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It's been less than three years since veterinar- ians Julie Levy and Kate Hurley sent out the challenge to North American shelters: Can we save a million cats in five years?
So far, it looks like the answer is "Yes!"
Levy is director of Maddie's Shelter Medicine program at the University of Florida, and Hurley heads the UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program. Since they started the
Million Cat Challenge, more than 750,000 lives have been saved, and more than 1,100 shelters in the US and Canada have signed on to help reach that million cat goal.
Soon the number of participating shelters could get a boost from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Earlier this month, the huge nonprofit announced a partnership with the Challenge that will, among other things, bring more attention to the plight of shelter cats. ASPCA statistics show that cats are less likely than dogs to get out of shelters alive.