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After being pet-free for several years, I felt ready for cats again last year and quickly acquired two lovely girls. Six months later, I was out of town for school and received a call from my 13-year-old daughter.

She was at a church function, and a girl there had brought a tiny kitten and was trying to give it away. The girl said the kitten's mother had died and that if no one took the kitten, she'd have to leave it at the church. Without a second thought, I told my daughter, "For heaven's sake, take him home with you!" Before she had left the church, she and her friends had named him Zouis (Zoo-ee).

We had to bottle feed him for the first ten days or so, and he was so tiny, he slept in a box every night so we wouldn't lose him.

When we left for our summer trip from Oklahoma to California, we felt he was too small to leave home with our other cats, so Zouis came with us! He was an excellent traveler, napping on the dashboard and in other places around the van all the way to California and back.

Zouis is now 7-months-old and the cuddliest of our three cats. He spends half his time plaguing his older "sisters" and the other half cuddling with them. He does love a good bit of trouble and, during the holiday season, spent a lot of time hanging out in our Christmas tree.

We later found out the girl who'd brought him to the church came from a very bad situation at home and that, had she taken Zouis back to her house, he likely would not have survived. We were truly his last chance, and I am so glad my daughter called me that night!

Story submitted by Mary B. from Ada, Oklahoma.

This story was originally shared on The Animal Rescue Site. Share your very own rescue story here!