When Melissa’s beloved 15-year-old cat, Loki, died a few years ago, we knew we couldn’t commit to getting another cat for the long term, given our plans to become vagabonds again. But our apartment in Alexandria, Virginia, felt so quiet and empty with no little furry friends. To fill that void and to help out homeless animals, we started fostering kittens for our local animal shelter.
Since then, we’ve played host to a series of 11 kittens (the last two of which are sleeping near my feet as I write this) and several adult cats. They’ve been good companions. The kittens have been a source of endless entertainment, climbing on us, wrestling each other, chasing after toys, and learning to pounce on their “prey” like miniature lions. So far, all of the kittens and most of the adult cats have found permanent homes when it was time for them to be adopted. Rarely is volunteer work this much warm, snugly fun.
