Too young (or poor) to have a baby, too old to play with Tamagotchi toys? Have you ever thought you could become the nursemaid of tiny infant puppies? Well, there is a class that explains how to do it. It is being organized by the Casaringhio Association of Busto Arsizio on Sunday, June 23, in anticipation of the litter season. At this time in particular, kittens are at risk of being left on the streets and finding themselves without a mother and without milk just days after birth.
Nannies wanted
So it's good to be prepared. “The goal is to create a network of nannies who can take care of the kittens and not leave them alone at such a complex time,” Casaringhio, who has been rescuing and caring for animals in distress for years, from squirrels to hedgehogs and hares to rabbits, writes on Facebook.
The course teaches how to choose the right type of milk for different species (only powdered milk is good for cats), the position in which to hold the kittens during feeding (never supine) and massages to stimulate their needs after meals. The new nannies will thus be able to ensure that the animals “grow up to weaning so that they can then be adopted or released in the case of ferals.”
More than a trend
The one organized by Casaringhio and president Sara Vega is just the latest mobilization in Italy to help abandoned or battered newborn cats and wild animals. For example, the City of Parma has already proposed several editions of a similar course for weaning small felines, but there are of course a variety of associations dealing with this throughout the country. In addition, on social media, especially Facebook, the topic is very present, with chats, groups and pages dedicated to helping abandoned puppies.
Service and therapy
The feeling one gets from reading the many SOS posts and opening the (blurry) photo galleries that populate these Internet venues is of voluntary service that becomes mutual care, however. It may not yet be the hottest trend on Instagram's glossy feeds-it takes real commitment, it's not enough to just re-share two pictures-but nursing and caring for kittens ends up doing good not only for the animals, but also for the people who practice it. Hardened cat lovers get attached to newborn pooches, and those who resent the little felines wean them and look for people to give them up for adoption, creating a virtuous circle.
Let them grow up
The timing also seems particularly propitious for this type of activity given that the latest “fad” in animal care, puppy yoga, was recently banned by the Ministry of Health after protests from animal welfare groups.
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This practice, which originated in the United States, was considered pet therapy and had caught on in Italy as well, however, attracting criticism that puppy animals should be left in the care of their mothers and kept away from stressful environments and excessive interactions with unfamiliar humans.
Now the ministry has reiterated that pet therapy is only meant to be an activity with adult animals. Translated: let them grow up, even with a wet nurse if needed.
Illustrazione di Gloria Dozio - Acrimònia Studios
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