150 of 200 cats have been taken into the BC SPCA’s care from a residence in Houston.
According to the BC SPCA, these cats, including mothers and kittens, were in urgent need of medical care and are now in foster homes and animal centres across the province.
“We will begin bringing in the remaining cats to the triage centre for assessment beginning sometime next week once we have all of the necessary supplies in place,” said Eileen Drever, senior officer, protection and stakeholder relations.
Kim Monteith, the BC SPCA’s manager of animal welfare, is working on socializing the received kittens.
“It is so important to provide kittens with good experiences during this time and to introduce them to handling, different people, as well as other animals and objects.”
She added many of the older cats haven’t been socialized, which typically occurs in a kitten’s first three to seven weeks.
“Strangers are scary, living indoors with sounds like the TV, vacuum, and other things will also be scary for them,” said Monteith.
“We really want to thank the volunteer fosters who stepped up to help us care for these cats and kittens. Not to mention the many businesses in Prince George who have offered their assistance,” said Drever.
The total cost of care hasn’t been totaled, and anyone wishing to donate can do so on the BC SPCA website.