Shy Stray Cat Sees Kittens Inside House And Falls Head Over Heels For Them

He came by every day for over a month before he felt brave enough to say hi ❤️

Danielle Chavez’s house is usually full of kittens. The founder of With Grace Rescue in Las Vegas takes in as many neonatal and special needs foster babies as possible. But she never thought they would attract even more animals to her house.
 
Then, in late October, a lonely tuxedo cat, whom she nicknamed Buddy, started showing up in her backyard.

Cat shows up in woman's backyard asking to be let in
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“At first, I started seeing him on our security cameras and he would just sit outside our sliding glass door, just watching us,” Chavez told The Dodo. “I think our cats drew him to the door. It looked like he wanted to play with them.”
 
Chavez wasn’t sure where the cat had come from or where he was living. At first, she assumed he belonged to the local cat colony or a neighbor, but after trapping him, she discovered he wasn’t neutered or microchipped. Chavez had Buddy neutered and vaccinated, and returned him to her backyard.

Stray cat wants to play with inside kittens
Instagram/withgracerescue

“It killed me to have to release a friendly cat but we had a full house with kittens in every room, so I didn’t have the option,” Chavez said. “But there was just something about Buddy, so I promised him if he kept coming around, as soon as we had a spot for him, we would bring him inside and find him his forever home.”

Instagram/withgracerescue

Buddy kept his end of the bargain — continuing to visit Chavez’s home for the next month, looking through the glass at the kittens inside. When a spot for Buddy finally opened up, Chavez kept her promise, too.
 
But as much as Buddy wanted to be with the other cats, it wasn’t easy to earn his trust.

“We tried everything over the course of a week to lure him in, but he just wasn’t having it,” Chavez said. “He would sit at our sliding glass door and just stare at our cats and want to play with them, but he just couldn’t get up enough courage to come in.”

Instagram/withgracerescue

Finally, she set up a humane trap and Buddy went inside within minutes.

While Buddy was not pleased to be in a home at first, Chavez knew it was the right place for him. And soon the sweet outdoor cat embraced his new life playing with the kittens he'd spent so long watching from afar.

“He became confident and really enjoyed human companionship and being spoiled rotten,” Chavez said. “He is so goofy, silly, playful and lovable.”

The only thing left to do was to find Buddy a family to love him.

Instagram/withgracerescue

Adoption applications started to roll in for Buddy, but none of them seemed like the right fit for the energetic cat. Then Chavez came across a young couple named Jake and Ryanne, who were still in mourning after recently losing their own cat.

"Ryanne was scouring the internet looking for a kitten that spoke to her, and after a series of clicks, she ended up on our Instagram page. Buddy’s face instantly captured her heart," Chavez said. "When I read Jake and Ryanne's application, I just knew it was the one. Their story touched my heart and I knew our Buddy was the right guy to heal theirs."

Buddy the stray cat with his new family
Instagram/withgracerescue

Now, Buddy is finally home and it's clear he picked the right house to visit all those months ago.

"So many people turn a blind eye to animals that need help. I can’t imagine Buddy making it on the streets much longer," Chavez said. "Buddy got his happy ending with a great forever family, and I am so grateful that he chose our house to start visiting."

To help other cats like Buddy find their forever homes, you can make a donation to With Grace Rescue.