Terrified cat with life-threatening disease is saved by foster love, shelter says
While foster homes have always been essential to the animal shelter experience, recently the power of a dog named Tiki, whose foster journey has been famously documented over the past two months, has shown people exactly what fostering can do.
And how it can save an animal’s life.
A lesser known example of foster transformations is a cat named Ranger in Illinois, a former stray who was carrying a deadly disease when he was surrendered to PAWS Chicago.
“Ranger’s transformation is a testament to the power of a foster home,” the shelter said in June 11 Instagram post.
“For years, an elderly woman was helping to care for stray cat Ranger. When she could no longer continue that care, she sought out a better life for him at PAWS. Her decision to do so turned out to be lifesaving, because Ranger was infected with a highly contagious, deadly disease: panleukopenia.”
Panleukopenia, which is also known as feline distemper, is sometimes fatal, especially for kittens. It is a disease that attacks white blood cells, leaving a cat defenseless against infections, the American Veterinary Medical Association says.
Luckily, PAWS was able to catch the disease before it got worse.
“Ranger beat that disease over two weeks of treatment at our Medical Center, but that would only be part of his journey,” the shelter said. “He was really struggling in the shelter environment, too skittish and scared to interact with new people.”
Because of his terrified nature, Ranger moved to a foster home. But the shelter had no idea what to expect or how long it would take him to warm up to people in a different, calmer setting.
“Once he was healthy, Ranger moved into a foster home with some confident resident cats, and the change was nearly instant,” the shelter said.
Even Ranger’s foster parent was impressed with the fast turnaround the wide-eyed cat made.
“The way he loves having cat friends and finds his brave face when they are around is the most adorable thing. He’s eating great, he’s out and about, he even slept on my bed by my head with the rest of my kitties,” Ranger’s foster told the shelter.
“He’s timid and definitely thinks about being skittish, but the second I touch his little head he falls into the pets and flips and flops around like the happiest kitty.”
Thanks to the warm embrace of his foster and the surrounding cat friends, Ranger is now available for adoption.
“Ranger really thrives with other kitties around, so we’re asking that his adopter already have a social cat at home to help him out,” the shelter said.
For more information, visit the shelter’s website.
This story was originally published June 12, 2025 at 2:07 PM with the headline "Terrified cat with life-threatening disease is saved by foster love, shelter says."