A very timid pregnant cat was curled up in a corner at the shelter until someone saw her and turned her life around.
A pregnant cat was brought in to a shelter in Central California, needing rescue. She was very shy, sitting in the back of her kennel, trying to hide. She was thought to be feral and placed in a room full of other animals, due to limited space.
When Dr. Rudiger of Nine Lives Foundation saw the frightened feline sitting alone in the corner of her cage, she knew she had to help her. "Her defensive body language - flattened ears, hunched body posture and fearful eyes were so misleading," Nine Lives Foundation said.
"The constant noise of barking puppies/dogs from kennels nearby caused her to retreat, shying away from human touch - thereby 'acting feral.'"
Dr. Rudiger pulled her from the facility and took her to Nine Lives Foundation in Redwood City, California. Mini Cat Town Kitten Rescue immediately offered to foster, so the momma would be able to raise her kittens in the comfort of a loving home.
They named her Kate, and she spent the first couple of days hiding underneath a couch. But with each passing day, her confidence grew.
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"We would leave food for her and sit there with her while she ate. She warmed up to us after we spent some time with her," Thoa Bui of Mini Cat Town told Love Meow. "It took about a week of quiet time in the kitten room before she started to get really comfortable with us."
When that happened, Kate just blossomed. She snuggled right up to her foster mom and purred up a storm.
"She's adorable, has an inordinately stubby tail… She has really come out of her shell. She comes up to us for pets, loves attention, and purrs endlessly."
A couple of weeks later, Kate gave birth to five beautiful, healthy kittens — three boys and two girls.
She jumped right into her role as a doting cat mom, nursing and caring for her babies around the clock. Soon, it became clear that her milk supply was low and she would need extra help.
Watch Kate's rescue journey in this video:
Thoa and her sisters immediately started supplementing the babies with kitten formula.
"She gave birth a little early and not all of her milk had come in yet. So every few hours, we crawled into the crate to help her feed them," Thoa said.
Every time they came in to feed the babies, Mama Kate would knead away with her happy paws and fill the room with purrs. Over the next few days, the kittens really packed on the grams.
"Kate is very attentive and takes really good care of them. We'll weigh the kittens, and when they meow, she will come out and carry them back into their bed."
"Everyone is doing well, nursing, gaining weight, and getting furrier. Kate is eating a ton and her milk has finally come in," Thoa told Love Meow.
All it took was a quiet room and a little kindness, and Kate came out of her shell and blossomed.
Look at her now!
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