Slim pickings for kittens

Tauranga SPCA is hard-pressed to feed the large number of kittens being found and brought to their door.

Animal welfare inspector Anna Porteous said they had about 60 kittens in the shelter needing feeding and another 60 in foster homes.

We go through approximately a sachet per kitten, so it quickly adds up!

Anna Porteous

In a recent Facebook post Tauranga SPCA asked for donations of kitten jelly meat as their supplies were dwindling fast.

Ms Porteous said they were now completely out of kitten food and staff had been buying jelly meat themselves.

"These little guys need jelly meat because they are too small to eat biscuits.

"We go through approximately a sachet per kitten, so it quickly adds up!"

Ms Porteous said the animals they had received were tiny, aged from just one week up to eight weeks old. Once kittens are eight weeks old and are a healthy weight the SPCA can adopt them out.

Jelly meat was also critical for sick kittens, as they tended to lose weight unless fed wet food.

The kittens were mostly the offspring of stray cats but some came from feral cats or had been dumped by people.

Cat breeding season usually runs from November to mid-April.

For 10 years the SPCA's de-sexing caravan travelled up and down the country de-sexing animals but had to shut up shop last November due to a lack of funding.

Ms Porteous said the SPCA could replace the service when funding from the national office came in earmarked for de-sexing.

Kitten jelly meat donations can be delivered to Tauranga SPCA.