6-week-old kitten with broken, infected leg discovered in Vancouver garage

A stray kitten named Haddie was discovered at six weeks old with a broken, infected leg by a Vancouver resident who was cleaning out their garage. (BC SPCA)

A garage clean out turned into an emergency trip to the BC SPCA for one Vancouver resident recently.

While moving a box in their garage, a Good Samaritan discovered a six-week-old kitten with a badly broken leg, the BC SPCA revealed in a statement Thursday.

“She had been trapped under a storage crate and had badly twisted her leg to the point that it had broken and became seriously infected. We immediately rushed her to an animal hospital,” said Jodi Dunlop, the manager of the society’s Vancouver animal centre, in the release.

After examining the kitten’s leg, Dunlop says the veterinarian determined it had been fractured for days and needed to be removed.

“This poor kitten must have been in so much pain,” Dunlop said.

The kitten, who has been dubbed Haddie, is now healing from surgery at a BC SPCA foster home and will be available for adoption by mid- or late-July.

According to Dunlop, Haddie was discovered in the garage on June 22.

“My theory is the stray mother cat was relocating her kittens through the open garage,” she wrote in an email to CTV News, one week later.

“Haddie was probably playing or trying to jump when a box fell on her, trapping her leg. Unfortunately, we won't know really but cats will often relocate their kittens if there is a threat of some sort.”

Dunlop describes Haddie as a “spicy little girl” who likely hasn’t interacted with humans much in the past.

“She is getting stronger and less fearful every day,” Dunlop said.

It’s estimated that Haddie’s surgery and care cost around $2,000.

More information on how to help Haddie and other animals in need can be found online at medical.spca.bc.ca.