Vet Finds Tiny Kitten Abandoned In A Bush And Saves Her Life

She ended up losing her eye, but she's still the happiest cat ❤️

Lemmy was just a tiny kitten when she was found in some bushes outside a veterinary practice in Oceanside, California. One of the vet techs, a woman named Bre, came across the kitten and was completely shocked by her condition. Both of her eyes were severely infected, and her fur was matted. Because she was wandering through the bushes all alone, Bre suspected that someone had cruelly left her there to fend for herself. 

kitten found in a bush rescued
Instagram/littlemiss_fluffybottom

Lemmy was quickly taken into the vet practice to receive immediate medical attention. The staff shaved her down to get rid of all her matted fur and began treating her for ringworms, and then examined her eyes — and, unfortunately, discovered that one eye was so far gone, they had no choice but to remove it. 

She suffered from an infection that had been left untreated for too long; had it been taken care of early on, the poor kitten never would have lost her eye in the first place. 

kitten found in a bush rescued
Instagram/littlemiss_fluffybottom

Despite all the pain and discomfort she was in, Lemmy purred and snuggled up against her rescuers as they treated and cleaned her, so happy to finally have people caring for her. Bre is an avid kitten foster mom, so she took Lemmy in as a foster, and helped nurse her back to health after her eye surgery and as she recovered from her traumatic start to life. 

kitten found in bushes rescued
Instagram/beingakittenfostermomrules

Lemmy was a sweet, playful little kitten right from the start, and her foster mom quickly fell in love with her big personality and adorable, one-eyed face. Before long, though, it was time for Lemmy to go off to her forever home, so her foster mom began posting about her and received some applications — but, for some reason, Lemmy was adopted out twice and returned both times. 

It didn’t make sense to anyone why Lemmy couldn’t seem to find the right home — but luckily, the best family had been following her journey, and was slowly falling in love with her. 

kitten found in bushes rescued
Instagram/beingakittenfostermomrules

“She was available for adoption in September and I didn't consider adopting her at first — we already had two cats and weren't in the market for three — but after she was adopted and returned TWICE, I knew she was meant to be part of our family,” Celine Machefert, Lemmy’s mom, told The Dodo. “We just knew at that point that we had to have her. We have a soft spot for the ‘unwanted’ animals.”

Machefert and her family decided to apply to adopt Lemmy, not expecting much — until they got the call that their application had been approved, and Lemmy was officially the newest member of their family. 

kitten found in a bush rescued
Instagram/beingakittenfostermomrules

As soon as Lemmy arrived in her new home, her parents knew she was always meant to be there. She fell in love with her new brother and sister right away, and made herself right at home. 

“You'd think she had been there forever,” Machefert said. “She was very quick to adjust, and her brother and sister took to her pretty quickly.” 

kitten found in bushes rescued
Instagram/littlemiss_fluffbottom

Once she’d settled into her new family, Lemmy’s parents took her to see an ophthalmologist to see if there was anything they could do about her impaired vision. The vision in her remaining eye isn’t great, and unfortunately the doctor said there wasn’t much they could do — but luckily, Lemmy doesn’t really seem to notice that she’s any different. 

kitten found in bushes rescued
Instagram/littlemiss_fluffbottom

“She will run into walls sometimes and she can't play with certain toys that her brother and sister play with, like a laser toy, but she doesn't know any different,” Machefert said. “We do think her brother and sister know there's something different about her because they go easier on her than they do each other and they will try to help her. She was having a hard time climbing on something once, and they helped nudge her up. It was the sweetest thing I have ever seen.” 

kitten found in bushes rescued
Instagram/littlemiss_fluffbottom

Even when Lemmy does have trouble doing something or getting around, her brother and sister are always there to help her out, making sure she feels as loved and supported as possible. Lemmy may have had a rough start to life, but she truly has found the perfect home, and couldn’t be happier.

You can follow Lemmy and all of her adventures on her Instagram account