COTTAGE GROVE, Ore. - Lane County Animal Services says kitten abandonment is a major problem in our area.  But one woman is clawing her way out of the issue, by rescuing furry felines and finding them good homes.

This tale is something we hear about all the time, but Tuesday, we saw more than 40 kittens, abandoned, and left in horrific conditions.  But now they've got at least eight lives left, thanks to one woman.

("This is our miracle baby," says Nancy Ede of Cottage Grove.  You might say Lucy, started life on the wrong paw.  "A lady brought us a cardboard box, with a cluster of five newborn kittens all dried and stuck together by their bellies with the umbilical cord.  We had to very carefully with cotton balls and water soak those kittens apart to separate them," says Ede.

And while Lucy, the sole survivor might be a miracle, so are other babies.  "They were half the size I would say, and no weight to them at all," says Ede.  Their eyes, sealed shut when a passer by found them.

"Then Forest Valley told me they also had a phone call from a man who said they saw someone throw 3 tiny kittens out of a vehicle on Gateway Blvd," says Ede.

So Nancy Ede took them in, along with more than 40 other kittens in dire conditions, and she nourished them back to health using her own time, money and T.L.C.

"These 5 were left abandoned at Lane County Animal Services," shows Ede.

Her work, along with Janetta Overholser's with the Humane Society of Cottage Grove saved 300 kittens last year.  Lives both women feel shouldn't just be thrown out.

"Every kitten has the potential to be a wonderful companion to somebody they just need that chance," says Overholser.

Abandoning an animal is illegal, but both women say it's a problem that could easily be avoided by spaying or neutering your cat.

For more information on adopting one of Ede's rescue kittens you can call 942-2789

Or to find more information on the kittens that are currently available, log on to: http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/OR186.html

Here's a list of low cost options:

The Willamette Animal Guild (WAG) 345-3566 offers low cost spay/neuter

The Stray Cat Alliance (SCA) 607-4219 offers financial assistance for altering cats

Feline Assistance Network (FAN) 556-2809

Eugene Spay/Neuter Clinic 682-6343 low cost spay/neuter

Stop Pet Overpopulation Today (SPOT) 485-7768

Humane Society of Cottage Grove (HSCG) 942-3130 assistance in South Lane County area

Greenhill Humane Society 689-1503

Lane County Animal Services 682-3645

(The last two can tell you what their programs are, and how to get your animals on their list to come to the shelter)