General News
1 April, 2024
Bin-kittens blessed with Irish luck
Five kittens dumped in a Horsham rubbish bin in January are flourishing in the care of animal rescue group Phoenix, and in the coming weeks will be looking for their forever homes.
Five kittens dumped in a Horsham rubbish bin in January are flourishing in the care of animal rescue group Phoenix, and in the coming weeks will be looking for their forever homes.
The kittens - two females and three males - have all been given names with an Irish origin.
"It's the luck of the Irish," Phoenix Animal Rescue Horsham director Carolyn Stow said.
And luck was certainly on the side of Blarney, Finnegan, Orla, Riley and Sinead, after a jogger discovered the crying kittens in a rubbish bin at Horsham's Sunnyside Oval.
Sadly, four of the kittens found were only a couple of days old and were extremely unwell after their ordeal.
They had to be euthanised.
The five remaining kittens were later reunited with their mother, thanks to the combined efforts of carers, Victoria Police and the RSPCA, and are doing well.
"They are just happy, normal, playful kittens, and they always have been," Ms Stow said.
"The boys have been to the vets for microchipping and their first vaccination recently," Ms Stowe said.
"And the girls, who are currently in Ballarat, have been checked by the vet and had their microchipping and first vaccination done.”
Ms Stowe said the kittens will be desexed, have their remaining vaccinations and be checked by the vet again before being advertised for adoption.
"We will be looking for homes that will care for them completely indoors, because they have never had exposure to outside."
Ms Stow said interested people should keep an eye on the Phoenix Animal Rescue Horsham Facebook page, and has asked people not to contact the organisation regarding adoption before the kittens are advertised.
"This is about the welfare of the kittens," Ms Stowe said.
“We have taken them on and have done the best for them, and we are quite protective of them.
"They don't need another rough time in their lives, they are good boys and girls."
A RSPCA representative confirmed they are still investigating the dumping of the nine kittens.
"The investigation by RSPCA Inspectors into a matter of alleged animal cruelty in Horsham is still ongoing, and no further comment can be supplied at this time," they said.
If found guilty of charges of animal cruelty, offenders can face up to 12 months imprisonment or fines of up to $68,750 under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986.
Abandonment of a cat or dog can attract fines of up to $2750 under the Domestic Animals Act 1994.