MORE than 25 kittens are waking up in new homes this week after The Star highlighted their plight.

The Blue Cross Animal Adoption Centre, in Grassingham End, Chalfont St Peter, was forced to close its doors last week after taking in more than 50 unwanted young cats.

Centre manager Anne Rowan said that kind-hearted Star readers had definitely eased the problem by adopting some of the animals but she still has a waiting list of many more seeking new homes.

Anne said: "The Star's article enabled us to home many of the kittens but since then we have taken in a lot more and we are still desperate to find homes for them."

She said that this was one of the worst years for unwanted kittens and blamed the situation on cat owners not bothering to get their pets spayed and neutered.

Anne said: "There is no excuse.

"If people can't afford to pay for their cats to be done then all they have to do is contact us or one of the other animal charities.

"There is help available for people on benefits and we will do our best to advise them about what's available."

The Wycombe Cats Protection League also contacted The Star to say they, too, had experienced a huge increase in the number of cats and kittens brought to them for re-homing.

Spokesman Patricia Shakespeare said: "We have temporary homers all over the area with cardboard boxes of kittens in their gardens and kitchens.

"We also have some gorgeous cats about a year old and nobody has even been to look at them."

Anyone interested in adopting a cat or kitten can contact the Blue Cross Centre on (01753) 882560 or Wycombe Cats Protection League on (01494) 814396.

All animals re-homed by the centres are neutered or spayed and fully vaccinated.

But before falling for a cute kitten, potential owners should think carefully about whether they have the time and money to look after a pet properly.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.