Earlier this week, Kesaruh Hurasek woke up at her home in St. Louis a little after 4 a.m. and decided to let her dogs outside. Afterward, when she went to call them back in, a concerning sound struck her ears from the distance.
“When the dogs ran past
me, I heard a kitten screaming,” Hurasek told The Dodo. “I volunteer in animal rescue, so I know the sounds of a baby in distress.”
The sound eventually quieted before Hurasek could determine where it was coming from, so she grabbed a flashlight and began to search the neighborhood. After about 30 minutes, she called her boyfriend, Dave, to assist her.
“We went to the fence along the [nearby] highway,” Hurasek said. Then they saw it — a small box in the median of the busy roadway. That was when they heard another frantic meow coming from within it: “I said, 'She’s in the box!'”
With little hesitation, putting his own safety at risk, Dave then jumped the fence to save her:
Hurasek’s instincts that morning had been correct. Inside the box was a tiny black kitten, thought to have been intentionally dumped and left to die.
“At first, she was very scared,” Hurasek said. “We strongly believe she was thrown out of a car window in that tiny box and abandoned.”
Now the kitten, whom her rescuers named Shadow, was finally safe.
“We brought her in and fed her. She was starving. We cleaned her up,” Hurasek said. “She is very happy now and so sweet.”
Shadow was found to have an upper respiratory infection and a small injury above her eye, likely from when the box she was in hit the ground.
But nevertheless, she’s lucky to be alive.
Hurasek is working with Full Circle MO Feral to make sure Shadow gets the veterinary care and medicine she needs before getting a fresh start at life.
“Shadow is going to see the vet this week, and once she is fully healthy and spayed, she will go up for adoption,” Hurasek said. “She's already doing so much better.”
What began with a faint cry in the darkness ended with Shadow exactly where she belongs — safe, cared for and looking toward a brighter future.
