by Andy Gray
agray@thekmgroup.co.uk

An animal home is under siege from pets being dumped in its grounds by “callous” owners.
In the last two months as many as 13 animals have been abandoned at the RSPCA centre in Leybourne. The list of unwanted pets includes kittens, puppies and guinea pigs.
In one heartbreaking case it seems staff were too late to save a rabbit which had been left at the centre’s gates.
Christine Dooley, centre manager, said: “We found a pile of rabbit food, but no rabbit.
“Next to it was a cardboard box, but whatever was in it had gone.
“There’s a chance it could’ve been taken by a fox.”
She added: “We’ve never had to deal with this many abandoned animals before and there doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason to it.”
The dumping spree began on September 3 when a 10-week-old Australian shepherd called Gadget was left at the centre’s main gate in a cat carrier.
The next morning a stray Staffordshire bull terrier, later reunited with its owner, was also found at the gates.
An oriental kitten christened Bartholomew by staff was next to be discovered.
The eight-week-old was among three kittens abandoned in the car park.
Staff were unable to catch the other two.
It is believed that 13 animals have been dumped, but only half of them were rehoused or been taken in by the centre.
Like the rabbit, the fate of the others is unknown.
But Christine admitted: “We don’t know what’s happened to the other half.
“We’ve ended up with so many animals but we’ve got nowhere to put them.
“We’ve cats living in the office and a lot of animals here in very poor condition but with no history.”
Other pets have been found abandoned further afield.
Two sets of kittens were discovered near recycling bins at Tesco in Lunsford and a shihtsu, taken in by the centre, was found “covered in maggots” in Penenden Heath.
Christine believes the recession might be to blame for the surge of pets being dumped.
She said: “It’s a criminal offence to abandon animals and it’s such a callous thing to do.”