At Jelly’s Place in San Pablo, California, the kitten wasn’t exactly the most adơрtable. She would hiss and withdraw her entire body into a corner when people walked by or approached the kitten’s cage.
The kitten, who had been found as a stray, didn’t stand a hope of finding a home.
Kendal Benken, one of the shelter’s seasoned wild kitten whisperers, was contacted. “They said, ‘You should come here and look at this strange monster,’” Benken explained.
Benken has mastered the art of taming even the most untamed kittens. She and her rеscuе dogs and cats have the ability to make even the most distressed animals feel at home.
She dashed over to the shelter and had a look at the kitten. Benken decided the 5-week-old Siamese wasn’t intimidating, but afraid, within minutes.
“No one was able to touch her.” “She was enraged,” Benken explained. “She was a small demon,” says the narrator. It was a fight-or-flight response. She had most likеly never been handled before. She was abrasive in her demeanor. She was hissing and hissing and hissing and hissing and his “However, she was adorable.”
The only way anyone could carry the surly kitten was to gently put a towel over her and wrap her up. Benken tenderly swaddled the kitten, put her in a crate and drove her home.
The kitten wasn’t pleased with this plan, and when she first arrived at Benken’s house, she was still grumpy. Benken just knew she’d win her over and named her Betty. “She had those [Bette] Davis eyes, huge, pretty blue eyes. She looked likе a Betty to me,” Benken said.
Betty was unwrapped and placed in the middle of the kitchen by Benken. “I put her in a large dog kennel with food, water, and a litter box,” said the owner. Benken explained, “She couldn’t run and hide.” “For feral kittens, forcing them out of their comfort zone and placing them in a busy part of your house is the best thing you can do.”
Soon, Benken’s family of rеscuе animals came over to check out Betty. The dogs were quite fascinated with the testy new foster family member. Somehow Betty’s attitude made them even more in awe of her.
They’d snuggle around the kitten, trying to make her feel at ease in the hopes that Betty would become their companion one day. Truvy, a large yellow Lab mix who adores foster kittens, wished this the most of all the animals in Benken’s home.
“Truvy has a special gift. She gravitates toward the rеscuеs. I think she fancies herself as a mama cat. Truvy was very fascinated by Betty,” Benken said.
Betty grew accustomed to her new pack with each passing day. Betty came to the conclusion that the Benken family wasn’t too horrible after around two weeks. She didn’t require swaddling any longer. She enjoyed being petted and held. Then came a watershed moment: Betty claimed Truvy as a friend.
Betty is doing so well that Westil adơрted another rеscuе cat named Amber. It wasn’t exactly love at first sight, but the two have grown to be their own cat pack.
“When they were introduced, Betty ran away,” Westil said. “It took a while for both of them. Then I don’t know what happened! They bonded in a week, and now they’re inseparable. It’s just amazing. They’re together almost all the time.”
Westil said her heart and house is now full of adơрted cat love. “I think it’s wonderful having animals around. It’s a joy,” she said. “They also really love each other. Like a match made in heaven. And Betty sleeps in my bed; she cuddles, she’s such a loving little cat. She’s beautiful.”