The Dierenbescherming has started a campaign to draw attention to the thousands of kittens that are dumped in the Netherlands every year, mainly in the summer months. They are often sick, which makes caring for these animals time-consuming and expensive. There is also a risk that healthy animals in the shelters will be infected by the sick stray kittens, the organization announced.
Annually about 3400 kittens are involved. “They are found on the street, in industrial areas, in boxes, in garbage cans, some are only a few hours old,” says Saskia Thijssen of the Animal Protection Society. To prevent unwanted litters, the organization wants cat owners to have their animals spayed or neutered and chipped.
A third of the affected stray kittens have a disease among the members and need ‘intensive medical care’. “The often very young animals are vulnerable and especially the little ones that have been dumped without a mother cat have hardly any resistance,” says Thijssen. This mainly concerns cat flu and infectious intestinal diseases such as giardiasis and coccidiosis.
It is an expensive joke, the Animal Protection calculates. Taking in one healthy kitten costs them 150 euros, because the animals need shelter and food, but also a medical check and vaccinations. They are wormed and chipped, among other things. If a kitten is sick, there are additional costs. The kittens are preferably placed with one of the 450 host families that work with the Animal Protection, to be able to monitor them and let them get used to a home situation. Then they look for a permanent home.
The Animal Protection will mainly provide information via social media to prevent the dumping of animals.
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