A cat mother and her two surviving kittens were rescued when they were found behind a sushi restaurant. The two kittens, Twister (aka Twisty) and Hurricane were just one day old.
Mini Cat Town
Mini Cat Town, a rescue group in San Jose, California, took in the feline family of three so they could have a chance for a better life. "Whilst learning to walk (at two weeks old), we took notice that Twisty was having a lot of trouble standing, but could still feel and move his back legs," Thoa Bui of Mini Cat Town said.
Twisty would fall on his side when he tried to stand up. Despite the difficulties, he never let anything stop him and always wanted to play and explore the best he could. From the start, they knew he was a fighter.
Thoa started looking for a specialist to help find a diagnosis.
Hurricane and TwistyMini Cat Town
After a lot of phone calls, they were able to locate a neurologist for Twisty.
"We went to see a neurologist, but nothing came from it. The neurologist said that he was severely disabled and that we should consider euthanasia," Thoa told Love Meow.
Mini Cat Town
"We never considered euthanizing him, not for a second," Thoa added. "Twisty isn't paralyzed and isn't in any pain. He's perfectly happy and healthy."
The brave little tabby can feel in his legs and has some mobility. He can't walk or run like other kittens but he never stops trying, and his rescuers are fighting alongside him.
Mini Cat Town
"We understand that he has significant challenges ahead of him, but that does not mean he should have been written off so quickly," Thoa added.
Thoa and her sisters, Thi and Tram, began working on a project to build him a wheelchair that would help him during physical therapy.
Mini Cat Town
"We did research and found wheelchair plans on YouTube, went to the hardware store (twice), hand cut all the pipes, built the wheelchair, made a custom harness, and of course, decorated it with some cute army ACU print tape," Thoa said.
They continued to make adjustments to the chair so it would fit and work better.
Mini Cat Town
They use the wheelchair to help Twisty build muscle and increase stability in his legs. "This will hopefully allow him to stand and walk on his own."
Watch Twisty's journey in this video:
Twisty started to use his legs a little more and even learned to use the litter box like a champ.
A few days ago, Mini Cat Town received a brand new custom-made wheelchair all the way from New York. It was made by kind people who heard Twisty's story and wanted to help.
Mini Cat Town
"It has a carbon fiber structure along with some 3D printed parts. Those who created it wish to remain anonymous. We are grateful for their hard work and kindness," Thoa said.
With the new wheelchair, Twisty is doing very well in physical therapy. "Even if he never walks normally, he is perfect exactly the way he is."
Mini Cat Town
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Related story: Cat Mom Refuses to Leave Her Kittens After Being Saved from Shelter