When Nikki Martinez walked into a local shelter in Las Vegas, she didn’t expect to leave with a kitten who looked like she had already lost her fight.
Covered in illness, nearly bald, and weighing less than a pound, the tiny five-week-old kitten didn’t look like she had much time left.
But one look into her eyes changed everything.
Credit: @myfosterkittens/ instagram.com
The kitten, later named Bunny, had clearly been through more than most animals should endure in a lifetime.
Her fur had almost completely fallen out due to a severe case of ringworm, and her body was dangerously underweight.
Shelter staff had little hope. In fact, Bunny had already been placed on the euthanasia list.
But Bunny wasn’t ready to give up. And Nikki could see it.
As Bunny struggled to stand, she walked up to Nikki and let out the smallest meow. It was barely a sound, but it said enough.
It was as if she was saying, “I want to live.”
Credit: @myfosterkittens/ instagram.com
Nikki, a seasoned rescuer and foster carer known for taking on tough cases, didn’t hesitate.
She took Bunny home and got straight to work. Bunny’s condition was critical.
Her system had begun shutting down from the oral antifungal medication prescribed at the shelter, and Nikki realized that if she didn’t act fast, the kitten wouldn’t survive.
Every feeding felt like a lifeline. Every hour was uncertain.
“There were days I couldn’t even walk into the room,” Nikki admitted.
“I asked my husband to check if she was still breathing.”
Credit: @myfosterkittens/ instagram.com
But Bunny kept hanging on. Through countless baths, tube feedings, and round-the-clock care, the frail kitten slowly began to show signs of life.
She was still too weak to eat properly, so Nikki syringe-fed her every few hours.
It was exhausting, emotional work, but Bunny’s tiny body responded.
She started nibbling on wet food. Her energy lifted. Her spirit began to shine through.
Nikki’s husband, who became Bunny’s cuddle companion, stayed by her side every step of the way.
He’d sit with her, hold her close, and whisper encouragement. Bunny seemed to understand she was safe.
Credit: @myfosterkittens/ instagram.com
“She’s a fighter,” Nikki said. “She always had the will to survive. All I did was give her the chance.”
Over the next two months, the scrawny kitten blossomed.
Her fur, once patchy and gone, began to grow back soft and full.
The sores on her ears healed. She hit two pounds for the first time. And with that milestone came a bittersweet realization.
Bunny was ready to move on.
Credit: @myfosterkittens/ instagram.com
For foster carers like Nikki, that moment is both heartbreaking and joyful.
Saying goodbye means the job was done right, but it never gets easier.
Nikki cried often as the adoption day approached. But she knew Bunny’s future was bright.
“I help them get healthy and ready to fly,” she said. “It’s not about me. It’s about giving them the life they deserve.”
Bunny’s new chapter began with a loving couple who took over her care and continued her treatment until she was officially free of ringworm.
The once hairless kitten was now a fluffy, healthy cat with a larger-than-life personality.
Credit: @myfosterkittens/ instagram.com
“She’s a happy, hairy young lady now,” her new mum, Marija Jennings, said with pride.
“She wouldn’t be with us if it weren’t for Nikki and her husband’s huge hearts.”
Bunny quickly made herself at home. She became a professional cuddler, following her new humans around, always ready to be held and adored.
Her recovery wasn’t just physical. She flourished emotionally too, becoming the cat everyone always believed she could be.
Credit: @myfosterkittens/ instagram.com
Looking back, it’s almost hard to believe that Bunny ever came so close to being put down.
One moment of connection in a shelter changed the course of her life completely.➕
