Poor Holly Peppermint is a one-year old ginger cat that was found living outside in a bird cage. All that ended when Tonja Heer, from Furry Nation Salvation, an animal shelter in Port Orange, Florida, heard about the desperate cat.
“We heard about a 1 year old orange cat living outside in a bird cage while TNRing (trap neuter return). We went to investigate and couldn’t believe our eyes. She was covered in an unimaginable amount of fleas and was filthy.”
The cat’s fur was patchy due to the flea infestation. Although a food and water source was present, the cage was extremely dirty with no clean spot for the young cat to rest. She has spent all of her life in this cage!
“There was no way we were going to leave her there for another second,” said Heer.
Once they got her home she received a flea bath and got a dose of flea preventative on. Heer’s 2 year old held her while she dried, and she purred very loudly, like the sound of a dove. The exhausted and confused cat walked only for a short distance then sat down. It was apparent that she was not accustomed to having the freedom to roam.
In the days that followed, she was seen by a vet where she was spayed, given shots, and received two different shots to help with her skin and bladder infections. Before she was officially put up for adoption, an older couple had expressed a lot of interest in her and gave her the most perfect home where they named her “Holly Peppermint.”
She now runs, leaps, and snuggles in bed every night with her new family and has a 10-year old kitty sibling to play with.
No longer a nameless cat confined to a bird cage, Holly Peppermint has found the home she truly deserves. This is why Tonya (an all of us who volunteer) do what we do.
How did this happen?
Unfortunately, she was locked up by a mentally ill, elderly woman who didn’t think she had done anything wrong by keeping the cat in the bird cage. Please be sure that if you see animal cruelty or something that just seems wrong, speak up. Tell your local no-kill rescue. It could save a life. Not sure how to report animal cruelty? Find out how.
Watch little Holly Peppermint after being rescued:
