When there’s nothing to do on the weekends, I like going to the animal shelter. Unfortunately, I can’t adopt any pets because I live in the dorms on campus (a pretty lame rule, if you ask me), but I still love going and giving the animals some much needed attention.

The Florence-Lauderdale Animal Shelter isn’t open on Saturdays, so I made the trek up to my hometown in Savannah, Tenn., last weekend.

There is a whole room full of kittens as soon as you walk in the door, and they’re absolutely adorable. The cats are sometimes let out of their cages to climb things all over the room, and that’s how they were when I got there.     

There were cats on the floor, cats lying in little beds and cats all the way to the ceiling on scratching posts. I adore cats, so I was in absolute heaven. My 8-year-old sister, on the other hand, dislikes most animals, and she was totally freaked out by all the claws and meows, which was pretty amusing (I’m a supportive older sister, I know).

After I left the cat room, I went to visit the dogs. I wasn’t allowed in any of the pens with them, but I could pet them through the fence. They were all very friendly and excited to get some attention. Convincing my 12-year-old brother that we didn’t need any more dogs at our house was quite the task, though!

All in all, it was a really fun visit. It’s always rough to see all the cute animals without homes, but I love knowing that I could give them some love and attention.