CAT Fleur and her kittens have been through an ordeal recently that ended with them being rescued twice by the national feline charity, Cats Protection.

Originally, a pregnant Fleur was signed over to Teignbridge and Totnes Cats Protection because her previous owners were being evicted from their home.

A few days after giving birth, she was settling in with her foster carer and being an excellent mum to her three kittens. That night someone broke into the garden of Fleur’s fosterer and subsequently kicked the door in of her special cat pen. Fleur took flight, abandoning her new born kittens in fright, says Nicola Poole. the TTCP public relations officer.

The following morning Fleur’s distressed fosterer and her son had to become surrogate mums to the kittens while they tried to entice her back. They had to be fed every few hours by hand, night and day. “My son has been brilliant helping me, especially at night. He has been taking on the 3am feeds for me, as well as helping all through the day,” she said.

Fleur was sighted several times in the rural area but they could not get her to come back to her young.

The fosterer said: “Over the last week we have been out for hours and hours calling for her at all times of the day and night together with a tape recording of her meowing kittens.”

A trap was set in the garden and although it had been tripped a couple of times Fleur remained elusive.

Finally with much relief, six days later a hungry and cold Fleur was found in the trap one morning. “After taking Fleur out of the trap we calmed her down and fed her. She was obviously very frightened. We gently reintroduced the kittens and she is now feeding them once more and seems very happy. We’re supplementing her milk, as she has very little, but I think it will soon come back,” said the fosterer.

Fleur’s remarkable story finished with a happy ending and we are pleased to say they have all found new homes. But without the work of Teignbridge and Totnes Cats Protection it could have been very different, said Nicola.

’Our fosterers do an amazing job looking after all our cats and kittens while they wait for new homes but Penny went above and beyond what is required. Without our dedicated team of fosterers Teignbridge and Totnes Cats Protection would not be able to take in unwanted and abandoned cats and kittens.’

If you would like to help cats and kittens have a fantastic Christmas this year visit Just Giving site https://www.justgiving.com/Give-a-Cat-or-Kitten-Hope-this-Christmas to pledge your support or text TTCP55 £5 to 70070.