Scarlette is an adorable little girl who lost one of her arm to cancer when she was just a 10-month-old baby. Her parents, Simone and Matt Tipton, decided to give her a kitten when the girl was around 2 years old, and they wanted her to be similar to her to encourage her to see that those differences would not prevent her from being a happy person.
The family residing in Trabuco Canyon, California (United States), learned at that time of a kitten from a shelter that had lost its front leg. In that instant they knew that he was the one and they wanted to make him the new member of his family.
Simone said in an interview to TODAY:
“They think he was inside the wheel of a car when the car started and he didn’t get out on time. They said that she was not going to make it and that in fact they already had euthanasia planned, but one of her staff begged him to try to save her.”
Girl who lost an arm adopts kitten without a limb
When Scarlette was born, her left arm was abnormally large. After some tests, surgeries and chemotherapy treatments, the family discovered that her daughter had an aggressive type of cancer and the medical recommendations were to amputate the little girl’s arm.
The little girl’s mother added:
“We had to travel to Minnesota to the Mayo Clinic to do the surgery, because they were the only doctors qualified for such an extensive surgery. She was 10 months old when she had her arm, shoulder, scapula, clavicle and all surrounding skin and tissues removed.”
The family saw a story on the local news about a three-month-old kitten who had just been amputated due to a terrible accident, and they immediately called to adopt the kitten from the San Jacinto Valley Animal Campus.
The girl’s mother recalls that they immediately called the shelter, there they were initially told that she was not yet available for adoption due to his recent injuries.
The family made an effort to allow them to have the cat. Once the staff learned about Scarlette’s story, they decided to make an exception so the kitten could go home to her new family.
When the kitten named Doc joined the family, Scarlette was really excited, she loves cats. She immediately noticed that Doc had staples in her side just like she did, and placed her hand as if she understood everything immediately.
Simone recalls:
“Scarlette felt the staples and the drainage tube on the side of her, touched her gently and said, ‘Owies?’ I said, ‘Yeah, she has flowers like you.’ She put her hand on her own amputated side of hers and simply nodded. She knows, despite her young age, that this particular cat is special to her.”
Doc became a great complement to Scarlette’s life, her mother assures that growing up with her was a great support for the little girl’s recovery.
Simone added:
“We wanted to find a partner for Scarlette so that she could grow up with someone similar to her, not only so that she could see that she is not the only one of hers, but so that she could strengthen herself and learn to cope like her kitty does.”
Scarlette has grown up since then and is a cheerful and very autonomous girl, she enjoys playing, fulfilling her homework and of course spending time with her beloved family.
You can learn a little more about Scarlette and her family by visiting her Facebook page.
Images: Smiles For Scarlette
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