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Kitten and ferret make unlikely friendship at Utah animal shelter

Posted at 8:05 AM, Jul 31, 2023
and last updated 2023-07-31 10:05:28-04

SALINA, Utah — An unexpected relationship developed inside the kennels of the Fullmer Menagerie Animal Rescue.

Earlier this month, an employee found a kitten fighting for its life near the Gunnison State Prison.

“This kitten was in the middle of the road,” said Jeannine Fullmer, the founder of the rescue. “People were speeding by it. The kitten was going to get hit.”

The feline named “Skiddy” was rescued and taken to the Fullmer facility in Salina, Utah.

The rescue gives hope to cats, dogs, rabbits and scores of other animals.

To help the rescue flourish, Fullmer provides grooming and boarding services to local pets.

After Skiddy’s harrowing ordeal in Gunnison, it’s safe to say she needed a friend and she found one at the rescue.

She was befriended by “Banana Pudding,” a ferret who also overcame difficult circumstances. “Banana Pudding” was found inside a rundown home left in deplorable conditions.

“Very skinny, very unhealthy and we didn't know whether it was going to make it,” Fullmer said.

Both survivors now have a second chance at life. In the shelter’s kennels, they connected and bonded. 

They two play together, chase each other and snuggle up together when the lights go down in the evening.

“It’s crazy,” Fullmer said. “Who knows what goes on in their heads. It was an instant bond.”

Now both are waiting for new homes and the wait has no time limit as the rescue doesn’t give up on any of the animals in its care. 

Some dogs have waited months or years to find a home.

In a perfect world, Fullmer would like to see them adopted together, but she knows that may not be possible.

“I don't want the kitten to stay here and wait and miss an opportunity to have an incredible home,” she said.

Regardless of how long they remain best friends, these animals with an incredible will to live are showing the world that friendship can be found anywhere.

“You see people together you think that's an odd match,”  Fullmer said, “But it works.”

To learn more about adopting Skiddy, Banana Pudding or an animal from Fullmer Menagerie Animal Rescue click here.