My name is Dante T. Kitty!

Meet Dante T. Kitty- a tiny little bundle of everything cute and precocious, who will have you believing in miracles when you hear his story. Read his foster mom's account of his arrival to MHS....


"We took a call at work today that was no different unfortunately than the calls we get on a regular basis. A woman was reporting two dead kittens outside her home...she was unable/unwilling to remove the bodies on her own and wanted someone to come get them. Among the frustrating aspects of animal welfare in Muskegon County is the fact that there isn't a set figure that takes on this responsibility. Animal Control does not pick up bodies of domestic pets. In order for them to be removed, they have to be on public roadways, and then the Department of Public Works will come out...on their next scheduled run through the area. Otherwise, its up to private citizens to assume the task...or just let them fester.

As the call went on, we learned these kittens were in a rough part of town. We were slightly shorthanded, so I told the woman it would be an hour or so before I'd be able to come out.

When I was able to slip away, I grabbed the address and headed off, going further and further down neighborhoods where hope left years ago. Burned out homes, people wandering aimlessly down the middle of the road, trash strewn all over...it was the type of street that you keep your wits about you and you have a clear and quick purpose for being there.
With the rain pouring down, I grabbed my gloves and body bag and approached the house, following the sidewalk towards the back (probably not the wisest move, being a lone woman moving out of sight)...and there they were. Two tiny kitten bodies, soaking wet, with dirt and tree residue covering their bodies, on a hard cement walkway- to anyone walking by, they were very much visible. People couldnt move by and *not* notice them. I cursed the situation and then picked up the first body. Cold, hard, and very wet. Into the bag s/he went, and I quickly grabbed kitten number two...with the rain pouring hard, and the neighborhood not being the best, I just wanted to get out of there. But, as soon as I picked up the equally sopping wet, limp and ice cold, I felt..movement..in my hand. I didnt think much of it other than maybe it shifting as I picked it up. But, when I went to place him in the bag, I felt it again. When I looked down, and studied the small gray kitten, I saw the faintest rise of his chest, and his tiny mouth silently opening for that last gasp of air. Thats when I lost it...this little creature was STILL alive. As cold and weak as he was, it wasn't him trying to live...it was life slipping away from him.

We managed to get a nearby vet to squeeze him into their busy schedule, with the unspoken goal of being able to end his suffering peacefully.

I'll never forget that drive. With no towel or anything to warm him, I wrapped him in my shirt and began rubbing his ribs vigorously...massaging his head and neck with a great deal of pressure...rubbing his tiny paws...trying to work circulation back into him. He would give a shrill cry as he gasped...that cry that again signals the final moments in a dying kitty's life. His gums were white, and his eyes were unblinking and fixed. To add insult to injury,he was LOADED with tiny maggots, all swarming around on his vulnerable body. I kept talking to him, letting him know help would soon be there, and marveling at how he was still hanging on. It was a one handed drive...I kept rubbing that freezing cold and waterlogged boy...I held him next to the vent with the heat at full blast...

When we got to Holton Road vet, I was shocked that he was still with us. And this is where the magic began to take place. His pupils were no longer dilated...there was the faintest attempt to blink when I'd wipe away a maggot. His nose began to twitch, as he started to breathe through his nostrils. The staff was amazing, and sprang into action, with hot water beds...a huge needle of subQ fluids.. and his all important first meal of sugar water. He had a seizure during this process...I thought for sure, this was it..but he held on. The twitching stopped, and he just quietly laid on the warm blankets, resting.

I don't know how he pulled through...when we left, his temp was still too low to register on a thermometer. But as I write this, this tiny miracle is fast asleep next to me, curled on a warm heating dish, and every so often twitching as he dreams. He is warm..dry..with baby soft fur...and a chest that is rapidly but evenly rising and falling, as he takes in breaths that almost were nonexistent. He's not out of the woods by any means...these next 24hrs will be crucial, to determine the toll of his exposure to the elements. But regardless, he fought tooth and nail to get to this point, and as such, made it further than anyone could have fathomed."

that was late June and to this date, Dante is not just alive but THRIVING. He is a happy go lucky kitty who loves to snuggle and approaches the world with a wide eyed curiousity and an outlook known only to those with a second chance. He is an enthusiastic little boy who doesn't sweat the small stuff. With a roof over his head, food in his belly, and someone to love him, what more does he need?

Interested in meeting with this true survivor? Fill out an application and arrange a time to meet with his foster and Dante. We guarantee you, you will NOT be sorry at all!!