Wilbur is an unlikely internet celebrity.

Picked up by Caroline Animal Control, Wilbur and a canine buddy entered the shelter severely underweight. So skinny in fact, that Wilbur managed to slip out of his collar and escape the folks who were trying to save him. He made his way back to the shelter, however, and sat outside of his buddy’s kennel. Wilbur had decided that the people at Caroline Animal Control weren’t so bad after all.

Enter the Richmond Animal League. Specifically, Board President Sharon Cornett and long-time RAL volunteer Carolyn Turner. When Carolyn shared Wilbur’s picture with her, Sharon knew that Wilbur would be coming to RAL. Wilbur’s picture hit RAL’s Facebook page and went viral.

Carbon footprint. Green communities. And adopting a shelter pet? With Earth Day coming up on April 22nd, Richmond Animal League wants to help raise awareness of their “100% recycled, earth-friendly” pets, and how you can help make your pets earth-friendly, too. 

There is an argument to be made that in and of themselves, pets just aren’t that great for the environment—there’s the environmental cost of producing pet food and the by-product waste it generates, the trash produced by old toys and other items, and then of course there’s the waste that comes out of the pets themselves!

Regina has been at Richmond Animal League her whole life. All 10 months of it.

Regina was born last May, just as kitten season was beginning. A tiny black kitten, she watched the hustle and bustle of daily activity at RAL, observing as other pets found their forever homes. Somehow, no one ever came for Regina.

As they grew older, Regina and her littermates graduated from the lobby of RAL to the adult cat room, where she and a dozen other teenage cats had the run of the place. Again, she watched as her playmates were adopted, and once again, she remained behind.

Regina is now the youngest cat in the adult cat room. The last kitten. Maybe it’s her black coat, or her quiet personality, but she hasn’t found the right home yet.

As animals shelters across the city prepare for the tidal wave of kittens that will arrive in a few weeks as kitten season 2012 begins, Regina continues to hope that her family will come looking for her.