Two young kittens named Dolly and Monroe were thrown from a moving car inside a duffel bag, and a few weeks later, the two of them have come back stronger, healthier, and refusing to be apart.
Dolly and MonroeCredit: Humane Society of Missouri
It began on Manchester Road in St. Louis, with a moment that would have been easy to miss. A woman driving by noticed a duffel bag flying out of the window of a moving pickup truck. Something about it felt wrong to her, and instead of continuing, she pulled over to look.
Inside the bag were two kittens, each only about five and a half months old, both soaked in what appeared to be bleach. She gathered them up and drove straight to the Humane Society of Missouri's headquarters on Macklind Avenue. The veterinary team met her at the door and got to work, washing the chemical from their fur and checking every inch for harm.
The kittens were thin, frightened, and worn down by whatever had led them into that bag. What they were not, for the first time, was alone.
Monroe, still damp from her first bath, the day she arrived at the shelterCredit: Humane Society of Missouri
One of the first photos taken of Monroe shows her still damp from that initial bath, her white coat clinging to a frame far too small, her eyes wide and unsure. The volunteers examined both kittens carefully for any damage to their skin, their eyes, and their ears.
Over the days that followed, the veterinarians kept the two girls close, watching for any lasting effects and running tests that would ensure the kittens were truly in the clear. The news, when it came, was good. "This is an incredibly disturbing act of cruelty, but it is also a powerful example of how one person's decision to stop and help can save a life," Kathy Warnick of the Humane Society of Missouri shared with LoveMeow.
Dolly, bright-eyed and curious, stopping to see what everyone is doingCredit: Humane Society of Missouri
Dolly recovered like a cat with somewhere to be. She is the one with the small black cap set high on her white head, the one who walks right up to see what you are doing and tips her chin for a better look.
A few short weeks made all the difference. The kitten who had arrived underweight and afraid grew rounder, brighter, and bolder, until the fear of that first day had nowhere left to sit.
Dolly settled in as though she has always lived hereCredit: Humane Society of Missouri
These days Dolly stretches out along the back of a chair as though she has always owned it, one paw folded neatly beneath her chest. She settles in wherever she pleases and dares anyone to suggest otherwise.
Wherever Dolly goes, Monroe is not far behind. The two of them are rarely found in separate corners of a room, and where one of them lands, the other tends to appear a moment later.
Monroe watching the roomCredit: Humane Society of Missouri
Monroe is the quieter study of the two, with a bold patch of black drawn over one eye and ear like a mask she was born wearing. She watches a room before she joins it, then folds herself down beside her companion and lets the world come to her.
None of it would have been possible without the stranger who trusted her own instincts on Manchester Road. "Because she acted, these two kittens are safe, receiving medical care and have the opportunity for the happy lives they deserve," Warnick shared.
Two of them rarely far apartCredit: Humane Society of Missouri
You can see what they mean to each other in the smallest moments. Dolly leans in to groom the top of Monroe's head, and Monroe closes her eyes and lets her, the two of them pressed close on a shared blanket as though the rest of the room has fallen away.
Both girls have since been spayed and cleared by the veterinary team, and they are now looking for a home together. Whoever takes one of these girls will certainly be taking both, because they've made it clear they come as a set.
Monroe today, healthy and settledCredit: Humane Society of Missouri
Not long ago, Dolly and Monroe were tossed from a moving car and left on the side of the road with nothing. Today they are healthy, inseparable, and entirely themselves, two kittens who decided their story was only getting started.
Share this story with your friends. More on Dolly and Monroe and the Humane Society of Missouri on Instagram @hsmopets and Facebook, or directly at hsmo.org.
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