A volunteer from an animal shelter in Canada found a supermarket basket on a dirt road with four kittens alone inside that had almost no space to move. Luckily, they were all healthy and now have beautiful, clever and funny names.
But the lesson here is: sometimes the best (and safest) option is to contact a shelter instead of leaving pets outside waiting until somebody gets close.
Four kittens discovered at the shelter gate
In the morning, the volunteer was just arriving for her morning shift at the BC SPCA Shelter when she suddenly saw this basket near the main entrance. But what she found really caught her attention and made her think about why people do the things they do with animals. Inside the basket, there was a cage that was sealed with tape, which did not let the four poor kittens move. She also said that they were kind of desperate and trying to look through the holes.
So what did she do? As soon as she saw the basket, she picked them up and took the cats inside for a complete revision, confirming that they were strong and healthy.
Why their estimated age mattered
For shelters, it is very important to know as much as they can about the context of the animal that is found. Specifically, in this case, knowing their weight and size helped them understand (and calculate) that the kittens were around 9 weeks old. This was key data, since it meant that they could eat without depending on their mother, leaving them ready for the adoption process.
BC SPCA used the opportunity to explain that kittens younger than eight weeks should stay with their mother. And it is after that time, that more or less, that they can be adopted. That does not mean that they do not still need veterinary assessment, or things such as vaccinations and parasite care.
The staff thought that maybe these four little kittens lived with their mom before they were abandoned. Their good health helped them to recover fast, but that does not take away from the enormous risk they faced being all stacked together inside the basket where they were found.
Hatch, Portal, Wicket, and Lattice begin again
Here is when the cute part comes… At the Shelter, they baptized them as Hatch, Portal, Wicket, and Lattice, inspired by the place where they were found. At the time that the report was published, the four beautiful kittens were already in foster care with the possibility of adoption.
A happy ending does not make the drop-off safe
This rescue ended basically well because Mather, and the volunteer arrived early and checked the basket immediately, but the situation could have been much worse. There are many cases in which people, instead of leaving them during the day, leave them at night when the shelter is closed. And then what?
Abandoning an animal without saying anything to the volunteers there makes it difficult for them to know more things about their backgrounds (like age, behaviour, vaccines or health problems).
Calling first gives shelters more ways to help
If somebody arrives at the shelter, staff tend to say to people that if they are going through an unexpected crisis with their animals they can receive some help so that they do not need to be separated from their pets. But if it is still not possible to live with them, they ask people to arrange animal admissions in advance, unless there are emergency cases where they cannot no longer keep them. This allows the staff to prepare a proper place for them, to check their history, and mostly, to see if there is a waiting list or if they need to find another resource/shelter.
Literally, there is no need for people to let desperation win. There will always be options to make a choice and also to keep the animals safe. In British Columbia, the BC SPCA Animal Helpline is available at 1-855-622-7722, and there are still many other places where owners can reach out and take the animals to have a better life.
What to do when kittens are found
If it is you who one day (unfortunately) finds young kittens, there are some things you need to know first to act with the best precaution. BC SPCA say that if they are very, very small they tend to be much more protected with their mother if they are in a safe place and look like they do not need urgent help.
Their age can be difficult to calculate, so taking them to a shelter or a vet can help you to know better. The smallest ones need warmth and frequent bottle-feeding, and older, weaned kittens need a different care plan and can enter a foster program or adoption much faster.
For Hatch, Portal, Wicket, and Lattice, the timing was really good. They were able to eat alone, they were healthy and they found a place to live pretty fast.
Four small faces leave one big lesson
It was really a matter of luck that Mather and her team found them on time and everything ended the way it ended. She gave them a second opportunity, and while this is a happy ending, we still must not forget the context of how they were found. Before taking quick decisions or being guided by impulses, think twice before leaving animals inside a small basket in the middle of the street.
The original report was published on The Dodo.
