#taking care of orphan kittens without the mom puts a lot more resource stress on the rescue community as well as having lower survival rate

[limitlessscion]

Attention captivated. Satoru's question was left unanswered — rather, the line of questioning was interrupted by the swift extension of Suguru's arm and digits gripping the collar of his friend's shirt; he very nearly ripped the material with the adamancy of action. ❛ Satoru, look. ❜

Suguru bent over and because he was gripping onto the other teenager's shirt, forced him to bend over as well. A large cardboard box was situated on the curb outside an apartment complex, and the cutest little pile of fur was housed within the box. Four kittens of varying colours stared at the world with wide eyes, stared at the gathering of awwing children. Suguru shoved past ( more like towered over ) all the kids to admire the creatures for himself with an expression overflowing with warmth and longing. ❛ What do you think? ❜

With the violence with which Satoru was suddenly yanked aside, he'd assumed his friend had serious objections with his One Piece opinions and they were about to start a brawl on the side of the street. Before he could start throwing punches and potentially knocking Suguru into a pile of children, the object of his friend's attention focused in the middle of his own vision.

Oh, right, the kittens. He'd sensed them as they'd approached and passed, but hadn't thought twice about them. He stared now at the big round eyes as they made high pitched squeaks and thought with some amusement how his friends would often compare him to one of these creatures.

He locked eyes with one of the kittens who froze for a second at his attention. Then it opened its mouth showing tiny razor-sharp teeth, screaming dramatically before falling sideways from its perch on a sibling's head.

Satoru snorted, prying Suguru's fingers off his collar so that he could straighten up.

"Okay, they're pretty cute. What, are you thinking of keeping them?" The look on Yaga-sensei's face would be priceless.

[lovemypetz]

Homeless and Underweight Cat Saves Two Orphaned Kittens

Imagine being a malnourished, dangerously underweight mother with five babies to feed. Now, imagine taking in two more orphaned babies to feed and raise as your own. Could you do it? Starlyte, an extra-special cat in McComb, Mississippi, did just that – and you helped her!

Shelter Director, Michelle Lombas told Halo, “Starlyte was turned in to [McComb Animal Shelter] with five nursing kittens.” Then two three-week-old kittens showed up without a mother cat. However, Michelle told Halo that Starlyte “was such a good mother that she took in…[the] orphaned kittens to be her own.” Despite being stressed herself and already having five kittens to care for, Starlyte knew what every good parent does – that there is always more love to go around. Jack and Jill, the two orphans, joined Moon Beam, Comet, Astrid, Asteroid, and Milky Way and all the kittens became Starlyte’s.

There was a problem though. A decrease in appetite is a common reaction to stress for many cats. While such a lack can be dangerous for any cat if not treated, it is especially dangerous for a cat already “very malnourished and underweight” which Michelle told us Starlyte was! Plus, Starlyte needed good nutrition to be able to care for and adequately nurse the seven kittens relying on her. Unfortunately, whether from the stress of finding herself in the shelter or something else, Starlyte, in Michelle’s words was “very finicky with what she would eat.”

Although Michelle describes McComb Animal Shelter as “extremely small” and without “a lot of resources,” they clearly have a lot of heart and determination. The shelter tried multiple variations to tempt Starlyte to eat. Thankfully, because of people like you who click on Freekibble.com and Freekibblekat.com, McComb Shelter had received a donation of 10,000 bowls of nutritious Halo pet food. Michelle shared that the winning combination relied on that donation. Starlyte, Michelle wrote, “finally responded to the Halo cat food with Halo Salmon and Turkey treats on top.” In fact, Starlyte enjoyed the food so much that she put on some much-needed healthy weight! Because McComb Animal Shelter didn’t give up on finding healthy food that Starlyte would enjoy, Starlyte was able to nurse and raise all the kittens until it was time to safely wean and separate them. Michelle shared that Starlyte “was such a loving mom! Every time we had ANY kitten out in the cat room…she would stop and come to the front of the cage with heightened alertness as [though] to say, ‘you better be taking good care of my babies! I’m watching you,’ regardless of if they were her kittens.”

Photo Credit: McComb Animal Shelter

All seven of the kittens have since found adoptive homes. According to Michelle, Starlyte, the hero mom, is still looking. However, the McComb Animal Shelter posted on Facebook that Starlyte and several other cats are “waiting patiently for their forever families.” Michelle told us that Starlyte is very loving, calm, and quiet” although “she does love to play.” All those qualities seem like Starlyte would make just as amazing a pet as she was a mother.

We at Halo are so grateful that, because of you, our food was able to help Starlyte not only nurse the kittens who needed her, but also bring out Starlyte’s inner beauty so her outer beauty can catch the eye of an amazing adopter. McComb Animal Shelter asked for the public to help Starlyte and their other lovely animals find homes for the holidays. We hope some lucky family hears Starlyte’s story and rewards our heroine for her amazing mothering by giving her just such a home.

from Halo Pets http://ift.tt/2oEMpUv via IFTTT