Lucky The Cat

Lucky talking from his cage

The first week of April we had a very special new addition to the shelter.  Lucky, the cat.  He had his 15 minutes of fame.  There was an article featured on his rescue, as well as an interview with our shelter manager on a local news network.

On April 3rd, I met Lucky for the first time.  He looked awful.  Patches of fur were missing, the padding on his paws were cut up, his rendezvous with a tree caused a sizable cut on his inner thigh, and he was severely emaciated.  Lucky had already been to the vet after his rescue.  He was given IV fluids, vitamins, and an antibiotic injection to prevent any infection.  Lucky’s right eye was clouded over really bad.  The vet said it was scar tissue from a previous eye infection, but the eye was fine.  Our job at START II was to fatten him up to a healthy weight.  The poor little guy was completely emaciated.

After I finished cleaning cat cages, I spent some quality time with Lucky.  I held him close and brought him into the playroom.  We sat in a sunspot.  Lucky curled up against me and fell asleep, his body vibrating from his purr.  I gave him cheek scratches and chin rubs until he fell asleep.  Lucky napped on my lap for a good hour and a half before waking and wanting to explore the shelter.

Lucky enjoying time on my lap

Lucky is doing very well.  Today when I saw him, he looked like he put a smidge of weight on.  He loves Pro Plan wet food.  It is difficult to comprehend why anyone would allow this to happen to an animal.  There’s a ring around Lucky’s neck where a collar used to be.  It is obvious he was someone’s cat before he came into START II’s care.  Lucky loves to give me headbutts and gets really happy when I talk to him (well, when any of the volunteers talk to him – he loves people!).  He’s gotten a lot of calls on him so far for adoption, but his forever home hasn’t come along yet.  He’s a special cat and needs a special home.

I look forward to seeing him when I’m volunteering.  Lucky’s a strong cat.  He hasn’t given up on his recovery, nor has he become weary of people.