Spring is approaching, and with spring comes “kitten season” – the time of year when communities and animal shelters across the country are inundated with neonatal kittens, one of the most vulnerable and resource-intensive populations in a shelter environment. In 2019, the Humane Rescue Alliance welcomed more than 1,350 neonatal kittens (kittens less than four months old).
The Humane Rescue Alliance and St. Mary’s County Animal Services are co-hosting a free, one-day training for members of the public, regional animal shelters, rescue organizations and elected officials to learn how to provide immediate, critical care for neonatal kittens during the hands-on session, as well as how to set up a kitten foster program that saves lives.
The goal of the training is to decrease the mortality rate for kittens by bringing a free, specialized training to a region that is making great strides in saving animals. HRA recognizes that the shelters in this region have very limited resources and plans on bringing more trainings to them in the future.
A training on caring for neonatal kittens
- Session 1: A look into HRA’s successful neonatal kitten foster program | 11:15 a.m. – 1:15 p.m.
In this session, HRA’s Jennah Billeter will share tips for building a successful and life-saving kitten fostering program, including recruiting and retaining volunteers, training volunteers and case managers, and more. HRA has built such a successful kitten foster program that it is able to assist other rescue organizations with the influx of kittens during this season by taking in kittens from overburdened shelters.
- Session 2: Caring for neo-natal kittens | 1:45 p.m. – 4 p.m.
In this hands-on session, Susan Cooksey Spaulding, who has fostered thousands of neonatal kittens, will teach attendees how to provide neonatal kittens with immediate critical care, monitoring, weighing, feeding, and general care, assessing medical needs and more.
The training is free and open to the public. Please RSVP by February 29 to Joy Wilson at [email protected].
- Jennah Billeter, director of volunteer and foster resources at HRA
- Alice Burton, director of regional outreach at HRA
- Susan Cooksey Spaulding, co-founder and director of neonatal program at the National Kitten Coalition
- Representatives from animal shelters and rescue groups from Washington, D.C., Virginia and Maryland
The event will be held on Tuesday, March 3, from 11:00 a.m., to 4 p.m., at the Hollywood Volunteer Rescue Squad at 43256 Rescue Lane, in Hollywood. For more information, please visit the Facebook Event page! https://www.facebook.com/events/1139253496410983/
