Tiny Cat Stories – Spring/Summer 2023

The Little Things

I sat with my mom, my best friend, for 13 days/nights while she lay in hospice. It was the hardest thing I ever had to witness. My mom passed on Christmas day; I went home, totally devastated and exhausted. My cat, Blackjack, immediately jumped on my lap, put his little paws around my neck and squeezed gently. He then put his paw on my cheek and kissed the tears running down my face. This cat, bless his heart, helped me so much to ease my pain and realize it’s also the little things in life that really matter, too. —Lynn Rosenthal

Send Me a Sign

My Jack Russell of 16 years passed away the end of 2020 and I asked him to send me a sign—a yellow flower—to show me he was still with me. A week later I found Mimosa at a shelter and decided to adopt her. I was apprehensive. I thought maybe it was too soon. Then I discovered that a mimosa is a yellow flower in Australia. Freddie sent her to me and she has brought me so much joy and healing. —Nikki Cataldo

Lifesaver in a Tuxedo

Mittens is my therapy cat in that she trained herself by waling me up when I am sleeping when my blood sugars are dropping to dangerous lows. The first time she did this, I didn’t know it would continue for now going on nine years. The dangers of low blood sugars can result in stroke and even death. Mittens is my lifesaver who wears a Tuxedo. She has saved my life on more occasions than I can count. I love her so much 100 words is not enough! —Terri O’Brien, RN

Winston the Magnificent

After days of trying, Van’s whistle finally brought the stray, matted tuxedo out of the woods and straight to his arms. We had three cats and for the first time the shelter was filled, so Van dropped him at a vet’s. If he was cleaned up and vaccinated, maybe the shelter would take him. But when he returned to retrieve him, the vet held the long, friendly cat high into the air and pronounced, “This cat is MAGNIFICENT!” Without hesitation, Van brought Winston the Magnificent home where he brought us joy for 12 years until passing this month. —Sue Senecah

Pretty Kitty

Snuggy was found with a feral cat colony. She followed the woman who fed those cats, purring for attention. The woman realized she wasn’t feral at all and brought her to the animal shelter. We adopted her and named her Snuggy but quickly realized she only responded to “Pretty Kitty.” It seemed unfair that our other cats didn’t have special names too. So, we decided to bestow nicknames on all the cats, highlighting their most unique qualities. We have “Pretty Kitty,” “Sweet Kitty,” “Soft Kitty,” and “Wild Kitty,” the latter also being known as “Destroyer of Cities Kitty.” —Carolyn Fenzl

Mighty Heart 

Geraldine unexpectedly came into my life. She was a senior cat from foster care who my landlord chose to drive field rats away after neither poison nor traps worked. Geraldine terrorized me with her meowing the first couple of nights, wanting to enter my bedroom at night. However, Geraldine was so loving and sweet that she stole my heart, and I adopted her. Geraldine (aka Gigi) and I are an item now, and I cannot imagine my life without her mighty little cat heart. —Bo Syrotiak

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This article originally appeared in the award-winning Modern Cat magazine. Subscribe today!