It’s spring at the ASPCA, which means we’re busy preparing for kitten season—the time of year when felines breed and shelters across the country receive an influx of homeless and newborn cats. The season lasts from April to September, and this year we’re prepared to take in up to 2,300 kittens at our facility in New York City. In anticipation of this, we thought it would be nice to check in on some of last year’s babies and bring you an update. Here is the story of one lucky kitten who is growing up happily after beginning life at the ASPCA.

Luna the kitten was born in August, 2014, in a home with too many cats. Fortunately, the overwhelmed owner decided to surrender Luna and two of her siblings to the local city shelter. She was barely three weeks old at the time. The shelter realized that the kittens needed specialized care, so they sent them to the neonatal ward (a.k.a. “kitten nursery”) at the ASPCA.

Once at the hospital, Luna and her siblings received round-the-clock attention from our expert Animal Care Technicians. The tiny kitten weighed less than a pound and needed to be syringe-fed every two hours, day and night, until she grew big enough and strong enough to start on solid food. After a month in the kitten nursery, Luna was ready for adoption at last.

While all of this was going on, Fanny F. and her fiancé had taken two trips to our Adoption Center in search of a pet. “I’ve always wanted to adopt,” says Fanny, whose parents never had animals in the house. “Watching the ASPCA commercials and doing a little research on my own, I knew that the right thing to do was to help by opening my home to a furry friend of my own.”

Initially, the couple had been looking for an older cat. It was only on their third visit that they were taken to meet the babies. “I didn’t expect to adopt a kitten, but when I made way to the kitten section, I immediately had a change of heart,” Fanny recalls. “When met Luna, she was eager to play and socialize. I knew she was the one when I held her.”

Luna seemed to feel an instant connection as well. Fanny says, “She was super friendly, affectionate and loved to be held. My fiancé was with me at the time, and it really clicked to see them both bonding and playing together.” Prior plans aside, the couple realized that Luna was meant to be their new pet. On the day they adopted her, she was four months old. Her siblings were both adopted two days later.

Back at Fanny’s apartment, Luna made herself comfortable right away. “Each day we have our morning rituals together before I leave for work and when I come home at the end of the day,” Fanny says with a smile. “I really feel she was made to grow up with me. It’s fate that we met.”

It’s amazing to think how different Luna’s life might have been had she stayed in that overpopulated house. But she was a lucky one—she was rescued by the ASPCA and adopted into a loving family. Fanny says, “She has shown me so much love and affection that it gave me the confidence to know I’m doing a good job raising her. A happy kitty is a very happy kitty mommy!”

Congratulations to baby Luna on her perfect new life!