I already had a cat who was the center of my universe -- an 18 pound fluffy monster named Frank. I technically wasn't even supposed to have Frank in my house, so I really wasn't looking for a second cat -- and most definitely not for a third one! However, over Memorial Day weekend in 2015, Austin flooded badly. The bed and breakfast I work at has a feral cat colony, and one of the cats who we had not yet been able to TNR had just given birth under the house. Water was rising in the yard, but I could hear kittens meowing, so I put on my big rain boots and waded out in knee-deep water to find a little grey kitten marooned on a rock, a foot of water on all sides. Her mother and siblings were nowhere to be found. I snatched her up and dried her off and took her home, along with one of her siblings. The vet estimated they were about 4 weeks old, so we fed them KMR with a syringe every 4 hours until they were old enough to eat gruel. It was hard work, and involved my partner and I sleeping in shifts to make sure the kittens could be fed all through the night. Additionally, they brought fleas into our home, and infested poor Frank for the first time in his sheltered life. Despite the challenges, it was the most rewarding thing I've ever done. Siobhan and Sinead are now 4 months old and flourishing! You'd never know they were half-drowned and feral when we got them. They're lap cats now!

Christina
Austin, TX