The nine Prince George cats found abandoned in storage bins are now in their recovery stages.
On Monday (July 15), after hearing meows from inside storage bins, two kittens and seven adult cats under the age of three were found by the manager of a vacant property.
The cats were believed to be trapped in the containers for days without any food or water and were only breathing through several holes punched in the lid.
Because the cats were starving and covered in feces, many of them had to be shaved and put on a refeeding plan.
“They are on a refeeding plan that slowly reintroduces their bodies to food, and are all making progress,” says Alex Schare, manager of the North Cariboo District B.C. SPCA in an email to PrinceGeorgeMatters. “Some had to be shaved and all had to be bathed so some are looking pretty rough right now, but that will only be temporary.”
The B.C. SPCA put out a fundraising call on its medical emergency website with the goal to raise over $3,000 for their care, but within hours of notifying the public, they raised nearly $10,000.
The cat’s emergency fund currently sits at $10,630.
The ninth of the nine cats. The cats will be adoptable once they have recovered. (via B.C. SPCA) Schare says the refeeding plan includes small meals about five to six times per day and for every cat the meals need to be precisely weighed out and then divided into their daily portions.
The cats also need to be bathed and require regular grooming.
“We are very grateful for and impressed by the public response,” says Schare referring to the amount of donations that have come in for these cats. “It’s very reassuring to see people care and want to contribute to helping these cats get the treatment they need and move on beyond the ordeal they had to go through.”
He says once they are all healthy enough to be spayed or neutered, they will be ready to go up for adoption.
How long that takes will depend on the individual cat, but they are all moving in the right direction.
It’s still unknown who is responsible for abandoning these cats, but anyone with information should call the B.C. SPCA toll free at 1-855-622-7722.
“Abandoning an animal is not only illegal, it’s also unethical and should never be considered as a solution,” says Schare. “There are various ways to rehome animals, and we hope that anyone who needs to give up their pets reaches out to us so that we can provide help and make sure that the welfare of the animals in question is maintained.”
