Four kittens cute enough to melt plenty of hearts found new homes after an animal rescue organisation held its inaugural Adoption Day event in Dunedin at the weekend.
The three-hour event, held in Maryhill on Saturday, proved an important moment for Outram newlyweds Doug and Shonelle Williams, who adopted Dexter, a smoky black kitten, about 4 months old.
Animal Rescue Network New Zealand is a community-based organisation, with a group of fosterers caring for former stray kittens and cats throughout Dunedin.
The network, which began operating early last year, now cares for more than 40 kittens in the city.
Mrs Williams said she and her husband were "cat people'' who had long wanted a pet, and she was "keen to support'' the network, having followed their efforts via the network's Facebook site.
Network trustee Sharon Pine said Adoption Day had proved successful, with more than 20 people visiting and four kittens adopted.
People were often tempted to acquire cats that were given away through social media, but adopting a pet was a serious responsibility, and it was crucial that cats were properly looked after and desexed to reduce the stray cat problem, she said.
"Our motivation is to reduce the proportion of stray and unwanted cats and to reduce their suffering.
"Unfortunately, it's a never-ending stream of them.''
All the kittens offered for adoption had been desexed, treated for fleas and worms, and had been given their first vaccination injection.
Adopters paid $130 for each pet to cover part of the cost of that treatment.
