Final answer:
To find the amount spent on cats at an animal shelter, where 2.35 is spent per cat per day, and 5.50 per dog per day with a total of 89.50 spent on 22 animals, we set up two equations and found the solution to be 23.50 on cats, which is not listed in the provided options.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question asks us to determine how much was spent on caring for all of the cats at an animal shelter if $2.35 was spent per day for each cat, and $5.50 was spent per day for each dog, with $89.50 total spent on 22 cats and dogs combined. To solve this, let's set up two equations representing the total costs. Let c be the number of cats and d be the number of dogs. We then have two equations:
- 2.35c + 5.50d = 89.50 (total cost equation)
- c + d = 22 (total number of animals equation)
We can solve this system of equations using substitution or elimination. Rearranging the second equation gives us d = 22 - c. Substituting this into the first equation gives us 2.35c + 5.50(22 - c) = 89.50, which simplifies to 2.35c + 121 - 5.50c = 89.50, and further to -3.15c = -31.50. Solving for c gives us c = 10. Knowing there are 10 cats, we can multiply this by the cost per cat: 10 * 2.35 = 23.50 spent on cats.
Therefore, the amount spent on caring for all of the cats is 23.50, which does not match any of the options (a) 89.50, (b) 102.50, (c) 115.00, or (d) $122.50, suggesting there may be an error in the question or options provided.