You Can Help Save Lives of Homeless, Orphaned Kittens
Santa Barbara County Animal Services is looking for volunteers who are able to foster the homeless, abandoned kittens that are coming into our three shelters. Animal Services will be holding a Foster Parent Orientation for North County residents on Saturday, February 5 th from 10am until 12pm at the Santa Maria Animal Center. Every year, as the weather starts warming up, our shelters are inundated with litters of kittens. Some have nursing mothers with them; others arrive orphaned and so young that they must be bottle fed until they can eat on their own. Most are healthy, thriving kittens that need a safe place to grow until they are old enough to be adopted into a loving new home. The shelters are not an ideal environment for underage kittens, and we are turning to the community to help us care for these little ones.Fostering kittens is an excellent way to help the smallest members of our community without making the permanent commitment of adoption. All that is required is that you have a safe and secure environment, some extra time, and lots of love to share. Training is provided and families are encouraged to apply. Hundreds of kittens enter our shelters each year, the finders stating that they did not see the mother cat. If you find a litter of kittens you think may be abandoned, please contact your local Animal Services Shelter prior to removing the kittens. The Santa Maria Animal Center can be reached at 934-6119, the Lompoc Shelter at 737-7755, and the Santa Barbara Shelter at 681-5285. Anyone interested in opening their hearts and home to a litter of orphaned kittens is invited to attend the up coming Foster Parent Orientation on Saturday, February 5, 2011. The orientation will be held from 10am until 12pm at the Santa Maria Animal Center, 548 W. Foster Road in Santa Maria. For more information or to RSVP please call 805-934-6981. If you are unable to be a foster parent but still wish to help, donations of wet or dry Science Diet kitten food or Kitten Milk Replacer (KMR) are also needed