Male Cat Found Protecting Kittens Left Outside To Freeze In Essex County, N.J.

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — You do what you have to do when it comes to being a “mother,” according to members of the Bloomfield-based Homeless Animal Adoption League (HAAL).

That’s one of the lessons that the animal rescue organization learned when they discovered that an adorable guardian feline found protecting a litter of kittens was really a male.

HAAL members shared the story of how they found “Mrs. Doubtfire” and his adopted babies on their Facebook page Thursday.

“When you get a call saying that kittens are in a laundry basket on a curb, your heart sinks. The call sounded legit and the caller seemed truly concerned. The caller didn't drive and didn't know what to do. He was just walking home when he spotted the little ones. He said they seemed to be placed their by someone. The temperature was dropping and it had started to rain. The caller said that the mother cat was with them and he wasn't comfortable picking them up.”

The animal rescue organization continued:

“So off we went to see if we could find these frightened babies. With GPS in hand we quickly found the street. Once we parked we started walking and in seconds, we saw a recycling container on the curb. Cuddled together with a mommy cat keeping them warm was at least four kittens. They were about four to five weeks old. Mom was quiet and looked up as if to say ‘Thank god you found us.’ We covered the container with a blanket and off to HAAL we went.”

But once back at their facility, the HAAL rescuers got two surprises.

First, they found that there were actually six kittens in the container, not four. The felines “looked good,” with clear eyes and noses and the ability to eat on their own, HAAL rescuers wrote.

But there was one other surprise… the kittens’ guardian wasn’t a “mother” cat at all, but a male.

“He could have been the dad or a big brother from another litter, but to those little kittens he was their protector and surrogate mom,” HAAL staff wrote. “He groomed them and gently played with each one… That little cat has taught us that you do what you have to do to protect the most vulnerable.”

Learn more about HAAL – including adoption information - here.

Photo: Homeless Animal Adoption League, Facebook

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