Foster kitten and former feral cat become inseparable

A good samaritan dropped off a 5-week-old stray after finding him outside all alone, looking very sick. The sickly orange kitten needed a foster home, and his now foster mom knew immediately she had to take him in.

“He was covered in fleas, he had ear mites and was skin and bones,” his foster mom said.

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When she brought Garfield home, he was surprisingly relaxed and laid back; definitely very social with humans, which was very suprising considering most outdoor kittens at that age are still hissy and feral.

Garfield sought out comfort wherever he could find it and soon made friends with resident senior, semi-feral porch cat, Captain Pickles.

“As soon as Pickles lay down on the couch, Garfield immediately went up to him, and they sniffed noses and that was that.”

Pickles had never really taken an interest in any other fosters, but he quickly became Garfield’s most loyal protector.

“It takes a lot for [Pickles] to want to come inside, so it was surprising that he actually wanted to come in and hang out with Garfield,” his mom said. “He’s seeking Garfield out, which is extra sweet.”

Pickles was adopted over nine years ago. He’d been ear-tipped and neutered, so his mom knew he’d been part of a cat colony in his early life.

For years, his mom tried to help Pickles become a house cat, but she could tell he just wasn’t happy.

“He hid all the time, he’d never come out,” she said. “Once he was able to have access to the outdoors, and able to spend as much time as he wants on our porch, he became a completely different cat.”

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Garfield turned out to have more health issues than expected, and soon found himself back at the emergency vet.

“He was like, ‘You have to get clean.’ his mom said. And if I tried to get Pickles to stop grooming him, Pickles would try to bite me. He was like, ‘Don’t touch the baby. Get away from him. I know what I’m doing.’”

“I wonder if Pickles could sense that something was wrong with Garfield,” she added.

As Garfield’s health continued to waver, Pickles’ attention never did. Pickles comforted Garfield through his health scares until, finally, it seemed the tiny kitten was on the mend.

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Garfiel’s foster mom has high hopes for their future, especially when she watches Garfield starting to return the favor and groom Pickles.

“I’m hoping that Garfield can make a full recovery and eventually find an amazing adoptive home,” his foster mom said.

To learn more about Pickles and Garfield, you can follow their journey on Instagram.

Images by @kittenkonnoisseur