Kitten found in a bucket ready for adoption after foster care nurses him back to health.
The kitten found abandoned last July in a five-gallon bucket will return to Multnomah County’s animal shelter on Tuesday, Oct. 9 before he is put up for adoption the following day. We covered Charlie’s tragically sad story on July 31, with Lone Survivor From Kittens Taped Into Bucket Recovers In Preparation For Foster Care.
Charlie was barely alive when he was found taped into a 5 gallon bucket with his deceased littermates by a police officer in Gresham, OR in July. Animal control took the kitten to the DoveLewis Emergency Hospital where he was examined, then treated for fleas and a respiratory infection before going into foster care. Charlie was infected with the calicivirus, an upper respiratory infection that is not transmissible to humans but can be spread between cats.
Charlie has been living with Shelley Laird, who fosters for the Multnomah County shelter, as he recovered, became socialized, and grew large enough to be put up for adoption. Charlie is active and playful, and gets along well with Shelley’s dogs. Shelley recommends that Charlie go to a home where he will have plenty of human interaction and maybe some dogs for company.
Starting at noon on Wednesday, Oct. 10, anybody in the general public wanting to adopt Charlie can apply by visiting the shelter. Potential adopters should note that Charlie has Colici virus, a non-life-threatening, but permanent condition that is contagious to other cats.
“We know Charlie has a lot of fans and we’re thrilled that he’s now healthy enough to be adopted,” said Mike Oswald, director of Multnomah County Animal Services. “Community members who volunteer to foster animals play a huge role in our efforts to find homes for the thousands of cats and dogs that come each year to our community’s public animal shelter.
“Charlie”— named by shelter staff after the hero from “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”—came to the animal shelter last July after receiving emergency care at DoveLewis Emergency Animal Hospital. DoveLewis received the kitten, estimated at the time to be 6-8 weeks old, after a Gresham police officer found it along with four dead kittens in a taped-shut, five-gallon bucket.
Since Charlie came to the shelter, he has been recuperating in one of Animal Services’ foster care homes. The shelter relies on foster care providers when cats and dogs need recovery time before adoption. Anybody interested in helping fill this important role as a foster provider need only complete a foster application online at MultCoPets.org
“Charlie is a fighter, he was so sick the first two weeks he didn’t even gain weight,” said Shelley Laird, the foster mom for Charlie. “Now he is a healthy rambunctious kitten with no fear!”
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Keep up the good progress Charlie!
A story I missed. What kind of person could do something like that to such small living creatures? And I suppose they’ll never be caught and brought to justice (not that any justice would be sufficient).
I hope that Charlie finds a loving forever home very soon. He sounds like a sweetie, and he certainly deserves a good life after what he’s been through.