Police responded to a call on Monday at a fire-damaged,abandoned property in Porirua—and left with a bundle of kittens.

Officers were alerted after a man was seen climbing through a window at the address.Police spoke to the man,who explained he was searching for a child.

While inside the house,officers discovered a litter of young kittens,just a few weeks old.

“Sadly,some of the kittens had not survived.But police collected all of the surviving ones and took them to Care Vets in Porirua,”a police statement said.

A rescue team from Feral Nation later returned to search for the mother cat.

“The hungry mama cat was soon lured and trapped with some tasty food.Now the kittens and their mother are back together,”said Kate from the rescue group.