Warm Fuzzy Tale: Huckleberry and Nori

Not all cats are ready to be adopted when they first come to the Rescue. Most need vaccines and spay/neuter surgery, and many like Huckleberry and Nori (formerly Mr. Bond and Vesper Lynd) and their sister, Moneypenny, need extra medical care or socialization to feel comfortable around people.

When they arrived at SAFe in the beginning of October 2021, these siblings were scared and needed help to feel better. All three kittens had tapeworms and Vesper, who was the shyest in her litter, also had an Upper Respiratory Infection, causing congestion, sneezing, and weepy eyes. Medicating her was difficult since she was not used to much human interaction. But one of our wonderful foster volunteers was up for the challenge!

Their foster mom, Sampradha remembers, “She was the one I’ve got the most scratches from, but also the one whom I’ve got the most love from. She was terrified, but once she realized pets were what she loved the most in the world, she started looking forward to my visits to the foster room.” (Sampradha is SAFe’s Foster of the Month for December ’21! Read her feature here.)

With patience and encouragement, these formerly scared and hissy siblings began to overcome their shyness and seek out attention. Nori would even opt to receive cuddles and affection while she sat back and watched her brother and sister’s antics. And Huckleberry found his playful side! Though he was smaller than both of his sisters, he proved to be a worthy opponent and would have won awards for competitive wand chasing! But when playtime was over, Nori and Huckleberry loved to snuggle up together in their cat bed, and clearly had a special bond.

After a few weeks in their foster home, they got the green light for adoption and were brought back to the Rescue. Although “older” kittens like Huckleberry and Nori are often overlooked by potential adopters in favor of their smaller counterparts, it only took a matter of days before the pair caught the attention of their new humans. 

Recently, their family reached out to give us an update: “They are settling right into their new home. They love to lay in our laps for pets, cuddle together in their tower, watch birds out the window, play, and chase each other around the house (especially very early in the morning!).”

All of the time and care their foster home and the medical and foster teams at SAFe put into making sure they were healthy, well-adjusted cats paid off! We’re grateful to have such a wonderful group of humans working together to provide good lives for homeless cats, and a community of cat lovers opening their homes to new furry family members every day. Keep the snuggles coming, Huckleberry and Nori!

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Posted in Rescue Stories.