With the weather slowly but surely warming up, kitten season is officially upon us – which means our shelter pens will soon be packed full of mother cats and their neonatal babies, and often tiny orphaned kittens too.

Did you know that from just two undesexed cats, they and their litters could go on to produce up to 20,000 more cats in just two years?

Thankfully, our kind-hearted foster care team steps up each spring and summer to help us care for all these kitties in need. These wonderful volunteers care for tiny kittens round-the-clock and often pay for many expenses out of their own pocket. But they can’t do it all without your help!

The top 6 donations our kitten carers need right now

Right now, we’re urgently seeking donations of:

Baby wipes (any brand is fine). These are used to help orphaned kittens go to the toilet. Sometimes carers can go through a pack a day!

Fleece baby blankets. These dry far quicker than towels, so are handy as kitten bedding.

Snugglesafe heat pads. These cost around $30 each and are crucial for keeping orphaned neonatal kittens warm through the night.

Comforting heart beat simulators. These simulate a mother’s heartbeat, calming orphaned kittens and helping them to feel safe.

Wombaroo Cat Milk Replacer Formula. This nutritionally balanced milk is used for orphaned kittens or when mums’ are having trouble producing milk. It’s about $10 for a 215g pack – we go through about 20kg of the stuff each year!

Toys, toys and more toys! The little four-packs of plastic toys from major stores are perfect, as they can easily be sterilised if need by and keep the baby kitties entertained for hours.

Ready to donate? Here’s where to drop off your gifts

Donations can be made at our Lonsdale shelter, Stepney head office or at our seven op shops (Kidman Park, Blackwood, Brighton, Marden, Prospect, Semaphore and Warradale).

Just ensure you write “for the foster care team” on your donation so our teams can make sure they end up in the right place.

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Are you interested in becoming an RSPCA South Australia foster carer? Kitten season places a huge strain on our resources and we always need extra carers to help look after kittens until they’re big enough to find forever homes. Find out more and apply to join our team here.