“She was incredibly stressed.”
In a small town in England, a sweet cat waited for someone to notice her. She was trapped between a building and a fence, unable to move. Eventually someone noticed her, and her eyes pleaded with them. She was desperate for help — both for herself and her kittens.
The RSPCA was called out to help, and they arrived to find the mama cat stressed, dehydrated and still trapped.
“One of the poor kittens had become stuck behind a slate, and the mum cat couldn’t reach them,” Scarlet Sanderson, an animal rescue officer with the RSPCA, told The Dodo. “She was incredibly stressed, and the kitten was cold and needed her mum.”
Sanderson spent an hour using a rescue pole to carefully scoop out each kitten and bring them to safety. Once the kittens were secured, she gently coaxed the mom out of hiding, and soon the entire family was safe.
“I took them to RSPCA Greater Manchester Animal Hospital for a check-up, but thankfully mum and kittens are all healthy and have since gone to the RSPCA’s Manchester and Salford Branch for some much-needed TLC,” Sanderson said.
The mama cat unfortunately wasn’t microchipped, so it’s unclear whether she was abandoned while pregnant or if she had been living as a stray.
It’s currently kitten season across the world, meaning mom cats are giving birth to kittens at a very high rate. Shelters and rescues are overwhelmed trying to keep up with the influx of little families in need, including the RSPCA.
“Kitten season is typically the time of year when most kittens are born, and as a charity we see an influx of cats coming into our care as a result,” Alice Potter, cat welfare expert at the RSPCA, told The Dodo. “With the cost of living crisis putting an extra strain on people’s finances, we’re concerned that we may see more cats than ever in need of help at a time when our centres are already full-to-bursting. This is why we have issued an urgent plea to the public to help us tackle the cat overpopulation crisis.”
To help out during kitten season, individuals can donate to their local shelters and rescues or sign up to foster.
Luckily, this mama cat and her kittens were found by the right people at the right time, and now have the space to heal and grow until they’re ready to find their forever homes.