It is impossible for a lover of cats to banish these alert, gentle, and discriminating little friends, who give us just enough of their regard and complaisance to make us hunger for more.
~Agnes Repplier
As a volunteer for Colony Cats and Dogs, I’ve seen the best and the worst of people. Whether it’s a hoarding situation or an abuse or neglect situation, the shelter always steps in to help. Colony Cats and Dogs is a cage-free, no-kill shelter. My task while I am there four days a week is to talk to the people who come in and educate them on the adoption process. I have seen many heartbreaking as well as heartwarming situations in my six years volunteering there. One adoption story in particular sticks out in my head; I will never forget it.
A young boy with golden curls had come into the shelter with his mom a couple days in a row. He was always so excited to be around the cats, but all he would do was shriek. There was such a bright glow on the boy’s face that it was contagious. When I saw them at the shelter for the third day in a row, I had to talk to the mom. Walking up to her, I smiled and said, “Is there anything I can help you with?” Turning to me with a smile, she told me their story.
Her nine-year-old son was on the autism spectrum and had never spoken a single word in his life. While he couldn’t talk, he did have a love of art, and he loved to draw cats. When his mom had heard about our shelter, she knew she had to bring her son in. I asked if they had any pets at home, and she said they did not. As a single mom of two, she was always working. The days that she was not working, she was running her son from one therapy session to another. Lately, though, her son had been very emotional, and the only thing that calmed him was spending time with our cats. After much consideration, she was strongly considering adopting a cat.
That day, her son fell in love with a little, black cat named Stevie. I was shocked that he was interested in her, given her appearance. Little Stevie had come to us after being severely abused. Some sick person cut off both her ears and let an eye infection get so bad that the eye needed to be removed.
The boy’s mother kept trying to show him other cats, but he kept going back to Stevie. I asked her why she was steering her son away from this cat and she said she was worried about medical bills due to the abuse. I explained that all of our cats see a vet and are healthy upon going up for adoption. Stevie was truly healthy; she just looked different.
Two days later, the boy and his mother returned. She said, “My son has not stopped drawing pictures of Stevie. I talk about the zoo and seeing other animals, and he just points to his drawings. Every time I say Stevie’s name, he smiles and claps his hands. What do I have to do to take this cat home?”
I sat down next to the boy and asked him, “Would you like to take Stevie home with you tonight?” He had such a glow in his eyes and was smiling from ear to ear. Giving me a huge hug he looked at his mom in disbelief, looking for confirmation of what I had asked him. His mother nodded her head and the boy shrieked.
After about five minutes, I had all the paperwork done and Stevie was in a carrier ready to go.
Later that night, we got a happy update on Facebook from the mom:
Tonight we adopted Stevie from your shelter, and tonight my nine-year-old autistic son said his first word EVER. Holding Stevie he looked at me and said “cat.” Did we rescue Stevie, or did Stevie rescue us?
I cried so hard, the words became blurred. Sometimes, we just need a pet as much as that pet needs us.
~Stephanie Jones-McKee
