Mookie the kitten made quite a turnaround after he was given a chance that changed his life.
A tiny ginger kitten came into an animal shelter as a singleton in rough shape. He was covered in fleas and had a severe upper respiratory infection (URI). Being so sickly, he could barely open his eyes and required intensive care.
Taryn, a foster volunteer of Newborn Kitten Rescue (in Arizona), stepped up to help. She picked up the tabby from the shelter so he could start healing in the comfort of a home.
“Despite being super sick, he was a unicorn baby, using the litter box perfectly and eating on his own, both on the first tries,” Taryn shared with us.
The kitten was lovingly named Mookie. After getting all cleaned up and being treated for his eyes, Mookie nestled in his new bed, snuggled next to his faux mama (a cuddle toy with a heartbeat) and fell asleep with a full belly.
With meds, nebulizer treatment and plenty of love, Mookie perked up and started to thrive.
In less than a week, he made great strides in weight and strength. After recovering from the URI, his beautiful doe eyes were fully revealed and his coat was fluffier than ever.
Once he felt the pep under his feet, Mookie started playing and his endearing personality quickly emerged.
When he was ready to socialize with other feline friends, they immediately hit it off. Mookie, the smallest of the bunch, kept playing until he was all tuckered out. “He spent lots of time with some rowdy (cat) teenagers named Gemma and Sydney, and easily held his own.”
Once Taryn discovered how much Mookie reveled in being at the vet’s office, he became a regular guest there.
“He loved going to work at the vet’s office, because he knew he would get so many snuggles from all the staff throughout the day. He was our therapy kitten when the day got rough.”
Mookie always puts a smile on people’s faces everywhere he goes.
The little guy thinks he is a giant trapped in a kitten suit as he tears through the room playing his heart out. He likes to impress his humans with crab hops and stand up on his back legs to appear big and tough.
“He has the coolest little personality, is absolutely fearless and loves to snuggle when his zoomie time is over.”
“He doesn’t ever get tired of playing, especially with boxes, where he can play hide and seek. When he finally is ready to wind down, he likes his snuggle blankie.”
Another volunteer of the rescue had been following Mookie’s journey since day one, and she and her parents fell head over heels for him.
“Her parents had been looking for the perfect ginger kitten to be their very first kitten addition ever. As soon as he was ready, he went over to his new potential parents’ house and it was love at first sight.”
Not only that, but the family also wanted to give Mookie a feline sibling to spend his life with.
“They also adopted a little sister for him that he absolutely adores. They now have plans to build an entire ginger army.”
