In one of the most astonishing cases the branch has ever experienced.... here is how an owned male cat helped to save the lives of 5 kittens!
Around three to four weeks ago, MK RSPCA were contacted by a member of the public who had seen a cat carrying kittens out from a business premises in the area. It turned out this was a neutered and owned cat who lived nearby, called Rainbow. Over the course of 2 days, he carried out 3 three week old kittens, who were brought safely into our care.
Following this, our volunteers began a search to try and locate any other kittens and the mum. This search of the business premises and surrounding area was extensive... but we came up empty. The staff promised to keep an eye out and we remained in contact with them.
Fast forward to Sunday 12th May... we received a call from Vets Now to say a badly injured female
had been found and she had milk. This cat was found on the road that runs alongside the business we had searched. We appealed for information but it seemed too much of a coincidence where she
was found, so we revisited the area in search for any remaining kittens. A few days later, we had a
lead! The same male cat had been seen going into a roof space in a building on the premises... and
tiny meows of kittens were heard. They called us and we attended immediately, upon assessing thesituation it became apparent that the roof space was not safe for us to access. Following this, calls to
National RSPCA and the Fire Brigade were made to assist us...
The Fire Brigade spent the next 3 hours searching the roof space... but to no avail as no kittens could be found. They very kindly planked out the area for us, meaning a member of staff was able to get up there and set our traps. Due to them being kittens they required hand trapping for their safety. This resulted in our trapping team spending 5 very long days on site. Finally, on Sunday 19th May the
kittens went into the trap and were finally brought into our care!
This is by far one of the most in depth and challenging rescue missions our volunteers have ever
faced. They have worked around the clock with absolute determination to get these babies to safety.
We cannot thank them enough for their hard work and dedication, as always, they put animal
welfare at the forefront of everything they do, and we couldn't be prouder of our trapping team.
We would like to also say a massive thank you to Bucks Fire & Rescue, National RSPCA and the
business involved. And the biggest thank you… goes to Rainbow our male cat – without who none of
this would have been possible. An absolute superhero who got 3 kittens to safety, and then lead us to
the remaining two.
Unfortunately, the sad outcome of this story is that the kittens gorgeous mummy cat sadly lost her
life due to the severity of her injuries. Had she been neutered this situation would never have arisen.
Week after week, we are seeing an increase in heart breaking cases, all which could be avoided if
people were neutering their pets. This is the reality of what rescues are dealing with, it is not cute
kittens and loving stories. It is kittens growing up in dangerous environments, with no human
interaction, making them feral and difficult to socialise. It is cats and kittens losing their lives. It is
dangerous situations and endless hours of tracking and trapping for our volunteers. There has to be
an end to this suffering.
We are committed now more than ever to spreading as much awareness as we can in relation to the
reality of what we are dealing with. Highlighting the importance of neutering and microchipping
your pets. With the harsh reality the animal welfare crisis is having on these animals. Our mission is
to reduce these cases and build a better future for all animals, but we can’t do this without your help.
It all starts with responsible pet ownership.
We are here to help, please contact us if you are struggling to afford the cost of neutering, you have
found yourself in an overwhelming situation or you generally just need some advice.
01908 611179 / branch@mkrspca.org.uk / www.rspcamiltonkeynes.co.uk
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