Jetta, 'A Little Shy': Huntington Adoptable Pet Of The Week

HUNTINGTON, NY — Jetta, a 3-month-old female kitten, is the Grateful Paw Cat Shelter's Huntington Pet of the Week.

"The rain had been falling in heavy sheets that night, the kind that blurred streetlights into smears of gold and silver," said Debbi Larkin, president of the shelter. "In the backseat of a forgotten car, tucked into a cardboard box that smelled faintly of engine oil and damp cardboard, a tiny gray kitten took her first breath. She was not alone — two siblings wriggled beside her, their soft cries barely audible over the drumming rain. And curled around them all, warm and fiercely protective, was their mother. That was the beginning of Jetta’s story."

Jetta grew quickly, her fur turning into the softest shade of misty grey, "smoother than cashmere," with eyes that seemed to "hold the stormy skies she was born under," according to Larkin.

Jetta, her siblings (Bentley and Lexus) and their mom were immediately placed in foster care, Larkin noted. The plan was to separate them from mom at about 6 weeks old and then get their mom, Porsche, ready for adoption.

"Those plans are exactly what happened," Larkin said. "Jetta was curious — always curious — but quiet about it. Where her siblings tumbled headlong into chaos, Jetta was content to sit back, observe, and then, when no one was looking, investigate in her own deliberate way. She could keep herself entertained for hours with a spring, a ball, or one of those fuzzy toy mice that she’d bat around the room and then spend 10 determined minutes fishing back out from under the furniture."

Her siblings were adopted early, whisked away to warm homes full of laughter and toys, according to Larkin. Jetta stayed behind at the shelter.

"It wasn’t that she wasn’t loved — everyone adored her — but she was a little shy, a little introverted. She ate well, never turning her nose up at any meal, but she didn’t quite have that confident stride the others did."

The shelter staff knew what she needed: a friend, Larkin said. Preferably a cat who already knew her — a cat who could coax her out of her shell.

"And as fate would have it, Jetta’s mother is already at the shelter and waiting for her daughter to come back," Larkin said. "There is hope, now, that mother and daughter might be reunited for good."

Jetta has tested negative for FELV & FIV, had her ears, eyes and heart checked, has been wormed, had all of her vaccines, litter box trained, spayed and microchipped.

If you are interested in meeting Jetta, you may call the shelter at 631-757-4517, email cats@laphuntington.org, visit the Facebook page or visit at the Grateful Paw Cat Shelter.

The rescue is at 3 Verleye Ave., East Northport, and visiting hours are Tuesday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.

The shelter is also open from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday nights only for those who cannot make it during the daytime hours.

Both Jetta and her mom will be featured at the rescue's Summer Beach Day Adoption Event scheduled for noon to 3 p.m. Aug. 23.

"No kitten should grow up alone," Larkin said. "And certainly not one who began her life in a cardboard box, in a car, in the middle of a torrential downpour. Jetta had seen more than most 3- month-olds should. Now, she deserved to see sunny windowsills, warm laps, and a home where she could curl up next to her mother and finally, truly, rest."