CAT rescue homes across Worcestershire and the rest of the country are facing a crisis and are full to the brim with unwanted animals.

The situation at the RSPCA Worcester and Mid-Worcestershire branch has reached such a critical level that they are unable to take in any more cats until some of its current 37 residents find new homes.

They have already dealt with 103 cats this year which have been brought into its Sansome Place base because they were either unwanted, needed medical treatment or were strays, with others up and down the country dealing with hundreds more.

Peter Bolton, animal operations manager for the Midlands and North region, said: “The RSPCA is struggling on all fronts with this cat crisis. Our inspectors are being called out constantly to deal with sick, injured, neglected or abandoned cats, our hospitals are full with injured cats whose owners appeared to have dumped them, and we have more cats than ever who have been cruelly treated and our centres across the region are just full with cats and kittens needing new homes.”

The charity said one of the key factors leading to the crisis was owners failing to neuter their cats which led to unwanted kittens. The result of many of those unplanned litters was the kittens were either dumped or handed to people who may not realise the responsibility of cats – and those felines in turn create more unwanted litters.

RSPCA volunteers and staff said the pressure which faced them was escalating and they were calling on the public to help by offering some of these desperate cats a new home.

Mr Bolton said: “Even if you cannot take a cat on full time, members of the public are being urged to perhaps become a cat fosterer and offer short term homes to the felines which branches and centres simply don’t have the room for.” All cats rehomed at the Worcester branch, and any other, are neutered and microchipped to stop un-wanted litters and to help find owners of stray cats. For more information, contact the centre by calling 01905 20822, or visit the website, rspca-worcester.co.uk.