Marine rescues smol black kitten while deployed in the Middle East, he takes her 7,000 miles with him to build a furrever home together: 'She's been living like royalty'

Blake Seidel • Managing Editor & Brand Manager

Mar 9, 2026 10:00 AM EDT

From princess of the desert to queen of the living room, this tiny black kitten grew up in a safe and loving home thanks to her heroic hooman who rescued her from a roundabout in the Middle East.

Imagine being a tiny kitten and a giant, burly man comes up to you. You would probably be frightened, but after he showed you some kindness, you might start warming up to him. You might even start hanging around his base, snuggling with him, and eventually, claim him as your hooman. That's what we would do, anyway.

After finding you (the smol void kitty) on the inside lane of a three-lane roundabout and spending two years together while deployed in the Middle East, the manly Marine had to make a choice: leave you behind, or take you with him. What do you think he did? You're obviously deeply ingrained in his big heart, so he decides to take you with him! Yippee!

Many planes and 7,000 miles later, you're both safely back in the USA and are ready to awwfficially start your lives together. You'll grow even closer, loving to ride on his massive shoulders, and you'll even become friends with another cat he will adopt later. You will make his homecoming really feel like home, when for so many veterans, it feels foreign. You will give him a sense of purrpose, a feeling of family, and those are things that he will furrever be grateful to you for.

Your journey will be a unique one, from the harsh desert to a cushy, cozy home, but you're exactly where you're supposed to be - by his side, making him smile, purring the night away.

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There's something so wholesome about a teeny weeny kitten being held by a big guy. It's the size contrast that gets us every time. It also makes our hearts swoon like they're made of jelly. Cats are not “girl pets”, cats are for everyone. And let's be real, the cats are the ones that choose their hoomans, so it's not like we have any choice in the matter anyway.
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We did the research so you don't have to. There are tiny crocs for cats. No, we're not joking. This is something we didn't know about until now, and now we absolutely must order at least four pairs. We're sure our cats are not going to love them, but they will suffer through it for some Churus.
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"SMAJ Abbey says hello from the Syrian desert. I heard she was adopted and is probably living quite the life stateside these days."