 Dan was out driving and was speaking to me via his mobile phone (I know... I know...). Suddenly he stopped mid-sentence and exclaimed: "There's a kitten on the curb!"
It was a tiny pale ginger kitten - only about four weeks old. It's eyes were caked shut from an infection, most likely conjunctivitis. Dan was in a quandary. What to do with the kitten? He couldn't leave it in the truck all day.
"Call the town council," I said. "They must have animal control." I was feeling indignant. How could someone just dump this little kitten?
So, Dan called the town council. Their "cat lady" as they called her, was away at court and wouldn't be able to pick up the kitten. Dan called the RSPCA. They're understaffed and couldn't send anyone over to pick up the kitten. Dan felt frustrated. He had deliveries to make, so drove off and called me back.
"Can you drive back over there later after your delivery and see if it's still there?" I asked. I hoped the kitten would still be there. I'd ask Dan to bring it home and I could take it to a shelter if necessary, the next day.
Dan went back later in the afternoon. The kitten wasn't there. "I suspect it lives in a drain pipe," he said. "There are grates in the road and it can easily go down there and hide." It could also be feral and is good at avoiding being caught.
But it's only four weeks old, I'm thinking. And then I think about all of the people out there who just dump animals because they can't afford the vet bills or they get tired of taking care of something so dependent on them. And I feel helpless. It didn't help that earlier today I saw a video report on the growing population of abandoned pets in areas of the USA where unemployment and foreclosures are hitting people hard.
I'm hoping that Dan sees the kitten again tomorrow, or that the cat lady has found it and has taken it in to the local vet. Despite the fact that there are people who are low enough to dump pets, there are good people out there, too. I just hope it all evens out in the wash somehow.Labels: abandoned pets, kitten |
posted by Melanie O. at 
That poor kitten. A friend of mine found a kitten with an eye infection one time. The cat had to have his eye removed and sewn shut. They kept the cat and named him Tigger.
I hope the kitten that Dan found is okay. It's terrible that people allow this to happen by standing by and watching it happen, or turning the other cheek. Over breeding and overpopulation are all too common nowadays.