Many people believe that there are two distinct feline worlds—the world of pampered purebreds and the world of unfortunate strays. But the differences between those two worlds, perceived or real, melted away with Gremlin.

Gremlin - Before

On a frosty February morning we got a call from a woman who told us that some sort of animal, possibly a cat, was in her garage. It was an odd looking creature, and she had tried to sweep it out with a broom, but it stubbornly refused to budge. A volunteer drove there that afternoon, anxious to find out just what sort of animal had taken residence in this garage.

Gremlin - today

When she walked into the garage, she saw him in a corner. As soon as she saw his large eyes and tiny pug nose, she knew what she was looking at. Staring at her through tired and bleary eyes was a seriously neglected Persian Cat. What was left of his long?haired coat was completely matted and a muddy grey. On his back was a lump, the size of a grapefruit made of tar, oil, and matted fur. The mats under his legs were so large that he could barely move. She could hear his labored breathing from across the room—he clearly had a serious upper respiratory infection.

He was nervous but docile as he was gently placed in a carrier and driven to the County Animal Clinic. His coat was destroyed beyond repair and the mats were pulling at his skin. There was no choice but to shave his whole body, exposing small sores all over his tender skin. A bath revealed that the scant areas of fur he had left were not grey, but a beautiful shade of orange. Even now, he hardly looked like a cat at all, so we named him after the creature he most resembled at the time—a gremlin.

In time, his fur began to grow and he eventually turned into a dazzling cat with a long, fiery orange coat. We’ve been told that his bone structure clearly indicates that he is a champion?line purebred Persian. While the monetary “value” of a cat means nothing to us, this does prove what we knew all along—that the worlds of strays and purebreds are not so separate after all.