It started with Pirate. He came to us at just two weeks old, underweight, and with one of his eyes ruptured. One of our veterinary assistants, Stephanie, took him home for the night to monitor and bottle feed him. The next morning, his weight was down and his eye was looking worse. His prognosis didn’t look good, but our medical team was determined to try to save him.

Then came Peggy. She came to us at only seven days old after her umbilical cord had nearly severed the end of one of her back legs. That part of her leg needed to be removed immediately, so our medical team jumped in to take care of it. She would likely need a full amputation in the future, but for now, our  team focused on preventing infection and helping her grow bigger and stronger.

Peggy was sent home with Stephanie, the vet assistant who was also caring for Pirate. The two quickly seemed to take comfort in each other, and both began to eat better and gain weight more consistently. Once they were both out of the woods, the two were sent to another experienced foster home where they would spent the next few months.

Both became active, vocal kittens and didn’t seem to be bothered by their injuries. Pirate’s ruptured eye continued to be swollen and non-functional, but it didn’t cause him pain and he got around easily with just one usable eye. Peggy’s partially amputated leg similarly didn’t slow her down – she just held it up and out of the way as she ran and played with Pirate.

After a month in their foster home together, Pirate and Peggy were looking and feeling much better. Pirate was big and strong enough to finally have surgery to remove his ruptured eye. The surgery went perfectly, and he returned to his foster home to heal.

Meanwhile, their foster family was working hard to get Peggy to keep gaining weight. She was a small kitten to begin with, and wasn’t very interested in eating. At two months old, she still didn’t weight enough for our veterinarians to comfortably perform her amputation and spay surgeries, so she stayed in her foster home with Pirate to continue growing.

Finally, two months after first arriving in our care, Peggy was ready. The rest of her injured leg was amputated and she only needed a few more days in her foster home to heal up before she would be ready for adoption. Her foster dad was delighted to discover that despite being on three legs now, Peggy was faster and braver than ever. Pirate, although older and bigger than Peggy, clearly relied on her to help him be brave. He followed her around constantly and would sometimes cry when she left the room and he couldn’t find her. They were inseparable.

A few weeks later, Peggy and Pirate had healed from their surgeries and were ready to find a home – together, as they should be. Their first foster mom, veterinary assistant Stephanie, knew they belonged with her. Pirate and Peggy went through so much in their first three months of life, but thanks to our dedicated medical team and their amazing foster parents, they now have a bright, pain-free future ahead of them.