Puddin came to 4Paws from Afghanistan.
One of our volunteers graciously drove her 13 hours to meet her forever family in Florida. Puddin went to an excellent adopter in Florida, who specifically wanted a cat rescued from Afghanistan. The adopter took her to the vet the following day and everything went well.
The adopter is now working on settling her in, so she can eventually be introduced to her other cats.
4Paws has saved over 25 cats from Kabul over the last four years. A former 4Paws volunteer was stationed in Kabul as an employee of the state department. This volunteer introduced the rescue team to the Kabul Small Animal Rescue; a veterinary clinic and non-profit organization that has been helping animals in Afghanistan and was the source of the majority of our rescue efforts.
These cats were very unique and have some interesting traits. One of our volunteers immediately noticed their very distinct meowing when she picked the cats up at Washington Dulles airport. These cats were on their way to foster homes and eventually permanent homes away from a life on the streets in a war zone. However, this compassionate effort resulted in a few unforeseen challenges that were experienced by both our foster parents and new cat parents.
The “Kabul Kitties” are extremely vocal as noted by the foster parents who first met them. The meow is very different from our American cats and can sound like a scream indicating possible pain. This can be disconcerting to many people and takes some getting used to.
Additionally, these kitties were used to eating bread since pet food is not common in the Middle East. Many cats in Kabul are street cats and scavenge for food and depend on the kindness of others. They love any kind of carbs and will dig in the trash to get to a special treat. These kitties will climb into trash containers and will rip open trash bags. They also go crazy when food is being prepared or their families are eating a meal.
All it takes is love and compassion to save a kitty, whether the cat is from Kabul, Kuwait or Washington, DC. 4Paws is an example of this compassion and is honored to have the opportunity to save cats from a bleak situation.
