Kittens are a very popular addition to families and it's not hard to see why - they're friendly, loveable, funny and, let's face it, really cute! Every year we get lots of litters of kittens brought into us either by members of the public or by Inspectors, but few of them are with us for very long before they are adopted.

This is all great for them...but what about their mothers? Most litters come in with their mum, or their mum comes in whilst pregnant and gives birth in a foster home. Once the kittens are weaned and adopted, very often the mum is left behind, sometimes for months before she finds her new home. At the moment we have Sally, Lucy, Edith and Whitney - all mums looking for their forever home. Alongside those we have Ellie, Harmony and Mabel who are nursing their kittens in foster homes. Before long they will be in the same position. Most of these mums are barely past kittenhood themselves, Edith for example is only one year old. 

Sometimes a kitten is better suited to a household than an adult cat. For example, if the adopters have a dog who is used to living with cats it may be that none of our adult cats would appreciate living with a dog! Therefore a kitten may be the better choice. However, the majority of the time adult cats would fit in just as well to a home. 

Take poor Midnight as an example. She came into the Centre pregnant in May 2013. She left straight for a foster home where she had four beautiful kittens. She returned to the Centre At the end of June and her kittens were quickly snapped up, but it was a further 10 weeks before she found her new home.

As well as mothers, there are other adult cats who are being left behind longer than usual. We have 1 year old fiesty male cat, Captain (pictured), the sweet, loving 12 year old Benjamin and the affectionate pair Tammy & Bonnie, all of who are long stay cats. 

Kittens are the perfect addition to some families, but why not talk to the staff about whether an adult cat could be the right one for you? Or, when you come to adopt a kitten, why not take the mother as well?