Neutering plea issued over abandoned kittens

Charity officials have pleaded for struggling pet owners to seek help with neutering costs following the discovery of four abandoned kittens at a house in Kent.

RSPCA officers believe they were part of a larger group of cats which may have been left at the property by a previous tenant.

The kittens, which were thought to be about five weeks old, were discovered in a garage at the address in Gravesend in early January.

One was later euthanised on welfare grounds while another has since undergone treatment for an ulcer in her right eye.

All of them were also suspected of having cat flu at the time of their rescue by staff from the RSPCA’s North West Kent branch and locally based charity, Animal Samaritans.

Natalie Archer, manager of the RSPCA’s Canterbury and District branch where the kittens were taken to, said the case emphasised the importance of cats being neutered from four months old.

‘Saves lives’

She said: “It quite literally saves lives and there are lots of low cost and accessible neutering schemes available.”

Rescue officer Sidonie Smith, who collected the kittens, warned cases like theirs were “devastating” but becoming increasingly common.

She said: “If people are struggling with costs, it is even more vital to neuter cats to ensure they don’t breed, leading to more mouths to feed.

“It’s not fair that kittens end up paying the price, being abandoned because they were unwanted.

“Local RSPCA branches and other charities can help with the costs of neutering and many have food banks and vet vouchers that can help people in need.”

Latest figures showed more than 1,900 abandonment cases were reported to the charity in December, taking the total for 2025 to almost 28,000 – an increase of 19% on the previous year.

In a separate case, one kitten was euthanised after he and four others were found in a shopping bag that had been dumped in a ditch near the Withernsea Golf Club in East Yorkshire.