Costs
There have been enquires about the amount of money needed to sponsor a kitten. The quick answer is whatever amount you are willing to donate! Each and every donation and sponsorship is most welcome, regardless of size. Jan has prepared a general breakdown of costs for an average healthy kitten while in rescue and this may be of interest to people.
THE **BASIC** HEALTH CARE COST. COURTESY OF OUR VETS.
Please note this due to the benevolence and goodwill of the vets we work with and may not be the prices quoted to the public.
Initial health check worming and flea preparation 15E1st Vaccination 15E.
Food cost per kitten over an 8 week stay 20E.
As you can see this does not include toys, bedding, litter, cleaning products etc. Our cost per kitten averages at 50E, some kittens may have well above this level of care. See Tiny Tony who's eye op cost over 350E.
When we have the mothers in with kittens they are routinely tested for FIV and FeLV at a cost of 20E. The break down of costs for an average, healthy adult cat can be found on the adult cat sponsorship page
Short Term Kitten Sponsors Sought.
Kitten Adoption is urgently appealing for short term sponsors. Cats and kittens are arriving in large numbers and funds are scarce. This mite, so tiny it is hard to make out he is a kitten is Phoenix, after just six minutes of life, born to a former domestic cat under KA care. He, and his 3 siblings, have a vastly increased chance of survival because their mother gave birth in KA HQ and not the streets she came from.
Tragically their mother, Amy, haemorrhaged during labour due to a torn uterus and despite rapid veterinary intervention, she could not be saved. She was given a gentle passing, rather than the slow torture of bleeding to death that would have awaited her on the streets. Amy's newborn kittens would have starved to death - another excruitiating ending to what could barely be called a life.
Sassy, the young cat with a cleft palate, has shown what a truly special girl she is by adopting a pair of orphan kittens that have also come into KA HQ. Her super mother Cassy is also helping out, just as she did for Sassy's own babies. When they arrived, it was thought these babies would not be with us for long but they have held their own overnight and look a lot better today. Despite Sassy and Cassy doing more than their share, the level of care needed for the orphan kittens at KA HQ is exhausting. Things can change very quickly and a kitten who seemed robust can suddenly slip away leaving shock and heartache for those caring for it.
KA was contacted about an injured mother cat on a building site and preparations were made to help this cat and her babies, despite the fact that large vet bills are a certainty in cases like these. Vet assessment judged that neither mother or babies had a chance of making it and again, a gentle passing was provided for this pitiful family, that never had a chance to know comfort and human love.
Roxy and her kittens are in foster care, but one youngster had to be brought up to KA HQ for medical treatment for sore eyes. Again, the routine of keeping kitten eyes clean and reguarly dosed with antibiotic ointment is labour intensive. More ten day old kittens are in foster care for Kitten Adoption. They were found in Clondalkin, where it is thought they had lain starving without their mother for 3 days. One kitten was dead on site and another died soon after coming into rescue.
This has all happened within the last couple of days. Calls about former domestic cats in need of neutering as well as unwanted adult pet cats also keep flooding in. Kittens are fairly easily rehomed - lots of people are interested in them and KA usually has a pick of good homes by the time the kittens are old enough to leave for new lives. We would be very grateful in anyone would be willing to sponsor any of our newborn kittens for the 8 to 10 weeks they will be here. Please contact us or visit our Donate page if you can help. Kitten milk, kitten food, toys, health assessments, worming and vaccinations all mount up quickly when you are raising tens of babies. Even a few euros makes a difference -a wormer can be bought for a euro and this can save the life of a worm infested kitten.