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Lee Majors is available at the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter.

Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter

Pet of the Week

This handsome, exotic-looking fellow has been with us twice now. He is a neutered male Tonkinese cat, who is about 5 years old. He has wide, brilliant eyes and soft pewter-colored fur. While he is super striking, his story so far marks him as a special needs cat in search of just the right place to call home.

Lee Majors came to us here at the shelter back in June. He was found in a park with obvious recent surgery to one of his legs, which was not healing properly. It soon became clear that the damage to the leg was too great and it had to be amputated, leaving him a tri-pod -- a three-legged cat. He bounced back, showing amazing resilience; he was up and walking within days. Throughout his recuperation time he greeted everyone who visited him with a purr and a head-bump. He acquired quite the fan club at the shelter.

Lee was first fostered then placed in an active home where he received plenty of attention. Due to his three-legged condition, it was understood that for his own safety he must always be an indoor kitty. Things went very well for him for several months. He adored being the loving focus of the many folks in his household and charmed everyone he met.

Then his owner had to move into a studio apartment, without roommates. Lee pined away during the day when his person was at work. He would


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race to greet his person and meow loudly at the owner when she came home. It was quickly clear Lee was upset to be left by himself so much of the time. As can happen with cats who have a sudden change in their environment, his litter box habits suffered. And as his owner was unable to change her living situation, Lee was returned to the shelter.

We hope that the perfect home is out there for this special cat. Our adoption counselors are here to help if you might consider adopting him -- or any of our other shelter pets.

If you are looking for a lost pet or are interested in adopting, becoming a volunteer or fostering, visit the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter or go online to www.scanimalshelter.org.

The Santa Cruz shelter, 2200 Seventh Ave., is open noon to 7 p.m. Tuesday-Friday and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The Watsonville shelter, 580 Airport Blvd., is open 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday and closed noon to 1 p.m. for lunch. Call 454-7303, ext. 0, for more information.