Kittens are becoming an increasing sight at local animal shelters, which means they are also more common in areas where they appear to be vulnerable.
Tina Nichols with the Lakeshore Humane Society in Manitowoc spoke with Seehafer News to remind folks in the area that if they see a litter of unattended kittens, it is not wise to simply try to help them.
“If you find a litter of kittens in your yard, in the woods, something like that, please do not automatically – because you don’t see a mom – automatically scoop up that litter and bring them to us.”
She says a mom is probably just waiting on the right time to rejoin her kittens. “The likelihood that there is a mom out there is very, very high, and she is probably hunting, hiding from you, those types of things. Try to give it time before you even consider bringing those kittens to our shelter.”
She notes that people are typically trying to do the right thing by helping what appears to be a helpless batch of kittens, but kittens are actually safest with their mothers as survival rates for very young kittens are quite low once they are placed in a shelter.
Those who genuinely want to help cats in need of assistance should stop by the human society and look to provide good homes for the cats they are currently sheltering.
Nichols said, “Kittens need – their best chance of survival of being in a home environment while they’re growing, at least for their first few months, instead of a shelter.” She added, “As much as we do, and the best we can do, it’s just like a hospital. There are more germs in a hospital than there are at home.”
More information can always be found at LakeshoreHumane.org.