VANCOUVER – When Shelly Roche started her kitten webcam she had no idea the kind of attention it would receive.
Roche, who now lives in Langley, had moved to B.C. from the United States a few years ago and was waiting for her work permit. Being an animal lover she did not hesitate to volunteer her time at the Langley Animal Protection Society (LAPS).
She took home a new mom and clowder of kittens to foster and decided to set up a kitten webcam so people could check out the cats and their antics.
Now, many moms and kittens later, the Tinykittens webcam runs 24 hours a day.
“I just decided to just broadcast the whole thing in all of its uncensored splendor,” says Roche.
Right now she is fostering a mother cat who is set to give birth any day.
The webcam has become so popular that it gets hundreds of thousands of views every day from countries around the world. During the birth of the last clowder she fostered, she received 173,000 views from 93 countries.
Tinykittens also has more than 1.4 million fans on Facebook.
The attention has also translated into donations from around the world.
“Just for this year we’ve had 644 people donate and it’s more than $46,000,” says Roche.
“That’s just a staggering huge number for a small shelter.”
Once the kittens are old enough they will be returned to LAPS and put up for adoption.
“It’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced,” says Roche. “It’s great to be part of something that’s so impactful.”
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