by Lorraine Monfils
The past few weeks have been very challenging, phone call after phone call about litters of unwanted kittens or people looking to re-home their cats. The obvious answer to the problem is to neuter and spay your pets. As much as we preach about the importance of neuter and spay it seems to fall on deaf ears.
Kittens are being born under steps, in barns or whereever the mother cat can find shelter. Many of the pregnant cats are just kittens themselves. We currently have a pregnant female who isn’t much more than 6 or 7 months old. She is just a kitten herself. This past week two tiny kittens about a week and half old were pulled out from under a porch so infested with fleas there was no chance of survival. The mamma kitty was infested as well with sores all over her body. The fleas were literally sucking the life out of her to the point she had no milk to nurse her babies. The babies died, but mamma is on the road to recovery.
The point being she should never of had babies and yes this was someone’s pet, the owner has since surrendered the mamma along with other un-spayed females and more kittens.
Three kittens pulled out from behind a dumpster. No kitten should have to live in these conditions. They are living breathing souls, yet they are living in and eating trash. They are safe now. Two of them were females, which if they were left out there, they would start reproducing in a few months and more kittens would be born into that environment.
Five kittens found on someone’s back porch. How did they get there? Good question. They are about 5 weeks old and once again three females and one male. In a few months they too will be able start reproducing.
Two kittens pulled from a barn both with upper respiratory. If left out there who knows what the outcome would be. They are both now on the road to recovery.
These are just a few of the stories, many of them heartbreaking, but not for the owners … for the rescuers. The rescuers are the ones watching babies die and watching while others fight for their lives. They are the ones pulling the kittens from the barns and under the steps, doing what ever they can to find help for them. They are the ones making donations and doing fundraising to raise money to help these poor creatures get to the vet. They are the ones donating food and litter, making vet runs, fostering animals with no homes, they are the ones trying to make a difference.
For every good responsible owner there are just as many bad. There are low cost programs out there to help you neuter or spay your pet. Do your homework, educate yourself and become part of the solution. There is no such thing as a free kitten. They cost money. They need vet care, food and shelter, flea treatments. They need to be altered. All those things are not free. Don’t make an animal pay the price because you can’t afford them. If you can’t afford them, don’t get them – it is as simple as that.
Please join us for Strut your Mutt on Saturday, Sept. 13, with registration at 9 a.m. and the walk begins at 10 a.m. We will walk from Hollywood Pet Salon to the Sanctuary grounds, about four miles. Pledge forms available at the salon. Come out to raise money for a good cause. There will also be a bake sale that same day.
Thank you for your continued support and as always thank you for reading our column.
