Poor ginger tom Baggypuss was found living on the streets, so weak that he could barely stand up.

Looking at Baggypuss today, you wouldn’t guess at his past life as a starving stray, pushed away by people in a bus queue as he searched for scraps.

“He’s settled in absolutely wonderfully,” says Vivienne Husband of the ginger tom she adopted from CP’s Swale Branch in July.

Baggypuss has thrived in his new home

Things were very different six months ago. Frightened, hungry and dehydrated, the skeletal cat was forced to live off discarded scraps. In his search for food, he tried to board a bus in Halfway, Isle of Sheppey, but was shooed away by the passengers.

Luckily for Baggypuss he was spotted and taken home by a local man, who contacted Swale CP then took him to the vet.

Swale’s Branch Co-ordinator Sylvia Foster visited the cat at the clinic the next day. “He was so weak that his back legs could hardly support him. His fur was ragged and tufty and his eyes were sunken,” she says.

“I picked him up very gently and he snuggled into me and started purring. I thought: ‘You poor mite, I’ve got to do something for you.'"

When he was found, Baggypuss could barely support his own weight

Sylvia guessed that the cat must have a lot of medical problems, but tests showed that he simply had an overactive thyroid which could be controlled through medication.

Baggypuss was taken to his temporary new home, a cosy Cat Cabin at the home of Branch Fosterer Val Hadnutt. With Val’s care and devotion Baggypuss gradually improved, putting on more than half a kilo in weight.

With CP's care and attention, Baggypuss's health improved

And then – at last – he found a new owner.

Vivienne Husband first caught sight of Baggypuss at a branch open day at Val’s house. “He walked into my heart and that was it, I wanted him there and then,” Vivienne says.

In early July, Baggypuss moved into his permanent home with Vivienne. He has thrived in her care, and is now a healthy weight.

“When I look at him sleeping, all curled up, he looks totally content to me,” she adds.