Last month, a cat was left outside of an apartment complex in Corpus Cristi, Texas. “We don’t know who was involved or why this happened, all we know is mama was clearly in need of help,” Coastal Bend Cat Rescue wrote on Facebook.
If it wasn’t clear enough, the person who left the cat also left a note, giving a voice to the cat’s plea for help: “Please help us!“ They wrote “us,” because it turned out, the cat was not alone: she was in the process of giving birth to kittens.
According to The Dodo, the discovery was made by a woman named Kayla, who works at the building’s leasing office and also volunteers at Coastal Bend Cat Rescue.
“There was a mama cat laying in a bed and she had a towel draped over her,” Lindsay Haglund, a board member at the rescue, recalled to The Dodo. “So Kayla lifted the towel to see if the mama cat was hurt, and she discovered three tiny newborn kittens.”
Three kittens had been born, and Kayla helped the mama cat, nicknamed Bonbon, deliver her fourth. While the circumstances of the mother cat’s abandonment remain unclear — the note says that the cat’s “humans were trash and a**holes” — everyone felt sorry that the cat was left alone in such a vulnerable state.
“For a mama cat, birthing kittens is a very stressful time,” Coastal Bend Cat Rescue wrote on Facebook. “For some mamas it can even be a traumatic experience. We can’t imagine the additional stress that was put on Bonbon by being moved into unfamiliar territory in the middle of giving birth, and left out in the open during her most vulnerable time.”
“We don’t know why humans did this to her. It was cruel and unfair and we are at a loss for words… But we are focusing on the positive because she is safe now and she will never have to endure a traumatic experience like this again.”
The rescue took Bonbon and her kittens in, giving them the love and care they needed after such a traumatic experience. Thankfully, they were all alive and in good health.
“Bonbon and her babies are now safe indoors with one of our foster families,” the rescue wrote. “Her babies are now a few days old, and everybody is slowly gaining weight and nursing well on Mama.”
Weeks later, the rescue posted another update, saying that the cats have continued to thrive in foster care. “Bonbon’s babies are now 3 weeks old and they are sweet little funsize candy cuteness,” Coastal Bend Cats Rescue wrote. “They are growing up so quickly! Bonbon has been an amazing mama cat to her little ones and they are all thriving in foster care.”
“The babies are starting to play and wrestle with each other. But their favorite activity is still eating… and Mama Bonbon is providing enough sweet treats to keep everyone growing and healthy!”
The rescue says that the cats will continue to be in foster care for a few weeks, and will then be transferred to a no-kill shelter.
From there, they will all be spayed and neutered, and then adopted out into forever homes.
It will be a welcome happy ending to their story. “They have about 5 weeks left in foster care until they are ready to fly and leave the nest!”
We’re so glad these cats have gotten the help they desperately needed. It’s inspiring to see them go from being abandoned to happy, healthy cats on the verge of adoption.
Thank you to everyone who helped these cats! Share this story!
