Unwanted kittens up for grabs

By Chelsea Boyle

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A horde of unwanted kittens are on the lookout for new homes in Wairarapa in the aftermath of Christmas.

A total of 22 kittens are available for adoption at Vetcare, more than doubling the number available two weeks ago.

Vetcare owner Heidi Ward-McGrath said they had been dealing with a huge number of animals since the SPCA in Masterton had closed about 18 months ago.

They have tabbys, gingers, fluffy and exotic kittens available for adoption, she said.

“We have a no kill policy,” Dr Ward-McGrath said.

If the animal is fit and well they will do everything they can to get the animal back into a home, she said.

“That’s why the practice is called Vetcare.”

Stray cats are a problem in Wairarapa and Dr Ward-McGrath was encouraging people who were giving kittens away on Facebook to be responsible and ensure the kittens were de-sexed.

Her team was making sure every kitten that passed through their centre was de-sexed.

“We are not here to judge anybody,” Dr Ward-McGrath said.

“We are just here to help.

“Each kitten we put out into the community costs us about $220.”

However, the cost to adopt a kitten is less than $200 meaning the centre is far from making money on the service.

“It’s a professional passion of all our staff,” Dr Ward-McGrath said.

“We have calmly and quietly done what we needed to do and we will continue until we have a better alternative.

“We are doing the best we can with the resources we have.”

She credited her staff for being incredibly positive, enthusiastic and professional while dealing with the influx of furry patients.

“We haven’t had any disease outbreaks,” Dr Ward-McGrath said.

“It’s been amazing.”

In the future Heidi Ward-McGrath and vet technician Danielle Bolton would like to run an educational programme for the community and go around community halls in Wairarapa offering to de-sex cats.