Ten kittens callously dumped outside Northamptonshire Scout hut

But luckily they have been taken in and are being looked after by the volunteers at Animals In Need in Little Irchester, near Wellingborough.

Sanctuary manager Annie Marriott said: “These poor kitties were found dumped outside the Overstone Scout Hut with only a small bowl of water between eight of them.

"We will take care of them until homes are found where they will be loved.”

Sally Smith from Animals In Need told this newspaper: “The first eight were brought over to us on Saturday afternoon, having been found loose with just a bowl of water, no sign of food or efforts to keep them together or sheltered from the elements.

"The following day another two were brought from the exact same location - they had been seen around on the Saturday but had disappeared while the others were being caught.”

The kittens are thought to be around 12 to 16-weeks-old and come from at least two different litters.

And Sally added: “They had a truly lucky escape - given some of the recent extremely hot days it wouldn't have taken them long to dehydrate and collapse if they hadn't been found in time.

"It really defies belief that people are so callous as to dump animals rather than doing the sensible thing and reaching out for help and advice.

"There could have been 10 dead kittens, it doesn't bear thinking about, especially if the children attending the Scouts groups had found their poor little bodies.”

People have been disgusted by the actions of whoever left the kittens, with a post about the young animals on the Animals In Need Facebook page receiving more than 840 reactions and more than 100 comments.

One person commented: “How awful, heartless people. Thank goodness they were found and in your safe hands now.”

And another said: “Poor babies, for goodness sake don't just dump them like pieces of rubbish, at least take them to an animal shelter where they can be looked after. This sort of behaviour makes me so angry.”

Another comment read: “Thank you so much for taking care of these wee beauties and keeping them safe until they find their forever family homes.

"I wish there were more people like you in this world.”

Animals In Need has said it will post an update on its website and social media channels when the kittens are ready for re-homing.

For more information about Animals In Need and its work rescuing and re-homing animals across the county for more than 30 years, visit their website.