Newborn kittens dumped in cardboard box on Aspley doorstep

Sep 25 2010 by Sam Casey, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

A CARDBOARD box full of newborn kittens was dumped outside a Huddersfield vets.

The litter of four kittens – thought to be about three weeks old – was left with its mother in the car park of Anrich Veterinary Surgery on Wakefield Road in Aspley on Wednesday night.

The mother is thought to be one to three years-old.

Veterinary nurse Heather Bates said: “The mum has a collar on, so she has obviously belonged to someone that hasn’t bothered to get her spayed.

“When the kittens have come along they’ve presumably not wanted to look after them and haven’t been able to find homes for them, so have just dumped them here.

“With the credit crunch I think people are finding it increasingly difficult to pay to look after pets.

“We’ve had the odd incident like this in the past and the RSPCA are full with adult cats.

“This highlights the need to get your cat spayed.”

Abandoning an animal is a criminal offence. Under the Animal Welfare Act, those found guilty face up to six months in prison and a £20,000 fine.

But a spokeswoman for the RSPCA said cases of pets being dumped were on the rise because of the recession.