With luck and many volunteers, LA city shelters on track to reach no-kill status
LOS ANGELES _ There they were, felines clinging to life, Laney, Quirky, Koko, all babies without Mama in sight, scooped into the palm of human hands to be soothed, stroked and fed around the clock.
"Not everyone understands how hard it is for newborn kittens. They have to eat every two to three hours. We weigh them before and after. We make sure the conditions are just right for their nurturing," says Kara Odenbaugh, pointing to the heating pads tucked under the critters' blankets and stuffed animals _ simulating Mom _ adorning each kitten's crib.
Odenbaugh, who oversees the kitten nursery at Best Friends Pet Adoption Center in Mission Hills, cradled one kitten weighing 177 grams, barely one-third of a pound. Laney, the size of a Twinkie, sported gray fur reminiscent
