These are the angels that society truly forgot about. They come from an array of origins and all are incredibly unique. Each of these cats spends a short time with us, but they leave a huge impact on our lives and the lives of those who get to meet them and help them on their journey. We are glad they're with us. 

To read more about Leukemia, here's an introductory article from Cornell University.

Ward is a handsome Southern gentleman who came to us when his number was up at a high volume municipal animal control who we try to help as much as possible. His diagnosis was a complete surprise, and a huge sadness to say the least. He loves everyone he meets and we are thrilled he has found his place as the lovebug of the Leukemia Lifer house. 

Noodles has a double diagnosis - Cerebellar Hypoplasia and Leukemia. CH happens most often when a cat is in utero and their mom is exposed to distemper. The part of the brain that controls motor control doesn't form quite right which leads to varying degrees of jerky movement. Noodles is a complete doll. He loves to snuggle and has taken to the quiet pace of the Lifer House beautifully. He's the kind of cat that we work so hard for. 

Captain came right off the street in East Hartford. He is a gentle dude who thinks he is one of our volunteer's boyfriends. He loves to flirt and he is as even-tempered as they come. Captain is fairly new to HHR as of the time of writing this page, so we are still getting to know him. Stay tuned for more details as he settles in! 

Granny-Panty, Gran-Gran, Granniferd, Granny-Muffin... Granny is quite the character and we wouldn't trade her for the world. Granny came to us from a terrible hoarding case with thirty-two other cats. Crazily enough, she was the only one to test Leukemia positive. Insanity. Despite that and her past, Granny is wonderful. She loves the lazy life now and enjoys keeping the other cats in line. We are thrilled to give her the soft landing she so deserves.

Francine is a truly perfect girl. Francine came from down South when she walked up to a dog rescue and literally turned herself in at the front door. We don't know a thing about her past except that she was already spayed, had a high tolerance for dogs (clearly!) and knew what she wanted, which was to get out of her then current situation. No one ever came looking for her, and we are happy we found her. Francine is the life of the party and always has opinions on big issues like the type of food on the menu for the day or the softness levels of various beds. Honestly, she's absolutely perfect and the reason we do what we do. 

Sherman was rescued off the street by a compassionate police officer. Shermy-wormy is a quirky dude and prefers to keep company with people he really likes. He enjoys solitude and the company of his own thoughts when the folks he loves aren't available. He enjoys spending time looking out the windows and soaking up the sun. He takes life at his own pace and that's just fine.

Iris is a doll who is perfectly imperfect. Iris came from South Carolina originally and was specifically requested that we take her by compassionate shelter workers because they knew about our Lifer program. Back then we only had a couple of Lifers in this wing of the program and had just suffered a great loss in one of the originals leaving us. So Iris came to hang with us, and she is the a great tribute to his memory. Iris is a sweetie who enjoys snuggles and likes her housemates just fine. 

Oscar is a beautiful, cheeky cookie jar headed boy that is leukemia and FIV+. He was discovered on a job site and brought to us by his compassionate finders. Oscar has no lack of personality to fit his perfect cheeks. We feed those cheeks dutifully. He is the life of the party and so sweet! We can't get enough of his hugs.

Esmerelda came to us by way of rural animal control near one of our fosters. She was trapped with several other kittens in a very poor neighborhood. She had no hope or future there. Unfortunately, Esmerelda tested leukemia positive. She is a young girl, and we retested her after several months, but sadly the same results. So Esmerelda came to live with our Lifers, and she is the youngest. She keeps to herself and prefers the company of the other cats in her little colony to that of the people in the rescue, but that's okay. She is doing just fine with us, and we love her on her terms.

Stretch is the first kitty to greet us at the door each time. Stretch came to us by way of the streets of Hartford. Stretch got his name because he likes to stretch himself out in all sorts of contortions to achieve the perfect scritches. He prefers to wind himself around the person proffering scratches so he can steal dinner first. He's absolutely lovely! 

Millie is NOT a Leukemia Lifer, but she is a Lifer! Millie is with a permanent dedicate foster and rules the roost in her home. Millie has CH and nearly died on intake from a combination of stress, upper respiratory and terrible intestinal parasites. She has a permanent head tilt from the ordeal, but her parents report it does not slow her down in the slightest. Fostering saves lives!