The short answer
The main Melbourne cat rescues are the Cat Protection Society of Victoria (a cat-only shelter at Greensborough), RSPCA Victoria (Burwood East and Peninsula at Pearcedale), Animal Aid (Coldstream, in the outer east) and Forever Friends Animal Rescue (a large Victorian foster network). The shelters let you meet cats in person; the foster-based rescues tell you more about how a cat actually lives. Applying at more than one for different cats at once is normal and recommended. Fees always include desexing, vaccination, microchipping and a vet check. Two Melbourne essentials: you register a cat with your council each year, and many councils run a cat curfew, so plan to keep your cat contained.
How to use this guide
We cover the main Melbourne cat rescues in detail below. For each one we note where it is, how it is run, how adoption works, what the fee covers, and who it suits best. The differences are practical: a first-time adopter who wants to meet a cat in person today suits a different rescue than someone who wants a foster carer's full read on a shy or senior cat before committing.
Reading each profile and matching it to your situation makes the application process work faster. For what is actually available right now, use the browse link partway down this page.
1. Cat Protection Society of Victoria
Location: 200 Elder Street, Greensborough (north-east Melbourne).
Type: Cat only; adoption shelter with an on-site vet clinic and retail store; founded 1947.
Adoption fees: Set by the cat's age; all cats desexed, microchipped and vaccinated, with seniors often reduced.
The Cat Protection Society of Victoria is Melbourne's dedicated cat organisation, and because it is cat-only with its own vet clinic on site, it has the staff and experience to match a cat to your home and to support you afterwards. It receives no ongoing government funding, so adoptions and donations keep it running. You can visit in person during adoption hours. See their current cats at catprotection.com.au.
Best fit for: Adopters who want a cat specialist, first-timers who want experienced cat advice, and anyone in Melbourne's north-east.
Friction points: A busy shelter shows less of a cat's true personality than a foster home does, so a shy cat can take longer to settle than a first meeting suggests.
2. RSPCA Victoria
Location: Burwood East (3 Burwood Highway) and RSPCA Peninsula at Pearcedale.
Type: State welfare body; shelter-based, multi-species.
Adoption fees: Set per cat; all animals health- and behaviour-checked, desexed, microchipped and vaccinated, with seniors often free.
RSPCA Victoria is the state's best-known welfare organisation, and it rehomes cats alongside dogs and other animals, with a structured process and adopter support before and after adoption. Its two metro-reach centres, Burwood East in the east and Peninsula at Pearcedale in the south-east, mean one is usually within range. See their current cats at rspcavic.org.
Best fit for: Adopters who want an established welfare body with institutional support and a centre they can reach.
Friction points: A busy centre tells you less about a cat than a foster home does.
3. Animal Aid
Location: Coldstream (Yarra Ranges, outer east Melbourne).
Type: Victorian animal welfare organisation; shelter-based, dogs and cats.
Adoption fees: Set per cat; all cats desexed, microchipped and vaccinated.
Animal Aid runs its main shelter at Coldstream on the Yarra Valley fringe and has its own cat adoptions, which makes it the handiest option if you live in Melbourne's outer east rather than driving into the inner suburbs. You can meet cats in person at the shelter. See their current cats at animalaid.org.au.
Best fit for: Adopters in Melbourne's outer east or the Yarra Valley who want a local shelter to visit.
Friction points: Coldstream is a drive from the inner suburbs, and a busy shelter tells you less about a cat than a foster home does.
4. Forever Friends Animal Rescue
Location: Melbourne and across Victoria; foster-based, with a rural sanctuary.
Type: Volunteer, foster-based rescue; cats, dogs and farmed animals.
Adoption fees and process: Set per cat; all cats desexed, microchipped and vaccinated. Enquire to arrange a meet with the foster carer.
Forever Friends Animal Rescue is a large Victorian foster network, so every cat has been living in a carer's home before adoption and its listing describes how the cat really behaves indoors. Because it is foster-based there is no shelter to drop into: you enquire about a cat and arrange a meet with its carer. See their current cats at foreverfriends.org.au.
Best fit for: Adopters who want a foster carer's honest behaviour notes, and households where fit with children or another pet matters most.
Friction points: No shelter to visit, so meeting a cat takes a little more coordination, and foster matching is slower than walking into a shelter.
Browse adoptable cats across Melbourne rescues
See the cats these rescues have available right now, in one place.
All adoptable cats in Melbourne →Other Melbourne cat rescues worth knowing about
- Blue Cross Animals Society of Victoria: a dog-and-cat shelter at Wonga Park in the outer east, with adoptions by appointment.
- The Lost Dogs' Home: a long-established North Melbourne shelter that rehomes cats as well as dogs, with a second facility at Cranbourne.
- Australian Animal Protection Society (AAPS): a welfare shelter at Keysborough in the south-east.
- Council pounds: Melbourne's councils take in stray and surrendered cats that become available for adoption, usually with less behavioural information than a rescue provides.
- PetRescue.com.au: a national aggregator listing many smaller rescues; useful for finding a breed-specific or suburb-specific cat rescue not covered here.
What does not make a rescue a good or bad choice
- Adoption fee size. Fees reflect how each rescue covers desexing, microchipping, vaccination and vet costs, not the quality of the cat. Every rescue cat here has had all of that done.
- Whether it is a shelter or a foster network. Neither is better; they are different. A shelter lets you meet a cat today; a foster home tells you how the cat actually lives, which matters more for a shy or senior cat.
- Brand recognition. RSPCA Victoria is the most familiar name, but the cat-only society or a foster rescue's notes may suit you better. Compare the rescues, not the names.
- Breed or coat. The best cat for you is very often a domestic shorthair with no breed label at all, which is what most Melbourne rescue cats are.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the best cat rescue in Melbourne?
There is no single best rescue; the right choice depends on what you want. The Cat Protection Society of Victoria in Greensborough is a cat-only shelter with its own vet clinic, so it is the obvious first stop for a cat. RSPCA Victoria rehomes cats at Burwood East and its Peninsula centre at Pearcedale. Animal Aid at Coldstream runs its own cat adoptions in the outer east. Forever Friends Animal Rescue is a large Victorian foster network, so its cats come with a carer’s real-home notes. Most adopters check more than one, which is normal and sensible.
How much does it cost to adopt a cat in Melbourne?
Fees vary by rescue and the cat’s age, and every fee includes desexing, vaccination, microchipping and a vet check, which would cost far more than the fee if you arranged it yourself. A kitten usually costs more than an adult cat, and senior cats are often heavily reduced or free. Each rescue sets its own fees, so check the individual cat or the rescue’s site. Separately from the adoption fee, you register the cat with your council each year, and a desexed, microchipped cat pays a much lower registration fee.
What is the difference between a shelter and a foster-based rescue?
A shelter holds cats at a single site you can visit (the Cat Protection Society at Greensborough, RSPCA Victoria at Burwood East). A foster-based rescue such as Forever Friends places each cat in a volunteer’s home until adoption. Shelter cats can be met quickly in person, but a cattery shows less of a cat’s real personality; foster cats come with detailed notes on how they behave in a normal household, which takes a little longer to arrange but tells you more, especially for a shy or senior cat.
Do cats have to be registered and microchipped in Melbourne?
Yes. Under the Victorian Domestic Animals Act 1994 a cat three months or older must be registered with your local council, and registration renews every year by 10 April. A cat must be microchipped before it can be registered for the first time, and a desexed, microchipped cat pays a substantially lower registration fee. A rescue cat comes to you already desexed and microchipped, so you simply register it in your name. If you ever rehome a cat yourself, every advertisement must show its microchip number and a Pet Exchange Register source number.
Are there cat curfews in Melbourne?
Often, yes, but they are set by your local council, not the state. Many Victorian councils run a cat curfew (commonly overnight, and some are 24 hours) and cat-containment rules through their Domestic Animal Management Plan, and the detail varies from suburb to suburb. Check your own council. The simplest way to comply, and the safest option for the cat and for local wildlife, is to keep your cat contained to your property, which most Melbourne rescues ask for anyway.
Can I adopt a kitten in Melbourne, or only adult cats?
Both come through. Kitten season peaks over the warmer months, so kittens are plentiful then, and they are spoken for quickly, so setting an alert beats refreshing the page. An adult cat, though, arrives with a settled temperament a shelter or foster carer has already observed, which many first-time adopters find reassuring, and adult cats and bonded pairs are often the calmest additions to a home.
Victorian cat law and curfews
Victoria's companion-animal law is the Domestic Animals Act 1994. A cat three months or older must be registered with your council and the registration renews each year by 10 April, a cat must be microchipped before its first registration, and a desexed, microchipped cat pays a much lower fee. A rescue cat arrives already desexed and microchipped, so you simply register it in your name. If you ever rehome a cat yourself, every advertisement must show the cat's microchip number and a Pet Exchange Register source number.
Many Victorian councils also run a cat curfew and containment rules through their Domestic Animal Management Plan, and the detail varies by suburb, so check your own council. On parasites, metropolitan Melbourne is low-risk for the paralysis tick, which is an eastern-seaboard species; the main time to think about it is before travelling to the NSW coast or East Gippsland. See the RSPCA Knowledgebase for background.
Keep reading
All Adoptable Cats in Melbourne
Live listings from the rescues in this guide. Filter by age, coat and shelter.
Cat Adoption in Melbourne: A Complete Guide
Where to adopt, what it costs, what the fee includes, the Victorian law and cat curfews.
What Cat Adoption Costs in Melbourne
Adoption fees, desexing, microchipping, annual council registration, and the ongoing yearly cost.
Indoor vs Outdoor Cats in Melbourne
Victorian cat curfews and containment rules, wildlife, traffic, and keeping an indoor cat happy.