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Stacie had been telling Ben that he needed a cat for pretty much the entire time they’d been dating, but it wasn’t until the pair moved in together that this dream became a reality.

“‘It’s not fun to live alone!’ I would tell him. So after living in our new place for a couple of months, we agreed to get a cat and went to [the Humane Society of Utah].” Stacie said.

Visiting Kitty City

After carefully browsing many of the rooms in Kitty City, Stacie had a gut feeling that she and Ben shouldn’t skip the last room in the corner. Despite meeting many wonderful felines along the way, Stacie expressed that she felt a deep pull towards that area that she couldn’t explain.

“We found our guy in the very last room! He immediately started cuddling and kissing me. My husband wanted to hold him and he did the exact same thing.” Stacie said.

At the time, Gunther’s name was Milo. However, Stacie said it didn’t match his strength and personality, so Milo quickly became Gunther. 

Gunther loves to chase straws, cuddle up with his humans on the couch (or, as Stacie fondly calls it, “cat traps” them, as we all know that once a cat is comfy, it’s a crime to move them), and will even play fetch! He also has supervised backyard time in which he loves to rub on his favorite tree, now affectionately named “Gunther’s Tree”.

A Kitty You Can Count On

Even when dark days came over the horizon, Gunther remained a rock for his family.

“I’ve unfortunately been through cancer three times,” Stacie said. “Gunther was adopted after the first, but he was by my side for the next two. I got really nervous that he wouldn’t like me because I smelled different during Chemo, and I had heard of cats doing that, but that wasn’t the case for my buddy! He was at my side unless it was time for him to eat. He would sleep in between my husband and I and make sure I was okay through the night. I don’t know what I would have done without him.”

Gunther is considered a senior kitty these days, but his new sister, Greta, has not allowed him to slow down one bit!

“I had a cat named Marley, and she and Gunther used to love to watch the world out the window together. When we lost her to kidney failure, it was awful for all of us. Gunther looked for her for months,” Stacie said. “Four years later, I didn’t realize we were ready for another cat until Greta caught my eye one Christmas. It only took 5 days for her and Gunther to begin to make friends, and it’s been the best thing for him. She brought life back into him!”

When asked what she would say to someone looking to adopt a pet, Stacie wanted to point out that it’s a responsibility, but a highly rewarding one. “You have to remember that they need more than just love. But if you can do that, it will be one of the best things you’ve ever done.”

It was early 2020, and the world was about to change forever, but little did Tom know, his life was about to change, too, and in a much more paw-sitive way. 

Mr Patches the 16-year-old cat had been waiting to find a new home for over a month, moving from room to room in Kitty City, charming everyone he met, but they were seemingly scared off by his senior pet status. Tom was visiting the Humane Society of Utah somewhat frequently to donate pet food, and each time he stopped by, he made a point to visit Mr Patches.

“He was just a quiet guy, but such a happy one. I saw how old he was and was amazed at how well he was doing for being nearly 17!” Tom said.

After making a few more visits to Kitty City, self-declared dog-person Tom decided he really wanted to have Mr Patches join his home. Though he had always loved them, Tom had never adopted a senior pet.

“My intention was to give him a happy home for what I thought might be his final few months, given his age. I was very, very wrong about that. I’ve had him for nearly 3 ½ years now!”

So, after being lovingly boxed up for the trek home by HSU’s team, Mr Patches was off to join Tom and three dog siblings. This turned out to be perfect for Mr Patches, who Tom says is very dog-like himself. In fact, just the other day he pushed his dog-brother Mike out of the way to get to the kibble dish!

However, Mr Patches isn’t always pushing the pups around. Tom reports that he also likes to snuggle up with them!

“He loves his dog family to pieces. Sometimes they irritate him, but he doesn’t swipe or bite. He sleeps next to them often. It’s just Mike now since Lucky and Lovey have passed away, but he loved them both dearly, too.”

Mr Patches just celebrated his 20th birthday, and Tom says he hopes Mr Patches will be around for 20 more years!

“[Mr Patches] has shown us just how amazing cats are, and he’s shown so many people love. It has meant the absolute world to me, I could not imagine not having him around. Yet another reason I hope he lives to be at least 40!”

At the end of the day, Tom had some advice he would like to share with anyone considering adoption: “Get a senior pet. They’re just the best!”

Pebbles, an itty bitty kitten weighing less than two pounds, arrived at the Humane Society of Utah’s St. George Clinic in the Summer of 2021 with a painfully swollen eye. Her eye was simmering with infection making it completely unusable. Pebbles didn’t have a family to look after her – she was a junkyard kitten who had grown up with a large feral cat colony that lived in a dumping ground littered with broken-down car parts and decaying trash.

Teaming up to help Pebbles

Fortunately for Pebbles, she had been trapped and brought to our clinic by Kris Neal, who volunteers for a local rescue called The Jackson Day Foundation. This rescue took Pebbles in after she had been trapped for our Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program. TNR involves fixing, vaccinating, and ear-tipping feral and stray cats, then returning them to their territory. TNR is a humane way to control the community cat population and stop the spread of fatal viruses, such as rabies and distemper.

After assessing Pebbles, our veterinarian, Dr. Gray, was deeply concerned. She’d discovered Pebbles had a severe upper respiratory infection that had moved up into her eye and was causing so much pressure that her eye would need to be removed immediately. Dr. Gray explained, “I was concerned because putting animals as small as Pebbles under anesthesia is incredibly risky. Most veterinarians won’t do it because of the risks involved, but Pebbles’ infection was so bad that if it continued to go untreated, it would most likely move into her lungs and other areas of her body, and she would die. So, performing eye removal surgery for her was critical to saving her life.”

Kelsie Watters, HSU’s St. George Clinic Manager, also knew that only a few veterinarian clinics in St. George have the capacity to help out the feral cat population, HSU being one of them. She shared, “For our staff, it doesn’t matter if the animal has a paying owner or is feral and without a home; we treat them all with the highest standard of care possible. Every pet’s health matters to us, even pets like Pebbles, who are not a priority to most.”

The surgery went well, but not without a hitch. Pebbles’ eye had so much built-up pressure that it ruptured as Dr. Gray removed it. But thankfully, Dr. Gray was able to stabilize her, and Pebbles’ recovery went smoothly. She went home with Kris, who looked after her and gave her antibiotics so her little body could heal.

Two kittens are better than one

While at Kris’ home, she found that Pebbles didn’t like touching or cuddling, which is not uncommon for feral cats. But to Kris’ surprise, Pebbles began to bond with another kitten, Daisy. Eventually, the two became buddies. One day, two women named Belinda and Beth came to adopt Daisy, but Kris told them that Pebbles and Daisy were now a bonded pair and that if they wanted one, she’d have to adopt the other.

Kelsie shared, “Belinda and Beth recognized that this was a special pair and decided to adopt both Daisy and Pebbles so they could stay together. Kris periodically sends updates on Pebbles, who has completely transformed in her new home. She now loves being cuddled and sung to by her caring adopter. It’s nice knowing that this junkyard kitten who had suffered so much now has a loving, happy life, thanks to our and Kris’ team. Everyone went the extra mile for Pebbles because we knew we were her last resort, and her transformation is what makes our work worthwhile.”

Over a year later, Kris brought a sweet and affectionate kitten named Polly into HSU’s St. George Clinic, who was in the same situation as Pebbles. She was a tiny feral kitten with a very infected eye who had been trapped for TNR and needed medical care. Dr. Gray performed the same eye removal surgery on Polly, who was up and ready to play again the next day. Kris is caring for Polly and keeping her from being too active while she recovers. When Kris shared Polly’s story with Belinda and Beth, they knew Polly was meant to be in their family, too. Once Polly is healed from surgery, she will join her new sisters, Pebbles, and Daisy, in their home.