💪 From stray to supermodel – a cat comeback story

👆 Meet Hercules, an adorable little cat with quite the story. 

He spent the first six years of his life in an animal hoarding situation. When his rescuers first found him, he was locked in a hot car with nearly 50 other cats. 

• As an organization came to save the cats, Hercules ended up running away – and was missing for a month. When they finally found him, he was discovered with a fractured jaw and injured tongue – and covered in maggots and fleas💔.
• The rescuers weren't sure he would survive the night. But then, Hercules lifted his head and looked right at his rescuer, per the Washington Post. “I got the impression that he really wanted to fight,” she said. 

And fight he did.

Second chances: Hercules was rescued by Nicole Perreault, the veterinarian that runs Tuff Start Rescue, who nursed the cat back to health. When he was finally strong enough to find a foster home, local pediatric nurse Jill LeBrun fell in love with his sweet golden eyes and new permanently silly face (due to his jaw reconstruction).

• While Jill originally took Hercules home to foster him, she soon realized he was home to stay. 

Hercules got stronger and stronger, settling in perfectly to his new home. Then one day, Jill came across and ad from the Animal Connection, a pet talent agency in search of cats with unusual faces. It was scouting pet models for Target – so she sent them a picture of Hercules. 

• The agency loved his sweet, little silly face, and asked Jill to bring Hercules in for a photo shoot. He was a natural in front of the camera, and they said to keep an eye out for his picture in Target. 

From stray to supermodel: By mid-March, Jill still hadn't heard from the agency, so she went to Target on her own to check out the pet aisle – and found Hercules' cute little face on every bucket of store-brand kitty litter😳. Soon after, the agency called to set up a second shoot for later this year (a...catcall?).

💬 What she's saying: “He’s a natural and he loves to be the center of attention,” Jill said. “I feel very lucky to be the person who gets to spend every day with him."