In the spring of 2012, Carrie Hawks, a fantasy cat artist from Pensacola, Florida, discovered that a two-legged kitten and his mother and siblings were living in the woods near her father’s work, and she decided she had to help the family of feral felines, especially the young tabby and white cat without back legs. Carrie tried…

Shortly after Sharon Edwards moved from Sydney to her new home in Melbourne, Australia, in February 2015, she discovered a handsome grey cat who lived on her block. The feline, who her neighbors called Smokey, was a community cat who had been living in the area for approximately five years when Sharon saw him for…

On January 29, 2017, Anna and her sister were leaving a relative’s house in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, following a family dinner celebrating the Lunar New Year, when she heard an unusual sound. “We were walking to our car,” remembers Anna, “when I thought I heard a cat’s mew.” However, Anna’s sister denied hearing the noise,…

When Dana’s boyfriend Adam called her from a pet store near their home in Hoboken, New Jersey, and asked her to come to the shop to meet a cat who was available for adoption through a local rescue, JerseyCats, she knew the kitty had to be special. My boyfriend and I had talked about getting a…

In the summer of 2017, Florida resident Shannon Jackson and her wife Sarah saw a Facebook post about a tiny ginger and white kitten with a cleft lip and a chromosomal abnormality who had been found outside and all by herself. “Sarah and I saw her photo,” remembers Shannon, “and just knew she was meant…

In November 2016, Holly learned about Giselle, a blind dwarf munchkin cat, when some of her friends sent her the link to the Instagram profile MSPCA Boston created for the tiny special needs kitty who had been surrendered to the shelter in October 2016. “The first time I saw [Giselle’s Instagram profile],” remembers Holly, “my…

In November 2016, Pia Agrawal lost the first cat she’d ever adopted, a handsome tabby named Little Pajamas who passed away after just 10 years with his mom. While Pia was deeply saddened by Little Pajamas’ passing, she knew she wanted to open her home and her heart to another cat, and she was inspired…

In November 2016, Michelle Avallone and her boyfriend Sam Wood went to the New England Society for Abandoned Animals (NESAA) in Centerville, Massachusetts, after learning about the organization through their local PetSmart. “We made an appointment to go visit the shelter in hopes of adopting a kitten,” says Michelle, but one of the coordinators at NESAA thought…

In May 2012, Maygen was struggling with severe depression when she learned her friend’s cat had recently given birth to a litter kittens, one of which was a tiny tortoiseshell cat who was a little different from the others. The professionals who treated Maygen for depression following a suicide attempt told her it might be…

In April 2012, Kristie and her husband went to a shelter near their home in Goodyear, Arizona, in search of a cat to adopt. “We had just gotten married,” remembers Kristie, “and our home needed a cat because I’ve always had cats my whole life.” The newlyweds met several of the available kitties, but they…