Entrant's Name
Joann M. Biondi

Animal’s Story
ARF finds each and every life they rescue worth saving even for animals who have experienced the worst possible beginning. Such is Valentine’s story.

I went to ARF to find another brown tabby cat like the one I had to put down. I found a brown tabby kitten that was found in a box in a BART station with her ears and lower back severely burned. No one knows how that happened but maybe she ran under a hot car but she was a mess! The very tips of her ears fell off over time being so badly burned leaving a base of cartilage and the spot on her back gets irritated and itches every Spring. On September 30, 2010 I adopted Valentine. She will be 12 years old this year. I have never had a kitten or cat with a life long disability but I figured my 40 year career in public education working with children with disabilities would surely enable me to know what to do for her.

I kept her name Valentine which was the name ARF gave her because she was so sweet in spite of what she had been through. I call her my “Drive By Kitty” because this condition has never slowed her down as she runs instead of walks no matter where she is going. She isn’t a cuddler nor will she sit on your lap. She loves to have the top and back of her head scratched but not for too long or she starts to give love bits. She is brown & white, short haired, hyperactive, slender with very petite paws, playful and very inquisitive. She enjoys her protective patio she lives in with my other resident cats.

An unintentional mishap as a kitten lead to a beautiful happy life. Thank you ARF for rescuing my Valentine!