A woman had been evicted from her home and left behind a dozen cats with just a few days of food. She reached out to the local rescue groups and blasted her plight all over social media but no one responded with anything other than platitudes, judgements, or sad emojis.

Murphy’s Kittens, a shoestring organization focusing on rehoming cats, resisted at first. Buried in abandoned felines from irresponsible owners and a massive hording situation, the last thing we could absorb were more cats. As the hours ticked by, we watched to see if any of the more well-funded groups would step up or someone in authority would jump in but did not hold our collective breath. Most folks seemed to believe that either a head in the sand or a ‘I resent that with three hearts and a tear’ absolved them of any further action.

For the few of us that shoulder most of the burden, it was just another day of disappointment in our community and frustration with the lack of resources to address this common occurrence. The director of Murphy’s Kittens, Casey, and I tentatively pulled into the driveway of the abandoned mobile home and waited until a parade of chickens passed by to assess the situation.

As soon as we spoke, hungry felines came running from every direction. We crawled up onto the dilapidated front steps as tiny faces poked around splintered boards and bird droppings. Two kittens were easy to snag but the rest of the crew was too leery to be coxed into our crates or allow any touching. A shredded bag of kibble was the only remnant of nourishment, and we had no way to gage exactly how long they had been left in this state. Filling up bowls of food and replacing the rank water with something drinkable, we watched the abandoned creatures gobble as we gently shooed away a very persistent rooster.

After ruling out any visible injuries or illness and ensuring no other babies were in hiding, we formulated a plan. Mind you, it is the same plan for every one of these unintended visits; triage, feed, and eventually trap the adults. In a perfect world, or even in our adjacent counties, a bevy of helpers would be available to divvy up the workload, but we don’t reside in either locale.

I isolated the kittens at my place and Casey headed back to the clinic to line up a few vets to help with desexing once the rest of the colony was captured. Shoestring does not begin to describe our budget that consists mostly of the director’s personal resources and a few meager contributions that we manage to scrouge up to keep the lights on and feed the adoption candidates we have peppered around town.

Filling up my car with food and fresh water, a buddy and I headed over the next afternoon to feed the crew and hunt for any remaining kittens. What we discovered was hopeful and heartbreaking….

“Hey, she’s gone” rang across the disheveled yard and we connected the voice as a large man in overalls ambled over. As I explained our mission a broad smile spread across his face, “I have been trying to help these cats for years” he explained and went on to share that there were dozens of strays around the property and all his calls to the county, to animal control and to the large rescue groups have been ignored.

The neighbors had banded together to buy food but since the evictions, he has been left on his own and is unable to absorb the cost. We wandered around his property as he pointed out mommies, babies, and old boys among the pecking chickens. A disability check and a few extra dollars selling eggs would not cover the needs of all these abandoned critters.

Grabbing three adorable kittens, he plopped them into a produce box, handed them to us, and bowed as if bestowing a gift. Promising to return the next day with supplies we zoomed the little ones back to headquarters wondering how to tell Casey that our small project just spiralized into a full-blown emergency……

For anyone wondering if this is an isolated situation or asking themselves why they don’t see these starving cats in their own lives, I ask that you join me for an adventure. For those unable to spare the time, consider making a tax-deductible donation to help these innocent animals.

“Please help… Someone please do something!!”

By Murphy's Kittens Inc

“Please help… Someone please do something!!”

Team Members