Counting cats: Felines more likely to be lost, less likely to be adopted

Cats are also 10 times less likely to be returned to their owners, once they get lost.

"If they do get lost, owners are less likely to look for them soon," Janzen said. "Whereas dogs, owners will look for them right away if they get lost. Cats they'll think, 'She'll come home in a couple of days. She'll be fine.'"

Cats are also less likely to be wearing a collar when they are found, which helps inundate the shelters, but at the same time, providing a wonderful opportunity for a family looking for loving companion.

"They wanted a pet, and I travel for my job, so we just couldn't do a dog at the time," he said.

The Miller family followed the suggestion that kittens and cats are best adopted in pairs and ended up with two.

"This was the original one we were going to get, and then my daughter started smiling at me a lot, and decided she really wanted this one too," Miller said.