This shelter cat named Backpack was so frightened that she wouldn’t even show her face to anyone and was too frightened to eat. However, everything changed when they found her a foster home.
Backpack the cat was wandering around on the street of Philadelphia until she was spotted by a child. The kid tucked the frightened cat into a backpack to try to keep her safe and brought her to the shelter.
When Backpack first got to the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), she did everything she could to hide herself. Volunteers even tried to comfort her, but she curled her body into a ball and buried her head into the volunteer’s arm, as if trying to make herself invisible.
“She is completely terrified and shut-down despite our best attempts to soothe her,” PAWS shares Backpack’s story on Facebook. “She’s too depressed to eat here… Despite feeling so down, she still gratefully accepts petting and head rubs.”
After a little encouragement, they finally got Backpack to show her pretty face!
PAWS shared this update on Facebook: “She just arrived and has already gotten settled. In the shelter she was too scared to show her face or even eat, but now that she’s in a home she’s feeling like herself again!”
Just a few minutes after her arrival at her new foster home, she began to relax and open up. “So far, so good. She has been here a few minutes and is exploring her room. Next up, something delicious to eat!” foster mom Michelle said.
It’s amazing what a comfortable home setting can do. Backpack is feeling safe in her new temporary home and you can see the happiness in her eyes. She no longer fights to hide her face.
If Backpack’s story touched your heart, please consider fostering a cat like her. There are so many frightened cats just like her. PAWS itself has several other adult cats who need to leave the shelter into foster care due to stress or illness.
A change of scenery in a loving home environment will make all the difference in the world. Please email foster@phillypaws.org or visit www.phillypaws.org/foster to help!
