August 2017 - Issue 3
Did You Know?
Without human intervention, abandoned kittens under 28 days old
will perish from starvation or exposure or are euthanized in shelters
due to the lack of resources to provide the 24/7 critical care they need.


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Congratulations!
Emma Hewitt, RVT
(Registered Veterinary Technician)
With the addition of two major clients this year, Placer SPCA and Sacramento County Animal Care and Regulations, it became apparent very quickly that Kitten Central had grown to a point that we needed a new position to oversee the day to day medical and administrative duties of caring for hundreds of critical neonate kittens. We are excited to announce that on August 1, that position was filled by a long time volunteer, Emma Hewitt.

Emma says she always knew she wanted to do something with animals. So Emma took ROP Animal Science in her senior year at Del Oro High School. Her first internship was at the Placer SPCA, which is where she realized that she had a real passion for shelter medicine. The veterinary technology program at Yuba College was connected to her ROP program, so she chose this as her next step. She spent two years in the program and her love of shelter medicine grew. On August 12, 2017, Emma passed the California Veterinary Board Registered Veterinary Technician's exam and she is now fully certified!

Emma is a true success story here at Kitten Central. Emma began her journey with Kitten Central when she rescued Luna, an abandoned bottle baby kitten. Luna was Emma’s first foster kitten and she ultimately wound up adopting her. Next Emma took on a volunteer position doing cat care and learned the protocols for cleaning and services. She eventually joined the volunteer medical team and began drawing blood for the FeLV testing.

As Head of the Medical Team and Administrative Assistant to the CEO, Penny Dougherty, Emma now oversees all the day to day medical treatment plans for all the in-house critical care kittens, coordinates and schedules all routine exams and spay/neuter appointments, works with the foster moms and medical team on any medical issues or concerns and ensures the accuracy of all medical documentation. Emma said she didn’t realize that she had so much skill in kitten medicine until she started working at Kitten Central. We feel very fortunate to have watched her grow over the past year and offer her an opportunity to continue to grow with Kitten Central.    
Kitten Central Does So Much More Than Foster
by Emma Hewitt
Kitten Central is known for its unique medical fostering program that is only possible because of their incredible, dedicated team of volunteers. One such group makes up the Volunteer Medical Team. This team follows protocols according to the UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine Program and the Kitten Central Medical Manual and oversight of their Medical Director,  Patricia Colley, DVM, MPVM.

Routine medicines and vaccinations are given at each service to get rid of and prevent worms, viral upper respiratory infections and any intestinal issues that may have developed from parasites and/or improper diet. Each kitten is given an exam and medical issues are noted. The medical team will then work on a treatment plan that suits the individual needs of each kitten.

Whether the kitten is in for a regular check-up or is crashing and needs ICU care, these individuals are always there for advice and assistance. I hope that my medical education and training will provide the academic side of shelter medicine to compliment the years of experience that the Kitten Central medical volunteers already have under their belts. I know that Kitten Central continues to grow and learn new things and I would like to help them grow even more. One of my ideas is to acquire a microscope, which would allow us to perform fecals to check for specific parasites, definitively spot ear mites, and so much more. We have such a dedicated medical team here at Kitten Central and I am very excited to start my RVT journey as a member of this team!