• Me and My Pet

Monday, November 17, 2008

A kitten at the door step

posted by csenay at 13h11

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GusGus is looking for a home.

The staff at Clinique Vétérinaire of Vieux-Dorion were greeted Thursday morning November 6th by a 2-month-old male kitten which had been abandoned outside the door during the night. The kitten was left in a dirty plastic milk box, with a pumpkin on top to prevent him from escaping.

Sadly, this is a pretty common occurrence at vet clinics and pet stores. Why? Because many people still do not have their pets spayed or neutered.

Another problem is that the SPCA, and local shelters have been full for the past couple of months, and it's difficult to get animals into the shelter.

None the less, people need to realize that vet clinics are vet clinics! They are not shelters. It’s a false belief that all cats abandoned at their doorstep will be cared for. Often, these abandonned animals are euthanized.

The reason for this is bacause a cage must be found for each of them, for an undetermined number of days or even weeks which is often not possible because of a lack of space.

These cats can also be carriers of contagious diseases which could easily be passed onto cats that are hospitalized or are being boarded, which means the vet cattery is not an option. 

Also, the cat needs to be fed, have its water bowl changed and its litter box cleaned every day. Most vet clinics are closed on weekends so who’s going to take care of these cats?

What if they are sick, or injured, and require medical attention. Who’s going to pay for that?

Maybe some of you are wondering, wouldn't the staff at a veterinary clinic be the perfect people to assume responsibility for sick or injured animals that are abandoned? Surely they can take charge of these abandoned cats. Well, believe me when I tell you that there are so many animals that are abandoned every year (that we would like to take home but if we did, we'd soon all end up with a menagerie of pets). The sad truth is that we simply cannot save them all!

But despite these facts, that kitten was lucky that day. One of my technicians, Mathia, decided to take care of him until she could find a new home.

“GusGus” (his new name) has been examined by myself and was neutered the same day all at Mathia’s expenses. This white and orange kitten is very friendly, and he needs a home.  If anyone is interested in the kitten, contact Mathia at Clinique Vétérinaire du Vieux-Dorion 450-424-6469.

The moral of this story is that people have to take responsibility for their own animals, and not just dump them on other agencies. Let’s treat them humanely. These cats don’t deserve to be dumped in a box.

And I can't stress enough how important it is for people to get their cats neutered to try to prevent the numbers of unwanted kittens. If pet owners were responsible, we wouldn't have an overpopulation of pets.