anxiety but may be getting weaned off by the time they’d need a sitter. If you opt to watch them in your own home, though, we can provide more Gabapentin for the adjustment! Xena and Penny are both spayed, ready for adoption, and about 11 years old. They are nervous at first in new spaces, but once adjusted are absolute lovebugs.

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: New York + 3 (New Hampshire, New Jersey, New England) *URGENT, pending ringworm culture* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 8/17/25 This family has been through so much since arriving at the city shelter! Super crowded this time of year, New York and her babies were in a crate when we discovered them (since there was no cage space left), and momma was so scared from all the shelter noise she was trying to hide under her litterbox. Now at PAWS she’s been friendly and accepting pets, but you can tell she’s exhausted and catching up on a lot of missed sleep from the noise and stress she’s experienced. Her babies are a smidge nervous, but really curious and love when you wiggle a toy for them! They just need a little bit more time with mom while they work on weaning to solids, and then everyone can come for their spay/neuter surgeries in a few short weeks! Momma is around 1-2 years old and her babies are 4.5-5 weeks old. update 8/21/25: New York’s kittens have developed some hair loss that we’re culturing for ringworm, out of an abundance of caution! We may not know results of their testing for a few days to a couple weeks, but we’ll keep this page updated if they test positive for the fungus. You can learn more about ringworm care here!
	Name: Baby Ironclad *URGENT* Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 8/07/25 Baby Ironclad (workshoppin’ that name) is a super cutie with a super-not-cute pelvic injury! He has a pelvic fracture that has to heal via strict ‘bed rest’ via rest and time. This means he’ll have to stay in a crate or playpen, which PAWS can provide, over several weeks while we periodically recheck his healing progress. This is to prevent running/jumping/worsening his injury. The left side of his hip is fractured and displaced a little bit, and as a result the head of his left femur is also displaced. Once his pelvis is healed over time, we’ll schedule a surgery to correct his femur so his left hip can function like a proper ball and socket joint again! In the meantime this little 8-week-old nugget is getting some nice pain medication. He is also already neutered! We plan to recheck his xrays between 9/16-23 to reasses pelvic healing. He would definitely benefit from foster care in the meantime, though! Iron’s foster should expect to have him at least 2-3 months, depending on healing timelines for both his pelvis and his hip surgery. Most of that time will be him living in a playpen, and post-surgery he’ll gradually get more and more exercise time outside his pen.
	Name: June, July, August Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 8/10/25 This trio is around 4-5 weeks old and super sweet, and just finished a short course of eye medication! They’re a little on the skinny side so we’d like to get them out into foster care so they can get closer monitoring and more meals throughout the day to gain weight! They are friendly and interactive, just need a little more monitoring than we can do at our clinic.
	Name: Lulu + 4 (Elio, Matteo, Rocco, Antonio) Location: Grays Ferry Clinic Date of Arrival: 8/17/25 What a CUTE little family!! Momma Lulu is around 1-2ish years old and super sweet. Her kittens are super curious, and with the five of them in one cage, things are getting cramped. The babies are around a month old and getting into that hilarious phase of kittenhood where they’re wanting to climb and explore and get into kitten duels with each other (poof tails and bouncing and all) but there’s only so much room for everyone in their cage. We’d like to get this family unit out asap so they can have more room while the babies master weaning!

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.

Please check back later!

Old City Adoption Center

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

	Name: Kiddie *URGENT* Location: Old City Adoption Center 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: London *FeLV+* Location: Old City Adoption Center Date of Arrival: 8/05/25 London is a lovely little gray velvet lady, ready for adoption on paper, but also FeLV+ (and double tested, so we know she will not ‘flip’ to FeLV- in the future) so we’d prefer she await her eventual forever home in foster care, rather than at the shelter! London is around 1-2 years old and already spayed. We are still getting to know her, but since she’s FeLV+ we recommend she live as a solo cat, or in a home with other double-tested FeLV+ cats.

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!