Misha'el Shabrami, Brooklyn
Rescued a Bodega Kitten
I am certified in Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR)—a humane method of altering, vaccinating and returning homeless cats to their environments. I had my eye on two unaltered orange tabbies kept in a bodega on a busy Park Slope avenue. One day I informed the store owner of the importance of preventing unwanted litters from being born, gave him flyers for free spay/neuter surgeries and even offered to bring the cats to the ASPCA's mobile clinic. But the owner did not want anything to do with it. One of the cats gave birth to a litter, and soon after every kitten was gone—except for one. Soon after that, one of the parent cats was hit by a car and the other went missing.
Knowing I had to get the remaining kitten out of a dangerously neglectful situation, I took the kitten to a woman in the neighborhood who dedicates her time to TNR and uses her basement as a safe place to keep cats waiting to be fixed. She took a look at the little tortie and determined that she was just old enough for the surgery. I left the kitten in the woman's capable hands and spent the rest of the day sending out emails, searching for someone to adopt the little one. One of my office colleagues volunteered to be a foster parent. Now he is so completely in love with the kitten, whom he named Margaret, that he's going to keep her. I love happy endings.