A Kitten Got Another Chance After Its Owner Left It in a Vet Clinic

This is a touching story about a girl who showed strength in a difficult moment and a little kitten who became her true friend.

I worked in a vet clinic. Some woman brought in a red kitten: dirty eyes, matted fur, can barely stand. My colleague makes a disappointing diagnosis, the woman decides to put the kitten to sleep. We take him to the back room of the clinic, well, to his last journey.

And then suddenly my colleague says, “I don’t want to do it. Let’s see what we can do.” I took this creature in my arms and saw something strange in the expression of his eyes: it was as if he had already been through a lot, and he was not a child anymore.

“Here’s our very first photo, that day we decided to keep him alive.”

Then everything was standard: washing, checking reflexes, vaccinations, shots, anthelmintics, drops on the scruff. And a small house with a water bowl in one of the tiny cages of the clinic. What should we do with you, little miracle?

Days passed. The baby lived in the clinic. Every morning began with a smile. On the second day, he began to move slowly and to eat by himself. During the time he stayed in the clinic, we treated an endless number of his illness — otitis, lichen, eye infection, but not ataxia, which he had been previously diagnosed with. (Ataxia is a neurological disorder that manifests itself in poor coordination of movement — Bright Side note).

So, he was wobbling, falling over, and couldn’t use his front legs normally. He couldn’t meow, he couldn’t jump. But I was getting more and more attached to him.

“It seemed that a big chunk of ice was melting in my heart.”

By the way, the kid didn’t grow at all. And we called him Microbug. Just kidding, it was a nickname. We named him Shaman.

Shaman was adored by all the staff and clients, even the patients! For 6 months, he amused people with his clumsy running, and charged me with incredible motivation to work, to smile, and to love my profession even more!

“Weekdays at the vet clinic”

However, the bosses didn’t like the cat and decided to expel him. I was given a choice: adopt him, find him another home, or anything else, but he had to be removed from the clinic.

“We are treating lichen here.”

I made a decision. I adopted him. Even though I already had an old cat with a temper and a lot of problems with my housing and personal life at the time. I was done with the clinic, where they were ready to kick a sick animal out if I didn’t adopt him.

And so after a year and a half, we went with Shaman to a big city and did an MRI of the brain. It turned out that Shaman has a long-standing fracture of the atlas (the first cervical vertebra). Tomorrow we are going to see a neurosurgeon.

“I adopted him.”

You know that feeling when you realize that a person/place/city/music/profession — whatever — is totally yours? Well, this is totally my cat. My icy heart dissolved in him.

I’ve never humanized animals, my older cat walks the line and has never been spoiled. But Shaman had a spell on me. Disarmed me. Stripped me of all anger, cruelty, nervousness. I go home from work and smile with all my mouth, because at home this weird-looking miracle is waiting for me.

“This is totally my cat.”

I’m also learning from him. No matter how difficult it is for him to walk or run, he sees a goal and rushes towards it, falling painfully along the way, but getting up and going on, because he sees no other way to achieve his goal.

Thank you for reading this. Love your furry ones and don’t leave the weak in need!

And these photos prove that animals understand us in ways we never imagined.