00:00 The cost of littering marked across the face of one of Kent's most vulnerable cats.
00:06 Over the past four years, the RSPCA have received thousands of reports of animals being injured or trapped by litter,
00:14 with 526 in Kent alone.
00:17 So Kenneth, he's either been living in rubbish or he's, as you can see, his head trauma is quite big.
00:24 That has actually got a lot better.
00:26 The Wisteria Cat Rescue in Rochester have seen this rise first hand.
00:32 Yeah, we've seen a rise in cats that have come into our care that have been a result of living on rubbish that's been fly-tipped
00:41 or even plastic that's been caught around the neck.
00:45 It could be to find food, it could be to shelter, it could be to have kittens.
00:50 It could be due to a homely smell that these cats are attracted to rubbish that they then start living in it.
00:56 It's not even stray cats, it is also your domestic cats or cats that are owned.
01:01 They will go in because they're inquisitive.
01:04 What has happened to Kenneth is not uncommon.
01:07 Kent is the third highest for litter-related call-outs according to the RSPCA.
01:13 If we look at the statistics nationally, we've received at the RSPCA 13,000 reports over the last four years about animals severely impacted by carelessly discarded litter.
01:24 And just last year alone in 2023, we received an average of 13 reports a day.
01:30 It is something that we can control and everyone has the responsibility to do something about that and we can.
01:37 And that's why it's so sad when we see animals impacted in this way.
01:41 But Billy says responsibility for littering and fly-tipping rests with local authorities.
01:47 It's purely down to the fact that it's very hard to book an appointment with the local rubbish recycling centres now.
01:54 So people want a quick easy fix to get rid of their rubbish, so they're paying next to nothing to get rid of it and then that's been tossed out.
02:03 Medway Council have been approached for comment.
02:06 With the Great British Spring clean starting on Friday, there's never been a better time to help keep rubbish out of the pores of Kent's wildlife.
02:15 Oliver Leader, the Saks, reporting for KMTV.
