With a cost of living crisis and people not being able to afford food for their own plates, cats and kittens in our area are suffering. We are constantly being asked to take in pets which owners can no longer afford to keep but with a full branch and a long waiting list it is difficult for us to help. Sadly this means we are seeing an alarming number of cases where cats and kittens are just being abandoned because owners are so desperate.

One such case was the sudden appearance in a garden of a mum and three kittens. We were made aware of them by a member of the public and it is believed that their owners had moved away and just left them in the garden. The estate agent contacted the previous occupier, but they denied they were theirs, so we had no option by to take them into our care.

But these things are never quite straight forward. The kittens were caught easily, but it took around a week to catch mum. As the kittens were around 10 weeks old the decision was made to separate them at this point, especially as mum needed spaying. Luckily all 4 cats were pretty friendly, and this shows they have obviously had plenty of human contact and were without doubt abandoned.

But suddenly we were 4 cats up in an already full branch. Every cat which comes into our care gets a full vet check. This includes checking for Microchips and any obvious sign of injury or illness.

Luckily the kittens were in good health, but while in care with us had to be treated for fleas and worms twice, needed Microchipping and vaccinations. Mum, once we caught her was also in good health, but again needed to be treated for fleas and worms, microchipped and vaccinated, but also spayed and tested for FIV and FeLV.

This story has a happy ending, the kittens have already gone off to their new homes and mum will soon follow, but sadly this is not always the case. Some cats are not so lucky, some come into us when its just too late to help, or with injuries which needs months of treatment.

On average we estimate it costs round £150 in vets fees for every cat which comes into us.

Can you help support us to support the cats and kitten abandon in our area?