Earlier this year, I was walking along the marina in the Jefferson Chalmers neighbourhood in Detroit, Michigan. It was a terribly cold winter; the water had frozen over and everything was coated in a thick layer of frost. Suddenly, a sound caught my ear – the loud cries of a tiny animal.
I didn’t know what it was at first, or where exactly it was coming from, but I kept hearing it – so I decided to turn around and walk towards the wailing. Suddenly I spotted a little kitten, trapped between the wooden dock and the plank of metal underneath it. I realised its paws were stuck, frozen to the metal, and it had been crying out to be rescued.
I knew it would be dangerous to tread on to the frozen water, so I grabbed a raft that was nearby and placed it on the ice. I jumped on and made my way towards the crying kitten. She was trembling with fear, so I was cautious not to scare her even more. Gently, I removed her cold, wet paws from the frost and nestled her in the warmth of my coat.
My plan was to take her straight to the local vet, but by the time we arrived, the vet had already left for the day. The receptionist told me the best thing I could do was keep her warm, so I took her back into the car, fired up the heating and let her thaw out. Then I took her home with me and placed her in a cardboard box. I decided to call her Chilly. It seemed like the most appropriate name given the circumstances.
Chilly is slim, with kind green eyes. She is such a sweet cat, but still quite shy and wary, especially when I try to pick her up. Her favourite member of the family is my daughter, who swoops Chilly into her arms and plays with her all day.
I’m allergic to cats; and we’ve always been a dog family, with two golden retrievers. Our initial intention was to foster Chilly for a short while before giving her to an animal shelter. But I realised that a runny nose is a small pain to bear to experience the joy of having her around.
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Our first month with Chilly was spent nursing her back to health. She had a large wound on the back of her left paw from where it was stuck on the ice. We bandaged it and it slowly healed after weekly visits to the vet.
Chilly has settled into our family. Rescuing her proved how much pets rely on you and the immense responsibility of keeping them alive. I’m so excited to see the wonderful cat that I know she will grow up to be.
As told to Sinéad Campbell