A newborn kitten with its umbilical cord still attached was dumped in a blue Adidas shoebox in a small alleyway in Sutton, England. Luckily, some people heard strange noises coming from the box and saved the kitten when they were on their way home from work.
Image Credit: RSPCA
It was around 1 a.m. on Monday, June 24, and they just wanted to come back home and get to bed as quickly as possible. However, they thought there was something wrong, so they went to check it out. They opened up the shoebox and discovered a tiny kitten inside, no more than a day old. She hadn’t even opened her eyes yet.
Image Credit: RSPCA
They knew that she needed medical attention as soon as possible, so they contacted the RSPCA for help. After receiving the call, inspector Liz Wheeler went to save the kitten immediately and brought her straight to the RSPCA’s Putney Animal Hospital in London.
Image Credit: RSPCA
“She is far too young to be away from her mum,” Wheeler said in a press release. “We think she is just a day or two old, and she still had some of her umbilical cord attached. She will now need to be hand-reared and fed round-the-clock.”
Image Credit: RSPCA
She has been named Grace by staff members at the animal hospital. It’s difficult for a newborn kitten to thrive without the care of her mother, but all staff are determined to do everything they can to help the tiny Grace. With the help of kind people, she is now doing well at the hospital.
Image Credit: RSPCA
Little Grace is incredibly lucky to be alive after being dumped in Sutton Alleyway. She is so small that she fits completely in the palm of a person’s hand, and it’s hard to believe that the tiny kitten could have survived on her own in that shoebox, even just for a little while.
Image Credit: RSPCA
“There is never an excuse to abandon an animal like this, as there are always other options available to people who may be struggling to cope with their pets,” Wheeler said. “It’s incredibly cruel to dump such a vulnerable animal like Grace, and we’re appealing for information to try and find out how she came to be abandoned.”
Image Credit: RSPCA
“Sadly, we do see lots of abandoned animals at this time of year, especially kittens,” Wheeler said.
Grace is now not ready to be adopted because she still needs to be cared for by her rescuers. We hope that she will get stronger at her foster home and will find a forever home soon.
Image Credit: RSPCA
The biggest clue the RSPCA has is the shoebox that Grace was abandoned in, which contained a pair of Superstar J trainers in size five. If anyone has any information or sees anything suspicious, please contact the RSPCA inspectorate appeal line at 0300 123 8018.
Please share this story to help the RSPCA find the person who abandoned this kitten. This person has to be held in prison because of his or her activity.
h/t: The Dodo