6fa8fc9b1a3e399d35b7a3aa5ff3fde8

“I know. I’m going to phone the shelter. It’s been seven hours now.” He took out his phone and Lily leaned closer to try to listen in.

“Hi, I rang earlier about some kittens our dog had found in Amberdale Woods. No, no sign of their mum coming back, I’m afraid. Would you be able to come and get them?”

He paused for a minute or so, listening, and Lily saw an anxious expression appear on his face– little creases over the top of his nose. “Oh… No, don’t do that. Maybe we can help? Look, give me a minute. Let me talk to my wife and get back to you.” He listened for a little longer, saying, “Mm-hm, mm-hm,” and Lily squeezed even closer, desperate to know what was going on.

“Dad, what’s happened?” she burst out, as soon as he ended the call.

“The shelter’s really full. All of their foster carers have got kittens already. The manager was saying she’d ring round and see who could squeeze them in. Apparently this is kitten season.” He laughed a little nervously.

“So what’s going to happen to our kittens?” Lily asked. “Will they go to one of these foster people? Will they be all right?”

Dad was silent for a minute, running his hand down the back of Hugo’s neck. “Actually, Lily, I’m wondering if we could take them. Just until they can find someone to foster them properly.”

“What?” Lily squeaked. She was so surprised and excited she actually jumped up and down. “Do you mean it? We can take them home?”

“Hold on! Slow down a minute. I’m only talking about us looking after them until there’s space for them with a foster carer. Since it’s an emergency. And I said I’d have to talk to your mum about it. There’s no point getting excited just yet.”

“I know.” Lily’s voice was shaking. Those tiny kittens, hers to look after! If only Mum would say yes! She watched eagerly as Dad called home.

[Êàðòèíêà: _17.jpg]

“Sarah, it’s me. Yes, I called them but there’s a problem – apparently they’re really full. The lady I spoke to earlier on didn’t realize but all their kitten fosterers have got litters of kittens. No, we’re not going to leave them, listen! What do you think about us looking after them for a bit? The shelter manager – she’s the one I just spoke to – said she’d send someone out to help us take them home. They’ll bring some kitten formula and some information sheets on how to care for them if we agree.”

He went quiet for a bit and Lily pressed closer. She could hear her mum’s voice squeaking in the background and she wished Dad had put the speaker on.

“Yes, I know, the shelter manager mentioned that. I can’t say I’m happy about getting up in the middle of the night but I feel responsible for them. They’re so little—”

“Dad, what’s the matter?” Lily interrupted. “What’s Mum saying? Why can’t we do it?”

“Because they’re so young they’ll need hand-rearing, Lily. Mum isn’t sure we’ll be up to it – we’d have to get up in the middle of the night, probably.”

Lily grabbed his arm.“But I could help! Couldn’t I? It’s the summer holidays, I don’t mind. Dad, please! It’s like we were meant to find them – we came along just at the right time. We can’t give up on them now!”

Dad sighed.“Did you hear all that?” he said into the phone. “Yes, I know. Maybe she is old enough to help out. You know how much she loves cats!”

“OK.” Dad smiled at Lily. “Yes, I’ll call the shelter back and tell them.” He ended the call and laughed. “Wow. This was definitely not what I was expecting when we came out for a walk this morning.”

[Êàðòèíêà: _13.jpg]

“We’ll put them in here,” Amy explained, showing Lily and Dad a cardboard travel box that she’d brought with her. She seemed really nice, Lily thought. She’d told them she remembered Hugo from the shelter and that he’d grown into such a handsome, well-behaved dog.

[Êàðòèíêà: _18.jpg]

“I’ve put a hot-water bottle in for them, wrapped up in some towels. If they’ve been without their mum all day, they’ll be getting really cold. Kittens this young can’t control their own temperature, you see. They need their mum’s body heat to keep them warm. Even though it’s been so hot today, if we leave them here overnight without her, they’re at risk of hypothermia – that’s getting too cold to survive.”

“How old do you think they are?” Lily asked, leaning over to look at the kittens. They were still moving – squirming around and nuzzling at each other – but she was sure they weren’t as lively as they had been when they first saw them.

[Êàðòèíêà: _19.jpg]

“Hard to say exactly. Maybe two to three weeks? Their eyes are open but they don’t look big enough to be walking yet. Soon though.”

“They don’t look as bright as they did this morning,” Dad said.

“I was thinking that, too.” Lily bit her lip. “Oh no, maybe we waited for too long for their mum to come back.”