This story was originally shared on The Animal Rescue Site. Submit your own rescue story here. Your story just might be the next to be featured on our blog!

I lost my beloved dog Trixie to cancer in 2011. Though I was heartbroken, I was determined to, for once in a long time, remain pet free.

One very warm Saturday morning in July of 2012, my neighbor called me demanding that I come outside, insisting that my help was needed. My neighbor and I then spent that morning running around my street with a shoebox trying to catch this little grey sickly-looking kitty, whose mom probably met a sad fate, as there was no other reason why she'd be away from her mom.

Frustrated, we took a break after a couple of hours and went inside to regroup. My landlord then came knocking on my door to inform me that the cat was spotted again! Suddenly, her son-in-law cornered it, and somehow yet not surprisingly, the cat ended up in the shoebox in my hands, in my apartment.

I sat on the floor with her and started dialing the animal shelter, which is where I decided I would take her. As I dialed, she nuzzled me and started purring as she fell asleep on me.

I hung up and made a new call - this time to my vet. The kitten was infested with fleas and had a nasty upper respiratory infection. She was too young for shots, so I had to nurse her back to health first. Well, she made it, eventually got her shots, got spayed, and I cannot imagine not having her in my life. I named her Mei-Ling, which is Chinese for beautiful and delicate. She is now a funny, sassy, loving young lady who's an avid bird watcher.

I wasn't ready for a pet just yet , or so I thought. This is the story of how Mei-Ling found me.

Story submitted by Elizabeth Torres from Glen Cove, New York.

This story was originally shared on The Animal Rescue Site. Share your very own rescue story here!