After his mother, a three-legged wild cat, was discovered pregnant and caught in a trap, Aries and his siblings were born at a rural shelter. When the kittens were born, it was quite cold, and the shelter didn’t have a great heating system, so they put out a call to local rescues, hoping that someone would be able to take in the small family. Because the mother was feral, she was already highly agitated in the shelter setting, and the shelter staff was concerned that she would be unable to care for her babies unless she was moved to a warmer, calmer location.
Fortunately, Tracy Pitisci, an experienced foster parent, learned about Aries and his family and chose to place them with Ana’s Angels Rescue. The mom cat, later named Diana, and her kittens arrived at the Pitisci family’s home in Jacksonville, Florida, only hours after the litter had been born. They hadn’t nursed much yet because Diana was so stressed out, and as Pitisci was getting them all settled, she noticed there was something different about Aries.
“We were inspecting the kittens when we discovered Aries’ legs,” Pitisci told The Dodo. “They were totally pressed into his tummy.” You could tell the joints weren’t pointing in the right way. We knew he’d have a long road ahead of him if he made it, but we believed he could.”
Diana began to calm down when they were all placed into a quiet area, and she began to milk and care for her babies. Everyone was relieved, and after it appeared that all of the kittens would be well, the foster family turned their attention to Aries and what could be done about his bent legs.
“Unlike his brothers, Aries had difficulties getting out of his playpen, and while his siblings were beginning to walk, he appeared to be scooting rather than walking,” Pitisci added. “A veterinarian advised us to tie his back legs with medical tape and gauge. It did appear to assist keep his legs from splaying out, and we hoped it would help him develop his gluteus muscles.”
Aries’ legs continued to change as he matured…
… and when combined with his black coloration, he practically looks like a beautiful tiny spider.
Despite his peculiarities, his foster family adores him and has continued to assist him in overcoming each obstacle that has been put his way. Pitisci and her family realized Aries would always be different, but they were determined to give him the greatest life possible — so, even after all of his siblings had been adopted, they chose to adopt Aries themselves, so they could be his everlasting protectors.
“We knew we adored Aries and that we would always go out of our way to make sure he got everything he needed.” Pitisci said. “Then we realized that he had already found his forever home with us. Adopting Aries has brought tremendous joy to our family.”
After working with Diana and winning her confidence, the family decided to adopt her as well, bringing their pack to two special needs cats. Aries has encountered numerous problems as he has matured, including learning to walk and managing with his twisted legs, but with the help of his family, he appears to have no awareness that he is different from any other cat. He can’t leap and walks awkwardly, but Aries always gives his all and has yet to face a task he isn’t eager to take on.
“He’ll always try to do what he wants,” Pitisci remarked. “If he sees something he wants to climb, he will give it his best attempt. To help him overcome some of his limitations and let him experience life like other cats, we thought to take him on adventures with us and show new things to him. He regularly goes to the park where he likes to go down the slide by himself and enjoys the beach.”
People who see Aries out and about are often taken away by how lovely he is, and they adore taking selfies with him and lavishing him with love and attention. Aries has become something of an advocate for cats with special needs, and his family is glad every day that they took a chance on him.
“There isn’t a day that goes by that my husband and I aren’t grateful that we responded to the message from the shelter requesting that we accept them,” Pitisci said. “He has changed our life.”
Link to Paws Daily