Rescuing Little Jack

Yesterday, my husband called me to the kitchen to see a black kitten on the patio. It was very dark outside and hard to see as it was incredibly shy. But I caught sight of it hiding under one of the patio chairs, it’s eyes gleaming, reflecting the light from the kitchen. Small, high-pitched meows came from.it at regular intervals.

Worried it might be lost, hungry or abandoned, I found a small dish and put a handful of kibble on it. The kitten cautiously approached and as soon as it realised there was food, began to wolf it down. Now it was nearer the kitchen, I could see just how little it was. There was no sign of a collar and it looked too small to have been microchipped. With the overnight temperature forecast to be nearly freezing, there was no way we could leave this little hungry, cold kitten outside overnight.

It took over an hour, but we managed to entice it into the house with more food. At one point, it snuck past my husband and we found it scoffing food from our cats bowls. Needless to say our cats didn’t know what to do and merely sat there looking clueless and unhappy. Getting between the kitten and the back door proved challenging and it took hiding behind the kitchen door ready to slam it shut after the kitten walked inside.

Once it was shut into the dining room, I ran to the back door and closed it. The little kitten ran flat out to the backdoor and desperately tried to get through the glass. We tried calming it down but it had clearly never been handled. I told my husband to get the carrier and a towel to put it in a warm, dark place to allow it to calm down.

By the time my husband reappeared with the towel and carrier, the kitten had wedged itself half behind the kitchen radiator. Using a towel to protect my hands, I spent several tense minutes trying to extract it gently from it’s hiding place. Once it was in the carrier, I dropped the towel over the top and rang the vet. The receptionist passed my number onto a local feral cat rescue centre. Within ten minutes, I was on the phone with Sue who gave us some advice on caring for the kitten overnight and mentioned she would ask someone from the RSPCA to call us as she loved locally and might be able to take the kitten.

Again, mere minutes later, Rachael called. She lies on an adjoining street, had room for the kitten and could come and collect him that evening. We thanked her profusely as Thira and Vasili were really unhappy about the furry visitor. When Rachael arrived, she fell in love with the kitten. By this time, we had decided to call him Jack as we couldn’t hand him over without a name! She explained her set up at home for him and shared what would happen over the next few days.

Exhausted but relieved that Jack would be in good hands, we waved goodbye with Thira and Vasili muttering ‘Good riddance!’. The next morning, Rachael sent me an update: Jack had eaten all his food and was curled up content in his bed. He had some diarrhea and was having medicine to help him. A few days later, Rachael popped over to drop off our cat carrier. She had further good news about Jack for us! He was doing well – the vet judged him to be around 10 weeks old and declared him free of FIV and other similarly nasty diseases. He was beginning to be socialised and was eating and drinking heartily. At night, Rachael heard him playing with toys although he’s still very shy when she’s in the room with him. No one has come forward for him so he will receive his kitten vaccinations and be neutered before being put up for adoption.

If it wouldn’t upset our cats massively, I would have him back in a heartbeat. However, with the menagerie full to bursting, someone else will have a wonderful playful kitten to love and care for. Good luck Jack, we wish you all the very best!