'Emaciated' kittens rescued from Wolverhampton garden after dead animals spotted outside property
A Wolverhampton animal rescue has saved four emaciated kittens from a garden, one of whom was so malnourished that his bowel had prolapsed - after several dead kittens were seen around the property.
Wings and Paws Animal Rescue was alarmed to hear from distressed neighbours that four dead kittens could be seen outside a house in Wolverhampton which had not been removed by the owner.
According to local residents, around eight adult cats live at the property and have produced several litters of kittens while at that address. Sadly, many of these kittens have died and the surviving cats and kittens have been described by the rescuers as "skin and bone".
The animal rescue visited a neighbouring property and managed to coax four surviving kittens into another garden so they could take them into their care, but there are fears for the remaining cats at the property.
One of the kittens rescued by Wings and Paws was so malnourished that he had to be rushed into emergency surgery for a prolapsed bowel and it remains "touch and go" as to whether he will survive.
Wings and Paws volunteer Faye Wood told the Express & Star: "When we arrived at the scene, we could see two dead kittens in the garden and another two lying dead in a neighbour's garden.
The cats obviously weren't being looked after. There was no food or water out for them and the cats were fighting their own kittens when we put food through the fence.
"We think there are about eight adult cats there and one of the males looks really beaten up, because he's not neutered so he'll be out fighting over the females. All of them look like they're starving.
"We managed to lure the four kittens through the fence so we could rescue them. We wanted to talk to the owner but there was nobody in the property at the time.
"The vet told us that if we hadn't got those kittens when we did, they would have all died."
The four kittens rescued by Wings and Paws are now receiving treatment, but one of them was so severely malnourished that he might not recover.
Faye added: "The vet says the kittens are about six to seven-weeks-old but they only weigh what a three-week-old kitten should. I'm hand-rearing two four-week-old kittens who are healthier and weigh more than these kittens. They're skin and bone.
"They're all on antibiotics and deworming medication, but one of them is so malnourished that he had a prolapsed bowel. We've called him Sparky.
"He's so poorly that it's touch and go with him. I'm syringe feeding him every two hours. He's so weak, he can't even try and feed himself."
Two of the kittens are now eating on their own while another has gained 100g, but Sparky is sadly still struggling.
"We're so upset because these kittens are so ill. They're so lovely and it's such a frustrating situation," Faye said.
"We tried to speak to the owner but no one was in. Unfortunately, we haven't got the powers of the RSPCA and can't just take the cats from the property. We can only take them if they leave the property, otherwise our hands are tied.
"We can't get the other cats, but our kittens have a nasty infection and whatever the kittens have got, the adult cats have got. They're older and stronger but they still need urgent care."
Wings and Paws contacted the RSPCA about the incident and are waiting for a response from the animal charity.
An RSPCA spokesperson told the Express & Star: "We’re grateful to people who report their concerns to us but we cannot comment any further as we are unable to discuss enquiries about specific individuals and what action may be taken.
"We understand how frustrating that is for animal lovers but releasing information could prejudice investigations or could lead to us being fined."
