Man Rescues Family of Animals After Hearing Cries in Hailstorm
The other day, a strange sound pierced the usual clamor behind Joseph Cinnante’s house. As a full-time dog trainer and father, Cinnante is no stranger to noise — but this was something different, something unexpected.
“The cries were so faint, they almost sounded fake,” Cinnante explained in an interview with The Dodo. “I immediately thought [they were from] birds or something else.”
Curious and concerned, Cinnante and a friend ventured outside into an ongoing hailstorm, following the delicate cries. The mysterious sound led them closer and closer to the source, which finally became clear as they approached some brush near a hill behind his home.
A Gentle Cry for Help
“That’s a kitten crying,” Cinnante realized as he approached the noise. Beneath the thick, wet brush lay a tiny, orange kitten — soaked, shivering, and alone.
Surprised, Cinnante’s first thought was that one of his resident cat Keely’s kittens had gotten out. But upon closer inspection, it became obvious this kitten didn’t belong to Keely’s litter. “His eyes were already open, and he had stripes,” he noted. “He was definitely older.”
More Innocent Lives Discovered
Acting quickly, they brought the tiny kitten inside to warm up. But the cries hadn’t ceased entirely. Within 10 minutes, they returned outside and made another discovery — two more kittens, hiding together in a nearby hole.
“They were in a hole not far from the orange one,” Cinnante reported. As thunder rumbled and hail pelted the ground, they kept searching — and an hour after the first kitten was found, they discovered a fourth, crying softly further up the hill.
No Mother in Sight, But Help Was Close
Despite searching for the mother cat, potentially a neighbor’s barn cat, she was nowhere to be found. Too young to survive on their own, the kittens urgently needed care. Thankfully, someone was more than willing to step in — Cinnante’s cat, Keely.
Keely had just given birth to three kittens herself and was actively nursing them when Cinnante introduced the four rescued newcomers.
“At first, Keely was a bit apprehensive,” he said. “You could tell she was confused — but she didn’t reject them. With a little time and patience, she came around and welcomed them as if they were her own.”
Rescue Aligning With a Greater Mission
Though the rescued kittens weren’t part of his usual line of work, their arrival felt like destiny. As a dog trainer, Cinnante is deeply dedicated to saving dogs from euthanasia in shelters, rehabilitating them, and placing them into loving homes.
“The week we found them, we had just started our non-profit to save more shelter animals,” Cinnante said. “It felt like a sign that we’re on the right path.”
Weeks later, thanks to Keely’s nurturing and Cinnante’s diligence, the kittens are thriving and preparing for adoption. Four resilient kittens — once crying out alone in the cold — now playfully explore the warm home that took them in.
A Mother’s Love and A Second Chance
“Keely’s been such an incredible mom — to her three and the adopted four,” Cinnante shared. With plans underway to find them forever homes, the kittens’ future looks bright.
Watch Keely sweetly care for her blended litter in this heartwarming clip from The Dodo:
In a world full of noise, it was the softest sound that led to seven lives being changed forever — a testament to the power of compassion and the quiet strength of a mother’s love.
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