When Spiderman came to the Humane Society for Southwest Washington a couple of weeks ago, his friendliness to kittens put him right in the spotlight.

Part of the Humane Society’s Mentor Cat program, Spiderman, a black-and-white neutered tomcat, spends his days sharing a room with a half-dozen 8-to-10-week-old kittens — teaching them important life lessons — like how to be a good cat.

The shelter is seeing success from the mentor program, which started recently after a worker noticed an adult cat taking an interest in some kittens. The program provides a mentor for the kittens; but more importantly, it increases the adoption rate of adult cats.

“The idea is, if you adopt a kitten, then you can adopt the mentor cat for free, and the mentor cat will help to teach your kitten,” said Lisa Feder, director of shelter operations.

Through this program, the Humane Society hopes to capitalize on the public’s natural attraction to a room full of kittens by surrounding an adult cat with kittens, bringing the elder cats more attention than they might otherwise receive.

According to Feder, adoptions overall have increased lately, something she attributes in part to the shelter’s year-old East County facility — a facility that makes the Mentor Cat Program possible, thanks to several glassed showcase rooms.

“It really helps to highlight some of the adult cats who happen to be cat-friendly and are a little bit more social and playful,” Feder said.

The shelter staff screens adult cats for mentoring possibility and finds male cats to be generally better-suited. Feder said males seem to be easier-going about the kittens’ playful nature.

Coming to the shelter after his former family welcomed a new baby who is allergic to cats, Spiderman is expected to have only a short stay before finding a new home — a trend Feder said is not unusual for mentor cats, as they tend to be quickly adopted — perfectly fulfilling the program’s goal.

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