Pregnant kitten found abandoned in plastic box

An appeal has been launched after two black kittens were found abandoned in an orchard

Two kittens continue to be cared for after being found abandoned in a plastic box in a Kent orchard, an animal charity says.

The RSPCA investigators say they are still trying to find out what led to the two black cats, believed to be five months old, being left under a tree in a orchard near Mill Lane in Canterbury on 14 April.

Both female kittens, one of which is pregnant, have now been taken to the Canterbury and district branch of the charity.

Kirsten Ormerod, an investigator for the charity, said: "This must have been very stressful for these poor kittens to be abandoned in this way."

One of the kittens, named April, found in the orchard

Ms Ormerod said: "On the day they were found temperatures were warm, so being confined in a plastic box with no water these cats would have been very hot and stressed.

"We are grateful to the member of the public who found them and took them to a place of safety and we are appealing for anyone who knows anything about them to get in touch.

"Both kittens are being cared for at our Canterbury branch and there are concerns for one of them who is sadly already pregnant, which shows the importance of neutering cats at four-months old."

The plastic box in which the kittens were found

A spokesperson for the RSPCA said the cats, named April and Sgt Major by staff, had been sealed in the box and the previous owners had pierced two air holes in the plastic box.

The number of pets being abandoned nationwide had risen by almost 40% since the Covid-19 pandemic, the charity added.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact the RSPCA.