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A cat began showing up in our backyard eating dried up bread given to the birds. Since he was so obviously hungry, we began to feed him and he came every day to eat. Although he wasn't very friendly, I knew he'd start to like us eventually.

One day, however, the cat we began calling Slick didn't come to eat. We looked through the neighborhood for him, and then we found him hiding in an old dog box by the woods. Assuming he was sick, I was going to take him to the vet.

When I reached in, I saw something shiny in the box with him. Then I realized what it was: Slick had been shot with an arrow. To make a long story short, animal control showed up hours later and was of no help. Slick escaped and darted into the dark woods.

I knew I had to find this cat, but there were lots of woods and farmland where he could hide. I searched day after day, night after night, missing some school and work, but I couldn't let this poor soul die. There were sightings of Slick, but no one could catch him.

Finally, after two weeks, he showed up on our front porch, and from there began a fairy tale life.

While looking for Slick, we found a calico kitten who stole our hearts and entered our home. Previous to this, our cats had been outside. After this experience, though, we knew we couldn't let anyone be outside and knew we were at our limit now with two dogs and two cats.

Thanks to Slick's gentle soul and his unfortunate event, we have now opened our hearts and have seven rescue cats who are living the dream. I am not happy about what happened to Slick, but I couldn't ask for a better cat, and I love every one of our little furballs and am thankful I can give them a piece of my heart and home.