Unfortunately, finding abandoned kittens, dogs, birds, or even rabbits is nothing new in Greece, says Valia Orfanidou, the volunteer in SCARS (Second Chance Animal Rescue Society), in Athens.
Every day, you can find kittens or puppies abandoned by their family near the mountain, Immitos.
That is exactly what happened to the entire litter of kittens that her adopted dog, Aragon, found one day when they were on a hike. Luckily, all kittens were rescued from being eaten or killed in the wilderness…
Finding Abandoned Litters Isn’t News In The Athens Mountains
Valia, the volunteer from SCARS, says that finding new kittens in Athens is a pretty common thing. You can find many of them almost every day, everywhere – on the street, near dumpsters, and especially in the mountains where their family leaves them to die.
Sadly, many pets end up like this – being abandoned by their irresponsible family and left at the mercy of wild animals and predators. You can even find empty cardboard boxes with toys and blankets, but there are no animals in them.
Valia Wanted To Raise Awareness
The purpose of Valia and Aragon’s hike was to raise awareness about this very issue. She brought her camera and her adopted buddy, Aragon, into the mountains to look for abandoned pets and to take evidence of these cruel acts.
Unfortunately, not just infants, but even adult dogs, cats, and even birds are being left to the mercy of foxes, in particular – omnivorous mammals common in this part of the world.
They’re left to fight for their own life, mostly unsuccessfully. A very small number of abandoned pets survive, but even then, they’re in the status of “stray animals.”
Aragon Found The Whole Litter
That very day, Aragon found the whole litter of kittens on his own. He basically directed Valia to them, indicating that he found something “interesting.”
They were in a cardboard box, left without any food, blanket, or their mom. One thing was for sure – they, just like many others, were left to die in the mountains…
Luckily, Valia was there to find them first. She immediately took them and brought them to her home.
Surprisingly, Aragon, who was also a stray dog that was adopted not so long ago and hadn’t any professional training whatsoever, showed selfless and unreserved care for the lost kittens!
He Becomes The Carrying Foster Dad
He basically became their foster dad! He looked after them, made sure they didn’t fall or hurt themselves, and always kept them safe. It was like he had some inner parental instinct that surfaced that very day when he initially found them.
From that moment on, Aragon became inseparable with the kittens and took over the role of their dad. The kittens, on the other hand, loved being next to him, snuggling up against his warm fur.
Their bond was amazingly heartwarming, especially taking into account that both Aragon and the kittens came from the street. In a way, it was like they understood each other at the very primal level.
The SCARS put the kittens up for adoption, hoping for them to find a new, loving home.
