I had been volunteering at Adopt-a-Cat in Anchorage, Alaska. I would pick up several loads of laundry, wash them several times because there was an outbreak of ringworm -- and then lug them all back to the shelter.
One day, I asked my husband (Bob) to help me take the laundry back. I was folding and stacking when Bob said, "Look at this." I turned around and there was a tiny kitty curled up in his arms, tucked up under his chin. Sound asleep. Purring her brains out. I smiled and he said, she had leapt from one of the shelves and gone to sleep. He cuddled her for a long time (while I folded and stacked the laundry, of course).
The next time I needed to take laundry to the shelter, Bob VOLUNTEERED to help me. Pepper came running towards him as soon as we got there. Another volunteer explained that Pepper has the worst heart murmur they've ever heard. It's a 6 on a scale of 1-6. No medication will help. And until kitty heart transplants are available, there are no treatment options.
While I'm away on business, I call the shelter to find out how Pepper is doing and offer to foster her. I casually drop that into the conversation with Bob that night. Long story, short .... By the time I returned home from business, Pepper was adopted and living at our house.
Pepper is happy and healthy. Her heart has never given her a problem. Our vet said, just take her home and love her. She may not have a long life, but she will have a good life with us. I can't begin to tell you how much joy she has brought into our lives.
Anchorage, AK
