It was another hectic morning at work when my computer mouse suddenly stopped working. After a battery change resulted in still no connection, I rebooted. The computer began an update that continued for several minutes. Something didn’t seem right. I called Tai, one of our IT specialists. He came to the rescue, informing me that this particular update may take a while.
Tai wanted to be sure the computer got back on track without any issues. As we waited for the update to finish, Tai launched into a story (knowing I love cats) about an unexpected kitten rescue.
In September 2025, Tai was heading out on his early morning walk with his German shepherd/husky mix, Kira. As he passed by his car in the driveway, Tai heard frantic meows coming from what seemed to be under the car. Kira made a beeline for the motor where Tai saw the face of a meowing kitten. He attempted to retrieve the kitten, but couldn’t get to the place in the motor where the kitten was located. Tai needed to continue walking Kira, but consumed with worry about the kitten, he texted his wife an urgent message: DO NOT DRIVE THE CAR WHATEVER YOU DO and explained why.
As Tai told the story, he emphatically affirmed that he is not a cat person. He’s a dog person—his entire family are dog people. They love all animals, but—they’re dog people. Because of his love for animals, he wanted to get the kitten out of a dangerous situation. When Tai returned from his walk about 45 minutes later, the kitten was no longer in the motor, but two kittens were in his back yard; one was the kitten from the motor
His wife had first found them, cold, trembling and crying as Tai describes. It was unknown how the kittens ended up in the back yard, but they appeared to be siblings. Tai explained that he lives in a neighborhood with many stray cats that are fed by folks in the neighborhood, and believes a stray cat that frequently came into their yard (and still does) is the mother of these kittens.
He thought about calling animal control and ran the idea by his son, Tyler, who advised do not, they’ll be euthanized. Tyler was at work, but rushed home to take the kittens to the vet. After the exam, the vet reported their estimated age at 3 to 4 weeks. They were treated for fleas, a viral infection as one had very runny eyes, but were overall in good health.
With a little encouragement from Tyler, the kittens found a home with Tai and his family. They named the female tortoiseshell Mimi and the male kitten Momo, who’ve become an integral part of the family. Kira’s the dotting mama to the kittens, always watching over and snuggling with them. As Tai passionately shared the story, it was clear that he and his family had become completely smitten with these kittens.
You don’t always know who in your circle of coworkers loves cats. It could be that savvy IT guy who was once only a dog person.
Tai believes these cats who frequently vist are Mimi and Momo’s parents.
