GONZALES – More than a dozen cats were up for adoption this weekend after 76 cats were removed from two hoarding situations near Alexandria.

“They were unhealthy, sick, had upper respiratory infections, all malnourished and one actually had bones in its stomach,” said Director of Operations with Rescue Alliance Jonathan Henriques.

The cats that have recovered are in desperate need of a new home. Henriques says his shelter is at capacity, and he is constantly getting requests to take in more animals.

“We’re receiving anywhere from four to nine calls a day,” said Henriques.

Henriques believes this overflow is due to kitten season since stray cats are giving birth to litters of kittens around this time. Henriques also said the pandemic is to blame, with many people taking in non-fixed pets.

“We took in 17 kittens the day before yesterday. In total, we’ve taken about 40 in just the past week and a half,” said Henriques.

The adoption event took place inside the PetSmart off of Airline Highway in Gonzales. Eight of the cats will remain there after the weekend.