Five newborn kittens rescued from underneath shed in Cornwall

Five newborn kittens have been rescued from underneath a shed in Cornwall.

At five weeks old, the litter was found under the garden shed in Helston by a member of the public and named Elf, Gnome, Imp, Sprite and Pixie.

It became clear that the kittens' mother was feral and fearful of human contact, so the Falmouth, Helston and district branch of Cats Protection was called to safely remove them.

The charity discovered that the litter had severe cat flu and needed specialist care.

Branch coordinator Paula Rosewarne said the kittens were in such a bad state of health that they were taken straight away to specialist Highertown Veterinary Clinic in Truro.

Kittens should weigh around 600g at five weeks old and should still be cared for by their mother for at least a further four weeks. The heaviest Kitten, Elf, weighed just 530g.

Pixie was the smallest and sickest at 385g.

Paula said: "All the kittens were sneezing and had severe conjunctivitis. It was clear they needed to be urgently assessed by a veterinarian.

"Pixie and Sprite were noticeably very sick with painful eye ulcers and Pixie already had a ruptured eye which needed to be removed without delay, a risky operation for such a tiny unwell kitten.

"The operation to remove Pixie’s right eye took place the day after she arrived and we were all so grateful she survived thanks to the vet care she received. The lovely vet nurse who cared for her throughout the day of her operation described her as a 'little miracle'."

The kittens are now around 11 weeks old and have been receiving round-the-clock care from their dedicated fosterer who is bathing their eyes and noses and administering medication.

Paula added: "Pixie is so gentle and loves to sit on a warm lap. Her favourite place to sleep is the radiator bed. Sprite is such a gorgeous kitten and even purrs when he is getting his medication.

"Imp wants to supervise his siblings' treatments and has found sitting on his fosterer’s head to be a good spot. Gnome is a vocal chatterbox and Elf, true to his name, loves to climb and explore the shelves.

“Despite their challenging start to life, all the kittens are sweet and very friendly.

"They now play happily with crinkly balls and balls with bells as well as catnip mice.”

The kittens' treatment cost £1,416 in total and the charity has set up a fundraising page to support costs.