$20K raised in less than a day to help care for 3 kittens found in DTES dumpster last week, SPCA says

Tens of thousands of dollars have been raised in just a few hours to help pay the medical bills of a trio of kittens found in a box in a Vancouver dumpster last week. (BC SPCA)

Tens of thousands of dollars have been raised in just a few hours to help pay the medical bills of a trio of kittens found in a box in a Vancouver dumpster last week.

A fundraising page launched Friday on the BC SPCA's Medical Emergency website with a goal of $1,500 to pay for the kittens' medical bills. By early afternoon, it had already raised more than 10 times that amount. 

"People are so amazing with their generosity," said Lorie Chortyk, general manager of community relations for the BC SPCA.

"We're always just so grateful for people's response."

The extra funds raised to cover the cost of the kittens' veterinary care will be used to help other animals in the SPCA's care that are facing medical emergencies.

The six-week-old cats were found in a box inside a dumpster near the intersection of West Pender and Abbot streets in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, according to SPCA Vancouver branch manager Jodi Dunlop.

The call came in around 10 p.m. on Feb. 10, and the animals were taken directly to an emergency veterinarian for assessment and care.

All three kittens were underweight and flea-infested, and had parasites. One of them had also suffered head trauma and a broken pelvis.

"He arrived struggling to breath with a bleeding eye and blood streaming out of his nose, a truly distressing sight for such a young animal," the SPCA said on its fundraising page.

After eight days in the SPCA's care, all three kittens are doing well, according to Dunlop. They've had their first vaccinations and are in the process of receiving flea and deworming treatments.

Even the injured kitten, who couldn't eat on his own and required hand-feeding, is recovering well. While he may still need surgery to repair his broken pelvis, Dunlop said she was hopeful that wouldn't be necessary, given how his recovery has progressed so far.

The kittens will remain in the SPCA's care for at least another two weeks of monitoring. Once staff are confident that the animals are healthy and have reached an appropriate weight for their age, they'll be spayed and neutered and offered for adoption, Dunlop said.

As of 1:30 p.m. Friday, nearly $20,000 had been raised in the kittens' medical emergency appeal, and more than 350 donors had contributed. Petsecure Pet Health Insurance said it would match the first $3,500 in donations to the campaign, according to the SPCA.

"That's incredible," Dunlop said of the response.

"It goes so far to help other animals in our care … It's wonderful how generous people are."