“Kitten season brings an influx of kittens into our community, but discovering a litter does not necessarily mean they are in distress,” Juli Ulvestad, pet resource director for the nonprofit, said in the media release.

Ulvestad emphasized the importance of understanding the needs of these young felines.

“In the first few weeks of life, kittens’ best chance of survival is with their mother,” she said.

In most cases, the nonprofit advises the public to leave stray kittens where they are found. This advice can be difficult to heed after so many years of hearing that kittens should be brought to the shelter, but data shows that kittens have a much better chance of survival if left where their mother cat can care for them.

Even kittens that appear unattended likely have a mother cat looking out for them who will be distressed should her kittens go missing.

However, there are a few cases in which leaving stray kittens may not be the best course of action. If the kittens are cold, malnourished, overly dirty or appear sickly and you haven’t seen a mother cat return within a few hours of finding them, the humane society suggests either fostering or contacting your local animal services.

If you feel equipped to care for and bottle-feed the kittens until they are old enough to be spayed or neutered, this may be a good option. If not, your animal services will help you determine the next best steps for the kittens.

In the case that you are finding stray adult cats, the humane society suggests a Trap Neuter Return program. These programs involve humanely trapping cats, bringing them to a shelter to be spayed or neutered, and returning them to the area in which they were found.

The nonprofit offers humane trap rental and a Trap Neuter Return program for stray cats, learn more and sign up on this website.