27th December 2024
A kind member of the public found the one tabby female and two black male kittens while out walking his dog in Totton. Unsure what to do with the shivering bundles of fur he called the Cats Protection shop on Commercial Road in Totton for help. It is likely the trio had been left out in the cold the night before.
Shop Manager, Mel Gunn, explains: “A gentleman rang us as soon as we opened to say he’d found three kittens dumped in a plastic carrier while he was out walking his dog. I could hear he was shaken at the discovery and told him to bring them straight to us and we’d contact our local rehoming branch.
“When he arrived he was quite upset and shaken and said he found the carrier covered in a soaking wet towel. The towel inside the carrier was soaked in urine and the kittens were terrified.
We held them close to help them warm up then cleared out our donation bin to keep them safe. We made them comfortable with towels that had been donated for cats as well as some kitten food that we had luckily received. They were so hungry and immediately gobbled down two pouches.”
Mel contacted volunteer-run Cats Protection Southampton who arrived within the hour to collect the kittens and take them into foster care. The tabby has been named Holly, the all-black kitten has been named Sprout and the black kitten with a few flecks of white is Tinsel.
Coordinator Carolyne Kemp says: “The kittens were extremely lucky to be found. We think they are only about six weeks old, too young to be away from their mother, who should be caring for them until they are eight weeks old at least.
“They are lovely little kittens, friendly and surprisingly a good weight. We will never know how they came to be dumped but there is never any excuse to leave kittens or cats to fend for themselves. These kittens would certainly have died if they hadn’t been found when they were. We would like to thank the dog walker for his quick-thinking and kindness. His actions meant that these little ones are truly a Christmas miracle and now will be kept safe and found new loving homes once they’re older.”
The charity as a whole has seen a 34% increase in cases of abandonment this year alone. 61% of the cats taken in by the volunteers in Southampton this year have been as a result of abandonments, owners not being able to cope with cat care costs or unwanted litters of kittens.
Carolyne adds: “We have really seen the cost of living have an impact on owners’ ability to care for their cats this year. We will always help where we can but if people are struggling we would urge them to get in touch rather than abandon their cats as we can support them until a space is available.”
Anyone wishing to help the volunteers cover the costs of caring for Sprout, Holly and Tinsel may do so via https://bit.ly/SproutHollyTinsel
The kittens will be available for adoption once they are old enough and their details will be posted on Cats Protection Southampton’s website.
For further information about them and other cats and kittens in the volunteers’ care visit www.cats.org.uk/southampton or call 02381 661 633.
Pictures and video of the kittens in foster care and at the shop can be downloaded on Dropbox.
For further information or an interview, please contact Cats Protection’s Media Office on 01825 741 911, at media.office@cats.org.uk.