Lord Wellington’s adopters describe him as 60% Chewbacca, 39% Ewok and a mere 1% feline.
Discovered badly matted, declawed and malnourished, Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Organization (VOKRA) nursed him back to life and helped find him a safe and happy home.
In just five months, Lord Wellie has grown in strength, confidence, and a whole lot of fluff.
In this edition of Rescue Me, Vica Maya describes in her own words why she and her husband are on a mission with their cat to “spread happiness among animal lovers worldwide and help promote adoption of rescue animals in need of a safe and nurturing home.”
It took us a long time to decide on a new name for the kitten! His first owner named him Gizmo. We wanted to give him a fresh start, so our family and friends were brainstorming names for about a week.
One day I was in the pet store and saw a can of food called “Beef Wellington” (a type of filet steak). It had a good ring to it. “Lord Wellington” seemed like the perfect match for a cat that has an impressive lordly mustache and an obsessive love affair with food. Nowadays, we just call him Wellie for short. He looks like a Lord, but acts more like a joker.
Wellie was discovered by VOKRA. The first owner didn’t take care of him. For a one-year old kitten (at the time), he’s been a through a rough time. Luckily, VOKRA was able to help by restoring his health and finding him a nice foster family who helped take care of him until he was ready for adoption.
One day, while I browsing through VOKRA’s gallery of photos a new picture popped up of an adorable ginger kitten. He was shaved, looked tiny and kind of sad. Within seconds, I was on the phone with his foster family and that night we met Wellie for the first time. It was love at first sight, just as I had expected. I knew he’d be the perfect addition to our family.
We were watching Wellie run around and play with other kittens in his foster home. He looked like a happy-go-lucky, zen kitten. It’s hard to imagine he went through so much. While Wellie was busy chasing his buddies, I looked at my husband and asked “Do you think he likes us?” My husband picked him up in his arms, Wellie looked at him, started purring and suddenly gave him a kiss. That’s how we knew the was coming home with us.
We’ve seen an amazing transformation. It’s been so rewarding to watch him grow stronger, more confident, trusting and affectionate… not to mention the fluff! We had no idea he’d get this poofy! Imagine a mini Chewbacca running around your house and eating tuna.
It’s hard not to smile when you see him. He is the first to sprint to the door when we come home. He stands on his back feet and tickles us with his front paws when he wants to be picked up and cuddled, and purrs songs all the time. He’s a happy little guy and he deserves it!
Having Wellie around helped me completely heal from my injury. I share lots of his pictures and videos online and we always get messages from people saying that he makes their day so much brighter! Cats and all animals bring amazing energy to the house.
I hope this story will inspire other people to adopt rescue animals. They need you as much as you need them.
You can follow Lord Wellington’s adventures on Facebook and Instagram.
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