Paws and Whiskers Cat Shelter suspends intake, adoption

Paws and Whiskers Cat Shelter in Toledo.

Paws and Whiskers Cat Shelter suspended intake and adoption of cats and kittens Thursday because of a viral infection affecting part of its feline population.

The suspension because of feline calicivirus is expected to run through Dec. 16 unless a veterinarian directs otherwise.

Not usually life-threatening, the upper-respiratory infection can spread in shelters and veterinary clinics, shelter officials said. Cats with symptoms — runny nose and eyes and tongue sores — are being moved to the main Paws and Whiskers shelter off Hill Avenue.

About a third of the shelter’s population has been infected.