By Amber Naramore

In early August, Adam was returning home from a trip flying all night. He checked the Good Cat Network Facebook community group at 6am and saw a kitten posted who needed immediate help. One of his eyes was horribly infected. He met rescuers Nathan and Lily and took the tiny black and white kitten home to me to care for. Adam noticed the kitten had a white stripe running down his back, so he named him Pepe, after the Warner Bros. cartoon character “Pepe le Pew.” 

Pepe was approximately a 6 week old kitten who was flea infested and very skinny. He was found in a storm drain in Kahului, and his left eye was so far gone, it could not be saved. 

Soon after Pepe was found, the original rescuers were able to retrieve his sister from the storm drain. She was a tiny, frightened calico, and had a mild URI (upper respiratory infection). Adam named her Penelope pussy cat, which is the name of the cat that Pepe is always pursuing in the same cartoon. 

After an initial vet visit and assessment for Pepe, a surgery was scheduled for when he was a little older and healthier. The risk of surgery was great, with him being so small and underweight. After a couple days, his eye had dramatically gotten worse though, and it was decided to risk the surgery after all. When he was brought to the vet, however, he simply looked up at Adam and the veterinarian and with one swipe, plucked his own eye right out! It was clearly ready to come out on its own. He didn’t bleed or seem to be in any pain, and was sent home with antibiotics. 

I noticed a few weeks later that Pepe’s remaining eye had something growing on it. Another vet visit revealed that Pepe had an ulcer growing on his eye. Because Pepe was a medical foster through Good Cat Network, he was able to receive the medical treatment he needed, and he avoided going blind, thanks to the generous donations of the patrons of Good Cat Network.

In mid-October, we moved to Vermont, and we brought Pepe and Penelope with us. Pepe and Penelope are currently adjusting to the cold weather, and finding warm places to snuggle in their new home. Pepe loves to “nurse” on my neck, and he is fascinated with the fireplace! 

Read his feature on Cheezburger here