Firefighters rescue 10 kittens found hiding in a pipe

Volunteer firefighters rescued 10 kittens found hiding in a pipe near Thuma in the Waldviertel, ORF reported. The kittens were apparently orphaned and may have been abandoned.

A family travelling on the country road from Thuma to Wetzles, in the Waidhofen an der Thaya district, stopped after a cat ran across the road. They then spotted several kittens sheltering in a pipe beside a field entrance and called the fire brigade.

Firefighters made a loud noise at one end of the pipe, prompting the kittens to run out at the other end, fire brigade commander Jürgen Breuer told ORF.

The family took the 10 kittens in overnight because they appeared too young to survive in the wild without human help. The next day, they were taken to the Schlosser animal shelter in Gastern. Their origin remains unknown.