Templeton firefighters were practicing a car rescue. Then they found 2-week-old kittens
Templeton firefighters practicing their rescue skills recently found a couple of tiny kittens in need of help.
New Templeton Fire and Emergency Services recruits found two young cats in a car they were using as part of an exercise Tuesday at their training grounds near the Salinas riverbed, according to a Templeton Community Services District (CSD) news release.
The firefighters were learning how to use the Jaws of Life to remove car crash victims from vehicles when they found what they initially thought were stuffed animals under the passenger seat, the release said.
The animals turned out to be two very alive kittens — a male and a female, both two weeks old — prompting firefighters to initiate what they dubbed “Operation Kitten,” the release said.
Firefighters saw no signs of a mother cat and decided to remove the kittens due to the extreme heat, possible predators and the animals’ age.
Firefighter Jonathan Torres wrapped the kittens in his sweater and took them to Las Tablas Animal Hospital in Templeton for evaluation, Templeton CSD said.
Both kittens were healthy, and were transferred to a local kitten foster parent, who named them Tofu and Stir Fry, the release said.
The kittens will be available for adoption in a couple of months, Brittany Donecho, registered vet technician and foster coordinator for the Homeless Animal Rescue Team in Cambria, said in the release.
For information about kitten adoption, email Donecho at foster-coordinator@slohart.com.
This story was originally published June 28, 2019 at 1:11 PM.
