Friar McFergus

Friar McFergus is one of those cats you never forget; not only because of his unusual name, but because of the unusual odds he overcame to get it. At only eight weeks old, Friar and his siblings were thrown from a car onto the side of the road. Fortunately, another couple driving behind the vehicle saw everything, and stopped to rescue the kittens. They were brought into the local SPCA where Colleen McNickle and her husband regularly volunteer. The couple offered to foster the kittens until they could be placed in loving homes. “We noticed right away that something was wrong with one of the cats,” said Colleen. “When we looked closer, we realized he had suffered a serious burn, about the size of a silver dollar, on the top of his head. His skull was exposed and he needed emergency surgery.”

According to Colleen, the kitten underwent a delicate procedure to stretch his skin and fur across his head again. Although the surgery was successful, a dime-size area remained permanently bald and the McNickles could not refrain from calling him “Friar.” They also could not resist making their foster kitten an official part of the family. “Friar McFergus made it very clear to us that he would not tolerate being adopted by anyone else," Colleen said. “As we were not fond of the idea of losing him after everything we had been through, we made the decision to permanently adopt him and two of his brothers.” All three cats were given the same second name, McFergus, which is a mixture of their adopted pet parent’s last names.

Colleen told us that “the boys” are constant companions to each other and a joy to be around. “We would not trade our children for anything and I’m grateful for our decision to add them to our family,” said Colleen. “Because we understand that anything unexpected can happen at any time, we made sure that we had VPI pet insurance to keep them healthy and safe.”

Colleen McNickle
VPI Policyholder Since 2010

For more information about VPI, click here.

home >>