In Memory of Tom Petty 11/28/2021 – 10/5/2022
Tom Petty came to us back in July of 2022 after a very rough start in life. He was found as a small kitten dumped in a feral colony on the ASU campus. Unfortunately, it is a pretty common practice for people to abandon cats at known feral colonies and while it may seem a better option than just letting them out to fend for themselves, it is not! When cats are dumped at established colonies they are often attacked as outsiders. They are rarely accepted and often injured by the colony cats. And that is exactly what happened to Tom. He was picked on and attacked by the other cats and injured rather badly. Luckily for Tom, the wonderful people at the ASU Cat Coalition took him in and were able to get him taken care of. In the process though, it was discovered that he was Feline Leukemia positive.
Tom Petty made his way to us and much like with the ASU CC it was love at first sight! There has never been a sweeter or cuter kitten. We always joked that if Tom Petty were a human, he’d be a supermodel. He had the most stunning coat of fur you’d ever seen. And do not even get us started on his eyes; it was like staring into the ocean. A more gorgeous cat has never existed than our Tom Petty.
Typically, all our younger FeLV+ cats go to Cookie’s place. It is livelier in that room and the cats are more rambunctious, to say the least. Tom Petty was always a quieter cat and a bit shyer so we decided to go a different route with him. He moved into Cookie’s Annex with our older and quieter crowd. He was a perfect addition. The most well-behaved roommate! He became buddies with Ozzie and was on occasion seen playing with Scottie. Such a happy crew! Not only was he well-liked by the cats, every human who met him fell in love! There was no denying it, Tom was just a special little guy!
Unfortunately, as can be the way with leukemia, he was not permitted the time with us that we had all hoped for. His little life was far too short. He never quite came out of his shell and got into the crazy antics of most kittens. Then he developed URI symptoms that we could just not chase away. On his most recent vet visit, it was discovered he had developed a mass that was growing quickly. The mass was not treatable and so we did all we could to keep him as happy and comfortable for as long as he had. He let us know it was time and he was able to pass in the arms of the staff that cared for him and loved him so so much, and in the room at the sanctuary that he brought so much light to.
Thank you to all who loved and cared for Tom Petty – our staff, volunteers, his sponsors, and all at Sam Bass Wellness. We want to leave you with some words from Tom’s namesake.
“You and I will meet again, when we’re least expecting it, one day in some far-off place, I will recognize your face, I won’t say goodbye my friend, for you and I will meet again.” -Tom Petty
Tom Petty has 4 Sponsors
Ana Sida
Margaret Lawhon
Kristen Stanley
Debra Patterson