Dumped kitten survives after going through Hartlepool firm’s heavy machinery

The four-week-old cat was discovered on the picking line at Hartlepool firm J&B Recycling.

The tiny kitten was very dehydrated with her leg badly injured and it was feared that she might not be able to survive.

But her new owner Ingrid Brough-Williams did not give up, feeding the pet with a syringe every hour and keeping her on a heated pad.

The kitten pulled through and is now “thriving”, Ingrid said.

"She’s a really social cat. She’s doing really well,” the mum-of-two said.

"She’s quite naughty now as well, she’s got quite a strong character. She’s brilliant, definitely a fighter.”

JB, who is named after the company, ended up at the plant after being put in a bin and went through some heavy machinery.

Her discovery happened not long after a box of kittens was found after it had been dumped in a skip.

The kittens were sent to a rescue shelter but had to be put down as they were too young to survive.

The company has said such discoveries are “sad and disappointing” and has urged people not to put animals into the kerbside waste.

"The machinery she went through is almost like a giant tumble dryer, that spins round and has different holes in it to sort materials in different sizes,” explained Ingrid, who is the company’s marketing consultant.

"She will have gone through that, having been spun around with lots of other waste. It would have been really awful for her.”

Ingrid, who is from Hartlepool, added: "She’s a strong little kitty, to have survived, first in the bin, then actually going through the machines, it must have been quite traumatic for her.”

JB sadly lost part of her leg following the ordeal but has been healing well.

Her arrival has brought lots of joy to the family, whose 14-year-old dog died last year.

"She has fitted in really well with the family. I got two little boys, they love her, they are really taking care of her,” said Ingrid, 42.

"She very much loves my husband, more than anybody else, even though I rescued her.”

Ingrid added: “It was nice to find JB.”

Vikki Jackson-Smith, managing director at J&B Recycling, in Thomlinson Road, said: “It is sad and disappointing when we do occasionally find animals that have been discarded with people’s recycling waste.

"It is particularly upsetting for the team who make the discovery. In the past we have worked with local animal rescue shelters, who we know do the best they can for the animals.

"On this occasion, given the extent of the kitten’s injuries and her very young age, it was clear she needed medical attention straight away. Ingrid was keen to intervene and give her the care and love she very clearly needed.

"We are delighted that the outcome has been positive for little JB, but we would urge people not to put animals, alive or deceased, into their kerbside waste.”