Two emerald eyes peered back at me through the cage bars. Her black fur was soft as satin against my hands, but I could feel the bones protruding against her skin. She was skinny, no doubt about that, and super friendly. She couldn't seem to get enough of my doting… but she wasn't what I was looking for. I wanted a kitten, not a fully-grown cat. So, I kept walking.

Cage, after cage, after cage. None of them held a kitten, and I began to grow worried. What if I didn't find a perfect match? I would have to come back here again and go home empty handed once more. I couldn't keep driving all the way out here, gas was expensive after all. I circled the unit of crates a second time. Yet again the pair of emerald eyes stared back at me, begging for attention. I started petting her once again, and her gentle purring filled my ears. She was a sweet cat, no denying that, but I was looking for a kitten. Something I was fairly certain my current cat, Hunter, would be able to tolerate; introducing a fully-grown cat could seriously upset him… but she was so sweet. I stood there scratching her ear, reading her identification card. Her name was Sapphire, she was four years old (the same age as Hunter), and was used to living with other cats. The more I read, the surer I was this ball of fur would be a good addition to my family.

One of the volunteers noticed I was playing with Sapphire and walked over to greet me. I told her I would like to adopt her and the volunteer burst into tears of joy. Apparently, Sapphire had been there for over six months and was days away from being put down. Her previous owners had moved, leaving Sapphire and another cat at the humane society. My heart broke hearing that. I had known that black cats had the worst adoption rates, what I didn't know was that I would be taking one home.