We're kicking off a new series of Q&As about pet adoption! Once a month we'll select a reader question and answer it here. Have a question you'd like us to answer? Email us.

Q: I'm looking to adopt my next dog in order to save a life and help. It's very sad to see the outrageous adoption fees so many shelters are asking for these unwanted animals. I understand many shelters are giving them their shots, etc., but many vets will work with new owners on lower-cost care for pets -- so why don't the shelters? -- Stephanie D.

A: Hi Stephanie. Thank you so much for looking into adoption for your next dog! While searching Petfinder, you will find pets from more than 13,600 shelters and rescue groups -- each with its own adoption procedure and fees. Depending on the type of organization and type of pet, adoption fees can range from no fee up to several hundred dollars.

After the jump, some information on what helps determine an adoption fee amount, what that fee covers and how you can get a reduced adoption fee on a great pet.

National Feral Cat Day is this Sunday, Oct. 16, and Petfinder is joining with Alley Cat Allies to raise awareness about feral cats, promote Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR), and recognize feral-cat caretakers.

Our house came complete with feral cats (also sometimes called community and neighborhood cats) when we moved in, and we have cared for them ever since. (Read about my neighborhood cat colony here.)

In honor of National Feral Cat Day, I'm posting my husband's short video tour of our feral-cat houses, as well as our annual "changing of the straw" to prepare our feral colony for a cold Northeastern winter. After trapping, altering, vaccinating and returning feral cats to their place of origin, maintaining a healthy and safe colony is an important part of our
relationship with neighborhood cats.

Watch our video above and see important tips for keeping a feral-cat colony well-cared-for after the jump.

If you've ever been to a Tractor Supply Company store, you already know they go way beyond tractors. With a wide range of pet supplies available, Tractor Supply Company is celebrating Pet Appreciation Week in all its stores nationwide Aug. 3-7.

The main pet event will take place on Saturday, Aug. 6, with adoptable pets from Petfinder shelters and rescue groups at most of the 1,000+ Tractor Supply Company locations around the U.S., as well as giveaways, nutrition demonstrations and more.

Petfinder was thrilled when Tractor Supply Company reached out to us with the idea of in-store pet adoption to celebrate Pet Appreciate Week. What better way to appreciate pets than by supporting pet adoption and, perhaps, adopting a new best friend?

Visit TractorSupply.com/PAW for more information on Pet Appreciation Week and to find a Tractor Supply Company store near you.

Attention Chicago-area pet lovers: During our Big Birthday Adoption Weekend, you can meet adoptable pets at two dozen Chicagoland Jiffy Lube locations!

Chicagoland Jiffy Lube is celebrating our 15th birthday by hosting shelters and rescue groups and their adoptable pets from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. on July 16 and/or 12 p.m.-3 p.m. on July 17 (exact days vary by location).

Jiffy Lube reached out to Petfinder during the planning of our birthday celebrations with their interest in helping adoptable pets gain more exposure. As a result, more than 20 Jiffy Lube locations from Northeast Illinois to Northwest Indiana will have adoptable pets during our Big Birthday Adoption Weekend.

The list of participating Jiffy Lube locations and adoption groups is still growing, so visit ChicagolandJiffyLube.com to find an event near you.

For a full list of organizations across North America that are participating in our Big Birthday Adoption Weekend, visit our birthday page.

While most designers in New York City's Fashion Week stick to the runway, Rachel Antonoff prefers to present her collections in alternative venues, including a townhouse and a school gym. And for the past three years, the fashion elite attending her shows have been in for a special treat: adopted cat Mr. Wendy mingling with the models and their admirers.

Mr. Wendy was inherited by my sister Amy after our grandparents passed away within a month of each other. He was originally adopted from Animal Welfare Adoption Network in West Hurley, NY, after being rescued out of a Dumpster behind a Wendy's restaurant.

After seeing a request on Antonoff's Twitter feed for a friendly cat to take part in her next show, Amy and Mr. Wendy jumped at the chance.

Petfinder is joining with our friends at Alley Cat Allies to celebrate today, Oct. 16 as National Feral Cat Day . (Read a beginner's guide to feral cats and TNR.) Feral cats are one of the biggest issues facing the animal welfare field, and yet these cats often go unnoticed by the general public.

When moving to a new house in my urban neighborhood, I was concerned about the skittish cats I saw hiding in the backyard before I even set foot in the door. The current resident told me the cats had been around forever and roamed the neighborhood looking for food. He had two incredibly well-cared-for indoor cats of his own, but hadn't thought to take responsibility for the cats outside.

Our Adoption Options series takes us on exciting trips all around the country, but the conference scheduled on June 6 in Toledo, OH, had a little more "excitement" than we bargained for!

After on-and-off bad weather leading up to day of the event, the brunt of the storms hit during the night of June 5 and lasted well into the morning. Surviving a night of tornado watches and sirens, our crew of speakers rose early Sunday morning to head to the park. The news reported hundreds of downed trees in the exact location where Adoption Options was scheduled to be held, Oak Openings Preserve.

On Aug. 12, Petfinder and shelters and rescue groups across the country celebrated Adopt-A-Less-Adoptable-Pet Day, a day we designated to give all those pets who are often overlooked a chance to shine.

Here are just a few ways adoption groups put their extra-special pets in the spotlight -- and found new homes for some of them as well:

Three New Jersey rescue groups, Friends of Homeless Animals in Hawthorne, Here Kitty Kitty! in Paterson and Angels of Animals in Clifton teamed up to do a joint ALAP Day adoption weekend at the PETCO in Clifton. Senior cat Izzy, who'd been waiting for her forever home for way too long, found that home thanks to ALAP Day!

Our friends at The Grey Muzzle Organization, which helps at-risk senior dogs by providing funding and resources to animal shelters, rescue groups, sanctuaries and other non-profits nationwide, added our senior-pet search widget to their Web site, GreyMuzzle.org.

Washington's Seattle Animal Shelter got the story of Adopt-A-Less-Adoptable-Pet Day out to local media and bloggers. As a result, five "less adoptable" pets found new homes, including two Pit Bulls with special needs!

Just wanted to share the good news: The winner of our Adopt-a-Shelter-Cat Month cat room makeover contest is Central Minnesota Animal Care & Control!

The shelter will receive $1,300 worth of gorgeous cat furniture from The Refined Feline for their new colony-housing cat room.

The Refined Feline makes some of the best-looking and best-performing cat
furniture out there -- with removable carpet panels perfect for sheltering situations. 

You can see a photo of CMACC's "before" cat room above. This was their letter:

Central Minnesota Animal Care & Control, CMACC, heard about Petfinder.com's feline furniture giveaway. We would like you to consider our shelter.

We are sending you a current photo of the room that we will be making into a communal cat room, but we have no funding for cat furniture or any idea what type of furniture to place in the space.

We fell in love with the Refined Feline line of cat furniture and would love to have it as the main focal point of the room.

Please consider helping us outfit our cat room.

Lisa Tenter
Central Minnesota Animal Care & Control

Stay tuned for "after" pictures once CMACC's furniture has been delivered and set up!

Dog and cat care is intuitive to most of us that have grown up or worked with animals. Birds, to me at least, seem so different, so ... exotic.

That's why it's great that there are bird rescue groups to offer their expertise every step of the adoption process and throughout the life of your bird.

Parrots First, based out of Los Angeles, offers a Basic Bird Care class for all potential adopters. The group works to educate people on the proper care of parrots and parrot-like birds, their specific physical and psychological needs, rescuing companion parrots from harmful or unwanted situations and rehabilitating, when necessary, unwanted, found, or injured naturalized (free-flying) parrots; and offering these birds to qualified homes for adoption.

Visit Parrots First on Petfinder.

Do you know a shelter or rescue group doing something creative and/or different? Let us know at outreach@petfinder.com.