It’s raining kittens

By Paul Dunlop
A CUDDLY bunch of kittens are waiting for new owners to make 2006 a better year after they were handed into Pakenham Veterinary Clinic over the festive season.
Dumped pets are a perennial problem at Christmas. This year was no different despite repeated reminders from vets and pet shop owners that dogs, cats and other fourlegged friends are not just passing fads.
Vet nurse Jean Hill said she had been inundated with homeless moggies after recently launching an Adopt a Kitten program at the Main Street clinic.
Some have been brought in by their owners; others have simply been dumped on the doorstep.
“We had lots of kittens in. We already had nine and then we got a box of six on Monday,” Mrs Hill said.
“We’ve found homes for about 15 kittens since the program started (late last year). We are hoping to find new homes for this latest lot,” she said.
The RSPCA said this Christmas was one of the busiest on record, with guinea pigs and rabbits among pets found abandoned.
Pakenham pet store Messy Pawz had two cages of mice and a box of kittens left outside the shop just before the holidays.
Mrs Hill said the kittens left at the vet clinic would make great pets.
She said they were energetic and affectionate young animals.
All the kittens available under the Adopt a Kitten program have been desexed, microchipped and vaccinated.
Mrs Hill said she was not able to guarantee that all kittens left at the clinic would find a home but said at least it meant people had an alternative to dumping them in rubbish bins or some other cruel fate.
“We hope it will help to get kittens off the street. You wonder what would happen to them otherwise,” she said.