Today I am turning over the mic to my assistant, Kate Tilton, who has a heartwarming story to share with you all. I hope it brightens your day as it did mine!
All my best, 
Thank you so much, Jean, and hello dear readers! I’m so excited to be able to share my story with you today.
Growing up I always had cats, so naturally, when I first joined Instagram I followed a lot of cat-themed accounts (mixed in with all the bookish ones!). It was through Instagram that I learned about the huge need for foster parents in animal shelters all over the USA. You see, kittens who are underweight (meaning they are too small to be spayed/neutered) can’t be adopted until they gain the needed weight. Often these kittens are also under two months old, the time when they learn to like or fear people. Fostering kittens of this age helps free up space in shelters, and gives kittens individualized care so they can grow up to be healthy and happy house cats.
I decided instead of just feeling frustrated by the statistics, I’d put my energy toward doing something about it. I called up my local animal shelter, Gwinnett County Animal Shelter, and signed up to foster kittens. Since then I’ve fostered 16 kittens (and one momma cat) who have all gone on to be adopted.
In June I picked up four new kittens (a brother and sister pair and a pair of sisters). Each group of kittens in the past I’d named after book characters, and this time I asked Jean if I could borrow some names from her books. Jean (being the amazing person she is) sent me over a list of names and the Second Chances kittens were born!
Bella started out at less than a pound! She was a hot little mess (who kind of looked like an alien) and now is a spunky little kitten.
Malcolm was a love bug from the start but had whatever illness his sister had. He went from sneezing and runny eyes to a healthy and happy boy!
Malcolm and Bella were even featured on the local news to help promotion adoptions at the shelter. You can see them playing and running around in this video.
I am very glad to share Malcolm and Bella have been adopted together!
Cleo and Gaby’s story is a little more complex. When the sisters first came into my care they were “hissy babies,” they would hide and hiss if you came close. After a lot of love and attention, both girls have flourished and now love to be held and patted. They purr like little motorboats!
But that isn’t the end of their story, it turns out both our precious girls are special needs. They both are missing their third eyelids (both cats and dogs have this extra eyelid that helps protect their corneas).
Fortunately there is a surgery that can correct the issue, but unfortunately, it is not something the local shelter has the budget for. The shelter is now actively looking for a rescue to take on their case to get them the surgery and eventually adopted into a loving home. Until then they’ll get lots of love from me!
I hope hearing about these cuties brightens your day, even cases like Cleo’s and Gaby’s fill me with a lot of hope. By coming together we are saving lives and having a lot of fun doing so!
If you’d like to help contribute towards Gaby and Cleo’s surgery, donations can be made in their name to the Gwinnett County Animal Shelter here.
And if you’d like to keep up with their story and other’s I have an Instagram account just for fostering here: @k8tiltonfosters
Thank you for reading my story. And huge thanks to Jean for giving them the best names.
Best,
Kate Tilton
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