We've posted a couple of articles this week about adoption as a way to start or expand your family. It can be a life-changing experience for you and for the individual you welcome into your home.

This time, let's go in a little different direction. Let's still talk about adoption and about additions to your family. But this time, let's talk about your new "kids" having four paws and a tail.

On a recent KHMO Talk Back, we visited with Elise Blue of the Northeast Missouri Humane Society about the do's and don'ts of adopting a dog or cat, especially at Christmas time.

Elise told us the main thing to keep in mind is that Christmas present with the cold nose is a long term commitment. "Pets are not a six-month present, they’re not a three-month present, they’re a present for the animal's lifetime. That could be anywhere from ten years to fifteen years, if you’re lucky twenty. They’re family members once you get ‘em."

Elise told us that, at this time, the Humane Society doesn't have any puppies for adoption, but they're facility is full of dogs and cats of all breeds, shapes and sizes, any one of whom could be just the one to make your family complete.

To see some of the fur-kids available for adoption, go to the Northeast Missouri Humane Society website, or keep scrolling.

This Christmas, Give the Gift of a 'Fur-ever' Home to One of These Adoptables

This Christmas, how about giving one of these four-legged kids from the Northeast Missouri Humane Society a fur-ever home.

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Why do they meow? Why do they nap so much? Why do they have whiskers? Cats, and their undeniably adorable babies known as kittens, are mysterious creatures. Their larger relatives, after all, are some of the most mystical and lethal animals on the planet. Many questions related to domestic felines, however, have perfectly logical answers. Here’s a look at some of the most common questions related to kittens and cats, and the answers cat lovers are looking for.

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