Violet was a stray cat when she came to the Effingham County Animal Shelter in Illinois on Monday, and it was evident that she had a home. Violet’s rescuer, Michaela Muzzy, commented on Facebook, “She’s very, very nice and likes to be rubbed on the head.”

But it wasn’t just her sweetness that hinted to the cat’s past – she had a pink collar with a message fastened around her neck.

 

 

Every inch of the paper was covered with purple marker scribbling.

“Bye Violet,” it said (adjusted for spelling). That name, I believe, selected you. I wish I had the ability to retain you. Violet, I hope you find a loving home. Please take excellent care of her, owner. By the way, I gave her a name. Thank you very much! Lacey, I love you.”

The heartfelt message tore apart hearts all throughout the refuge. Not only was a nice cat looking for a home, but so was a toddler. “It really rips at your emotions when we ripped it off and read it,” Vanessa Skavlem, an animal control officer at the shelter, told The Dodo. “I just imagine a youngster who adores this object but knows they won’t be able to retain it.”

 

 

The screening for a microchip at the shelter came out negative. They released a photo of Violet and the letter on social media since they couldn’t reach Violet’s previous owners.

The child’s plea for her beloved pet to find a suitable home reverberated across the neighborhood, including Cindy Murray.

Murray’s eyes welled up with emotions when she first saw the message on Facebook: “You could tell it was written by a youngster,” Murray told The Dodo. “You could see she cared for this cat, but she couldn’t keep her and wanted her to go to a nice home.”

 

 

Murray had the day off, so she decided to pay a visit to the shelter to meet Violet.

“I took a copy of the post and texted it to my husband at work, telling him I wanted to go get this kitty.’ ‘I adore it — talk me out of it,’” says the narrator. Murray remarked. “‘You know I can’t do that,’ he remarked. ‘Go grab it if you want it.’