One morning in June, a staff member at Alley Cat Rescue, a cat sanctuary in Mt. Rainier, Maryland, arrived at work to find a carrier on the front steps. He didn’t think much of it at first.

“Sometimes individuals give carriers,” Brianna Grant, communications associate at Alley Cat Rescue, explained, “so he wasn’t initially frightened… until he noticed the sign on top.”

“Please assist!” On a piece of cardboard, someone had written. “He’s incredible.” Please accept my apologies.”

Inside the carrier, the staff member discovered a little 3-month-old kitten with a badly injured eye.

“His eye was swelled up, probably twice its normal size, so we knew right away that we had to help him,” Grant said. “Our vet looked at the injury and thought it was a sudden trauma, such as the kitten falling or something got hit into his eye.

There was no sign that this was an intentional injury, so right now we think an accident happened, and his previous owner just got overwhelmed.”

The kitten, now known as Kobu, underwent emergency surgery to remove his eye, and he has healed incredibly quickly.

Grant described him as a “resilient kitten.” “He’s been such a trooper through it all.” He was withdrawn when we initially found him but has now turned around. He’s a cheerful, silly kid now.”

Kobu is currently housed in the kitten room of the shelter, where he has met a lot of new pals.

Grant stated, “He adores the other kitties and is constantly caressing and playing with them.” “He’s truly incredible – he’s such a sweetheart.”