By Siri Espy, Animal Friends’ Communications Team

For Chester the cat and his new mom, Christmas came a few days late. At 11:00 on December 30, right at shelter opening, a woman appeared at Animal Friends’ door, cat carrier in hand.

Unaware of the scheduled New Year’s Eve rescue, she was a bit mystified by the commotion, but was nevertheless ready to adopt. Armed with a list of potential cats, she had studied the web site and identified several young orange tabby boys she thought might be good companions for a lonely kitty at home whose buddy recently passed away.

First on the list was Chester, a six month-old who was born on a porch to a stray mother. Chester found her lap within minutes of meeting her, then confidently crawled into her carrier and sat down as if announcing he was ready to go home. It was certainly mutual, as she quickly affirmed that yes, he was her cat, and she had no need to visit with the others.

His new mom told us that he was her Christmas gift from her daughter, who knew she wanted a cat and funded the adoption.

Although Christmas was late, little Chester rang in 2012 in his new home, where his cat-savvy mom had a quiet room all ready for him to relax in while he became accustomed to his new surroundings, which are undoubtedly filled with love. Happy new year, little guy!