At the end of November, fog becomes an almost permanent presence in Camerino, and the cold starts to bite. It was on one of those days that we arrived at the courtyard to take care of our clowder as usual and spotted a tiny black bundle curled up inside one of our shelters.
But to tell Pulce’s story properly, we need to go back a few weeks🐾
For some time, we had noticed a black kitten wandering near the clowder. We didn’t know whether the kitten was male or female yet, so while waiting for an opportunity to get close enough to find out, we called them Nerin*. Getting close, however, was easier said than done. Nerin* was completely feral. The moment we came within roughly ten metres, the kitten would bolt, making it abundantly clear that getting acquainted was not on the agenda. So we learned to watch from a distance and respect those boundaries.
Until that November day.
When we reached the courtyard, we noticed a small black cat inside one of our shelters, back then, they were still plastic, before we had our current wooden ones. And strangely, the kitten didn’t run away. Our first thought was obvious: it was Nerin*. Our second was much more worrying: if Nerin* isn’t running from us, something must be wrong. Knowing how fearful the kitten was, we weren’t entirely sure how to handle the situation. A terrified cat can make a very persuasive argument when an unfamiliar hand suddenly enters its hiding place.
Eventually, we gathered our courage. Or, more accurately, one of our volunteers generously offered up her hand in the name of science and feline welfare 😅🐱
We reached inside and pulled out that little mass of black fur. And that’s when we realised we had been completely wrong. Beneath all that fur, there was almost nothing. This wasn’t Nerin*. It was a much smaller and much younger female kitten. All that fur had fooled us into thinking she was bigger than she really was. The moment we held her, we understood how serious her condition was. Pulce was practically skin and bones. She was severely weakened and, most alarmingly, extremely hypothermic. That little bundle we had seen lying motionless inside the shelter wasn’t simply a kitten who had found somewhere to escape the cold. She was a tiny life slowly fading away. Had she remained there for just a few more hours, in all likelihood this wouldn’t be a story we could tell today.
We rushed her straight to our vets. Then came the examinations, assessments, treatments and everything else required to help a tiny creature who seemed to have spent almost every last bit of energy simply making it to that shelter. Pulce then went into foster care with one of our volunteers. The plan was straightforward: warmth, treatment and stubbornness.
A heater running practically twenty-four hours a day, accompanied by what our memories will forever record as approximately “two hundred different medicines and supplements”💊😅
Tiny? Yes. Ready to give up? Absolutely not. Pulce had started from a very difficult place. An extremely difficult one. But there’s something body size doesn’t tell you: just how much determination can fit inside a kitten weighing almost nothing. And Pulce had plenty. Day by day, she began to recover. First physically. Then, much more cautiously, emotionally too. Because saving her from the cold was only part of the job. We also had to convince her that the world which apparently hadn’t been particularly kind to her so far might have something different to offer.
Pulce slowly discovered that not every human needed to be feared. She discovered cuddles. She learned how to play. And then came the purring ❤️
Watching her transform from the hypothermic little creature we had pulled out of that shelter into a curious, lively kitten who actively sought human affection was one of those privileges that makes many difficult nights worthwhile.
But something was still missing. Pulce was safe. Now she needed a home.
And this is where Pulce’s luck decided to become truly extraordinary. She met Patrizia and Riccardo. And they fell in love with her almost immediately ❤️
They didn’t simply see a beautiful black kitten available for adoption. They chose her. The tiny creature whose life had begun with cold, hunger and fear found two people ready to teach her exactly the opposite. Warmth, safety and love. Being found inside that shelter at exactly the right moment saved Pulce’s life. Meeting Patrizia and Riccardo gave her the life we had hoped she would one day have. Because a rescue doesn’t truly end when an animal survives the emergency. It doesn’t end with a successful veterinary check-up, the last dose of medicine or a few precious grams finally gained on the scales. It ends when we can stop wondering what will happen to them next. With Pulce, Patrizia and Riccardo allowed us to stop wondering. From a plastic shelter to her own little paradise. Today Pulce lives a life that the kitten curled up in the November cold could probably never have imagined. She is loved. She is cuddled. She is thoroughly spoiled. And judging from the updates we receive, she has adapted to this considerable improvement in lifestyle with remarkable ease 😼❤️
Patrizia and Riccardo didn’t simply open the door of their home to her. They gave her the certainty of finally having a place of her own and two people for whom her presence matters every single day. It’s difficult to imagine two futures further apart: the one that seemed to await her inside that shelter and the one she eventually found with them. Whenever we tell our rescue stories, the happy ending is always our favourite part. Pulce’s, however, feels particularly special. Because her life truly began uphill. Because we found her just in time. Because she fought with a strength completely disproportionate to her tiny size. And because, at the end of that climb, she found Patrizia and Riccardo waiting for her ❤️ We don’t know much about Pulce’s life before that November day. But we know exactly what happened afterwards. But we know she couldn’t have found a better home, and we couldn’t have wished for a more beautiful ending for her. Have a wonderful life, little Pulce. After all that cold, you’ve found enough warmth to last a lifetime.🐾❤️