When Tuna Casserole first arrived at the North Nova Shelter in October 2024, she was in rough shape. The young cat was dehydrated, emaciated and covered in scabs. Despite her condition, she remained gentle and affectionate, curling up on a heating pad at the Stellarton Tartan Tails Veterinary Hospital, and allowing staff to care for her.
“It felt like she knew we were trying to help her,” remembers Registered Veterinary Technician, Jesse Feuer.
Jesse has been a vet tech for four years and always dreamed of working with animals. She saw first-hand how Tuna’s health was struggling in the shelter. Tuna continued to have bad skin issues, even though all her tests came back negative. She also began to act very depressed and lethargic.
Tuna needed twice-daily steroids and medicated baths. “I felt like she wasn’t doing well in the shelter environment, so I offered to take her home and continue her treatments,” says Jesse. 
Jesse welcomed her new foster into her home where she lived with her husband and her other cat, Perogie, who was adopted from the Toronto Humane Society when Jesse worked there previously.
At first, Jesse kept Tuna in the guest bathroom to give Perogie time to adjust. Gradually, the two cats started spending supervised time together. “I didn’t think I could adopt her if they weren’t showing signs of getting along,” says Jesse.
Even though Perogie wasn’t crazy about Tuna at first, they began warming up to each other and Perogie stopped hissing at Tuna and avoiding her. “Then one day, Tuna fetched a toy I threw and brought it back. In that moment, I knew I had to have her,” says Jesse.
Jesse officially adopted Tuna in February 2025. With her support, Tuna was able to recover, and her personality got to shine through.
“When she first came to live with us, she wasn’t feeling her best, so her personality was muted. As she started feeling better, she became a lot more kitten-like,” says Jesse. “Now she’s 100% better and has finally started to shed. Because of her skin issues, she didn’t have enough hair to shed it until now!”
These days, Tuna is happy and thriving. She and Perogie have become the best of friends, and they play together all the time and sneak in cuddles when no one’s watching. She’s even helping Perogie lose some weight by keeping him active while they play.
“She’s especially close with my husband, which is good because Perogie is definitely ‘my cat’ and now he has a cat of his own,” says Jesse. “She likes to come nap with us and some of our favourite memories involve her passing out in our arms.”
Tuna has also developed some adorable quirks: she loves to carry her toys around and deposit them in the litterbox or by the water bowl, and she makes the classic “ekekek” sounds at birds outside on the balcony.
For Jesse, watching Tuna’s transformation has been deeply rewarding. “I can’t believe she’s the same cat that came into the shelter, and neither can most people I tell her story to. I’m so happy that I was able to help her the way I did, and it reminds me of why I do this job.”
Thanks to the care she received at the SPCA’s North Nova Shelter, the team at Stellarton Tartan Tails Veterinary Hospital, and Jesse’s dedication, Tuna Casserole now has the happy, healthy life she deserves, filled with playtime, cuddles, and unconditional love.
Tartan Tails is a local veterinary hospital with three locations in Nova Scotia, and they’re accepting new patients. Learn more: www.tartantailsvet.ca.
