Approximately 3.2 million cats enter U.S. animal shelters nationwide every year, of which about 1.6 million are adopted. By adopting, people are providing these majestic animals with the second chance they deserve. After all, many of them have been rescued from terrible circumstances such as cruelty, neglect, and abandonment, or their owners were simply no longer able to look after them.

One of the places that celebrate pets finding their new homes is the subreddit r/BeforeNAfterAdoption. There, owners share their heartwarming stories, often providing pictures of their new family members as well. Taken before and after their adoption, these images accentuate the amazing difference a loving family can make for an abandoned or mistreated animal.

Here are some of the cats featured on the subreddit.

#1 This Is Barley! My Son And I Found Her By The Road. She Had Been Abandoned. So Thin… Covered In Fleas. The Last Photo Was 3 Months After We Found Her. She’s Simply The Sweetest Little Cat Ever

Image credits: reddit.com

#2 Phoenix Was Rescued From The Streets And Was Covered In Hot Tar. Little Over A Month Later, He Looks Amazing, He Loves Humans And Is Ready To Enter A Loving Home ?

Image credits: reddit.com

#3 Its Been A Year 🙂

Image credits: Ilaria-condizionata

#4 Took A Chance, And Decided To Rehabilitate This Boy Instead Of Letting Him Be Put Down. One Of The Best Decisions Of My Life

Image credits: LoiteringLizard

#5 Toby And Quinton Were Rescued Together And Adopted As A Bonded Pair. Toby Has Ehlers Danlos Syndrome And Quinton Was Toothless. They Became Brave And Happy . Quinton Passed Away Recently, I’m So Glad We Had Him For The Time We Did And He Passed Knowing We Would Keep His Best Friend Safe

Image credits: iwanttoseeyourcats

#6 I’m So Happy For Her Progress

Image credits: Nightshark13

#7 Our Kitty Was Already An Adult In The Photo On The Left. A 6 Month Glow Up

Image credits: monkeyface195

#8 After 6 Months Spent In A Shelter, They Thought He Would Never Get Adopted Due To Him Having Fiv. Now He’s Been My Bud For Over A Year And Living His Best Life

Image credits: wot_are_frogs_

#9 Before And After. What A Transformation! ❤

Image credits: Refractionismydad

#10 The Week I Rescued Him And 4 Months Later. He’s A Terrible Office Assistant

Image credits: imgur.com

#11 My James Won’t Ever Be Cold Again

Image credits: cocodoor

#12 Frank At A Couple Weeks vs. Almost A Year, Also Threw In The Christmas Photo With His Brother Teddy

Image credits: LeighAndTeddy

#13 Bones Had Some Issues With Ringworm When We First Found Him (~8 Weeks), But He’s All Better Now (2 Years)!

Image credits: reddit.com

#14 8 Years Ago Today The Triplets Were Born. From Bottle Feeding Every 3 Hours, To Beautiful Lazy Babies. Bob, Possum, And Arwyn Made Me The Crazy Cat Lady I Am Today

Image credits: reddit.com

#15 This Is River. At The Shelter, He Was Shaved As His Fur Was Extremely Matted And Riddled With Flees. He Had Coccidia And Conjunctivitis. After Some Medicine And Tlc, He’s Doing Amazing! He’s The Most Loving And Affectionate Kitty Ever, Always Snuggling Up And Kissing Me! I’ve Had Him For 4 Months

Image credits: reddit.com

#16 A Little Love Goes A Long Way

Image credits: reddit.com

#17 10 Year Old Girl Neglected By Previous Owners. Took A While To Come Out Of Her Shell, She’s The Sweetest Old Gal

Image credits: reddit.com

#18 Our Sweet Cousteau! From A Scrawny Street Kitty In New Orleans To A Prince Living In Paris ♥️

Image credits: reddit.com

#19 Before And After Fostering. Roadrunner On The Day I Got Him From The Shelter, And On The Day He Went To His New Home

Image credits: reddit.com

#20 This Is My Best Friend Lcdr Ryker. I Was Told You All Like These Kind Of Stories

Image credits: NinjaonHiatus

#21 After Our Old Cat Passed Away We Swore We’d Never Have Another Animal, It Was Too Hard. 8 Months Later We Found This Guy In A Car Engine. Butters Has Made Us Love Again!

Image credits: gordo8990

#22 Two Months Of Love Changed Mr. Biscuits

Image credits: CassieL24

#23 A Local Vet Treated This Rescued Stray From A Bad Case Of Fungus/Ringworm Few Months Ago. Look At Her Now

Image credits: dela_angelo

#24 From Being Found In Our Woodshed Two Years Ago With Wounds The Vet Believes Was From A Coyote , To Yesterday A Happy Healthy House Kitty. Meet Chip!

Image credits: elahrairah-

#25 Before And After In Three Months. When I Found Her, I Spent Almost Three Days In A Row Without Sleeping. She Was Very Ill. Now She Is Ok. And Her Name Is Eve

Image credits: catrescueeveryday

#26 What A Foster Home Can Do For A Sick Cat…now Misza Is Enjoying His Cat Retirement After Being A Neglected Feral For 15 Years

Image credits: Disastrous_Aside_831

#27 My Neglected Flea-Ridden Baby As She Was Found And Just A Few Days Later After We Brought Her Home. Daisy Has Quite Literally Bloomed In Such A Short Amount Of Time!

Image credits: cmdr_beth

#28 I Adopted Zeuss When He Was 6 Months Old, And That’s The Best Decision That I Have Ever Made

Image credits: gapssong0506

#29 So Much Healthier!! ♥️♥️♥️

Image credits: ladypanda28

#30 Jerry, Found In A Box With His Siblings, Covered In Oil And Fleas At A Couple Of Weeks Old. Now, At 11 Weeks, Healthy And So Lazy. We Fostered All Four Siblings And Adopted Him Ourselves

Image credits: altnerdluser

#31 When We Got Hilda She Was Very Underweight After Having Recently Given Birth; Somewhere In The Last 6 Months She Turned Into A Long Haired Beauty Queen!

Image credits: reddit.com

#32 Two Months Ago I Found Him Mangled, Probably Had Been Run Over, And Almost Dead Due To Dehydration. Vets Had To Amputate One Of His Front Legs And Tail. Today We Finally Took The Cone Of Shame Off And Let Him Chill With Us On The Bed

Image credits: reddit.com

#33 We Adopted This Little Guy After He Was Found With A Crushed Leg, Leg Was Repaired With Three Nails And He Is In Perfect Condition Now. He’s The Best 🙂 Meet Theo!

Image credits: reddit.com

#34 10 Years Difference: Fat, Happy, And Loved To Bits

Image credits: reddit.com

#35 Our Little Teo When He Was Found Abandoned In A Dumpster In Greece To Being Cuddly And Sleeping In Sweden

Image credits: reddit.com

#36 The Difference A Year Makes… From Living In An Alley In -20°c (-4°f) Weather, To Queen Of The Household. Meet Rosie

Image credits: reddit.com

#37 Found This Little Lady Crying In A Parking Lot With Fleas And A Badly Broken Leg. Here She Is 3 Months And 2 Surgeries Later

Image credits: reddit.com

#38 Abe Just Needed The Stability Of A Forever Home For His Fur Coat To Fluff Out

Image credits: reddit.com

#39 Saved This Purrito From A Street Gutter, She Was Tiny And Had A Respiratory Infection. 7 Months Later She’s A Beautiful Lady

Image credits: reddit.com

#40 My Cat Ruben Just Passed His 2 Year Adoptaversary. This Is The Day I Brought Him Home Versus This Month!

Image credits: fosterpetsofsac

#41 My Mom Is A Realtor. She Went To Show An Empty House And Found That The Previous Owners Had Left Something Behind. After Checking With The Listing Agent And Finding Out That The Person Who Had Loved Her Was Deceased, She Went Back And Brought Her Home

Image credits: desertroserobin

#42 Found This Girl In November 2019. She Walked Right Up To The Door Of My Job. I Posted On Social Media Seeing If Anyone Would Claim Her, But Someone Said She Looked Like A Stray That Hung Around The Dumpster Outside His Job. I Named Her Hops After The Restaurant. She’s Now Chunky And Happy

Image credits: soccermom118

#43 Found Him Sleeping Under A Parked Car. Now He Sleeps In My Bed Every Night

Image credits: nalgasaqui

#44 Found The Triplets On Mother’s Day 9 Years Ago

Image credits: crazycatmom5

#45 Update: I Posted The Two Left Pictures Several Months Ago & Many People Commented On How Much Floof My Kitty Acquired In 4 Months. I’ve Had Her For Over A Year Now & She Is Fluffier Than Ever!

Image credits: Pengado

#46 Ran In Front Of My Sister’s Car And Wouldn’t Move Until She Picked Him Up. 2 Years Later And He Became A Giant Floof

Image credits: apancoast

#47 I Found Him In A Parking Garage, All Matted And Flea-Ridden. Here He Is 9 Months Later

Image credits: DerShams

#48 Rey When I Found Her On The Street And At 1 Year Old. Good Job, Baby Girl!

Image credits: HawkGuy1126

#49 Jo Was Adopted 3 Months Ago. I Hardly Recognize Her In Earlier Pictures, And I Can’t Believe How Fluffy She’s Gotten

Image credits: migratingcocos

#50 Last Of His Litter With An Upper Respiratory Infection And All Grown Up, Our House Panther

Image credits: mkoso65

#51 From A Dirty 3 Week Old Kitten To An 11 Month Old Sexy Boi, Meet Jack!

Image credits: secretly_a_raptor

#52 4 1/2 Months Old Mochi. He Fought Off The Shelter Employees But Snuggled Into My Chest When I First Held Him And Refuses To Leave My Side

Image credits: Zazypants

#53 5 Months Of Hard Work And Patience Have LED To This Moment. Happy Adoption Day, Habanero!

Image credits: CHlMlCHANGAS

#54 Not Really An Adoption Since She Showed Up At Our Front Door Crying To Be Let In! Meet Ammut! ~8 Weeks To 1 Year!

Image credits: MeerkatBrat

#55 Jax Was Found As A Very Feral Kitten. She Would Bite And Hiss At Anyone Who Tried To Touch Her. Now, Three Weeks Later, She Screams For Food And Will Roll Over Onto Her Back To Ask For Pets

Image credits: kerrykaroline

#56 Today Is Db’s 5 Year Adoptiversary. He’s Gone From A Terrified Loner, Who’d Been In A Shelter For Six Months, To A Loud, Affectionate And Still Playful Old Pirate

Image credits: Bortron86

#57 Mr. Smith At The Shelter Compared To His 5th Birthday/2 Year Adoptiversary Party Yesterday

Image credits: ashleymrsmith

#58 Before And After 30 Days. I Took A New Born Kitten At Home And Saved Her From Euthanasia

Image credits: catrescueeveryday

#59 First Day Of Adoption vs. 4 Month Being In Her New Home

Image credits: boozleloozle

#60 Ulysse Is A Special Needs Senior That I Am Fostering. He Had Been In The Shelter Since January. If You Can’t Adopt, Foster!

Image credits: imgur.com

#61 Got My Feral Kittens At 4 Weeks Old And Now They’re All Grown Up ?

Image credits: auroralucero

#62 I Was Told That You Guys Would Like This. My Cat Before When He Was First Seeing Me And Now. I Love Him

Image credits: Liv_Kato

#63 2 Years Ago Today I Walked Into A Petsmart And Met A Cat Named Sonny Who No One Would Adopt Because He Was 13 Years Old, Covered In Fleas, Underweight, And Had A Mouth Full Of Rotten Teeth That Had To Be Removed. He Came Home With Me That Night And It Was The Best Decision I’ve Ever Made

Image credits: reddit.com

#64 Our Newest 5yo Family Member – We Thought He Was A Short-Haired Cat, But It Turns Out He’s A True Floof

Image credits: reddit.com

#65 Found This Girl In Need While In Greece, Now She Is Our Chunky Mischief Maker

Image credits: reddit.com

#66 I Found This Kitten Dumped In The Middle Of A Road Too Weak And Hungry To Get To Safety. The Photo On The Right Is What 6 Days Of Cuddles By The Fireplace, Lots Of Food And A Cosy Bed Can Do ☺️

Image credits: reddit.com

#67 My Coworker’s Rescue After 6 Months

Image credits: reddit.com

#68 Wally Update Pt.2. He Chonkin’ Up Nicely

Image credits: reddit.com

#69 Little Selina Turned Up In My Garden With An Open Wound On Her Back, Nearly Starving To Death. She Adopted Me, Vet Fixed Her And Now (Seven Years Later) We’ve Both Become Chonkers So We’re Both On A Diet – Too Many Treats!! I Love Her So Much

Image credits: reddit.com

#70 We Found Buccaneer On Craigslist, He’s Missing An Eye Due To A Rooster Pecking It Out, And His Whiskers Had Been Cut. Picture On Left From November 2019 And Picture On The Right Is From January 2020

Image credits: reddit.com

#71 This Is Fefa. We Found Her Almost Blinded With Over 200 Fleas (After Washing)

Image credits: reddit.com

#72 A Little Bit Stressed And Dishevelled At The Rspca In 2018, vs. At Home With Me In 2020

Image credits: reddit.com

#73 From 9 Weeks To 9 Months, Meet Saffron!

Image credits: reddit.com

#74 When I Adopted Pauli (18 Years Old) As A Hospice Care Case In 2018, They Told Me He Wouldn’t Live More Than A Few Months. How Wrong They Were!

Image credits: reddit.com

#75 One Year Post Adoption

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#76 A Year Ago (Left) Versus Now (Right) – The Difference A Year Of Love Makes!

Image credits: reddit.com

#77 This Is Arnold! We Adopted Him 3 Weeks Ago, And He’s Had An Amazing Transformation. I’ve Never Met A Cat With So Much Moxie

Image credits: reddit.com

#78 I Found This Kitten, Her Mother And Her Three Sisters On The Street Under A Bush

Image credits: reddit.com

#79 Happy Gotcha Day To This Lil Guy. Ollie On The Day We Adopted Him vs. Today, 2 Months Later. Smol With A Huge Heart

Image credits: reddit.com

#80 Recently Rescued And Adopted A Tripod Kitten. I Want Everyone To Meet This Little Fighter – Mitzi!

Image credits: reddit.com

#81 When I Got Sweet T She Couldn’t Walk, Meow, Eat Or Breathe Well. She Had A Bulging Eye And Severe Constipation. She Weighed 1lb At 3 Months Old (1/3 The Size She Should Be). After Months Of Fighting And Almost Dying Several Times, She Turned A Corner And Now Lives Happily Ever After With Her Sister

Image credits: reddit.com

#82 Timón And Pumbaa Born On May 10, 2015, Celebrating 5 Years Of Being Super Spoiled! A Stray Gave Birth In A Neighbour’s Backyard And We Found Them Under The BBQ With Infected Eyes. Couldn’t Bear To Leave Them!

Image credits: reddit.com

#83 From Scaredy Cat To Sofa Cat

Image credits: reddit.com

#84 My Cat Was In A Shelter With A 84% Kill Rate, & Was Denied Transport To A No-Kill Rescue Bc He Was “Too Ugly”. He Was So Sad And Just Wanted Love. His Story Was Posted To Fb & He Was Saved! I Adopted Him A Month Later (In 2018). He Is So Loving And Such A Sweetheart. Every Life Is Worth Saving!!

Image credits: reddit.com

#85 She Survived Alone Outside All Winter At -30°c. The Tips Of Her Ears Had Frozen Bites. Now She’s Warm And Happy!

Image credits: reddit.com

#86 1 Year Ago On The Left When I First Picked Them Up, And Then Today On The Right. 1 Whole Year As Of Today With These Foster Fails

Image credits: reddit.com

#87 Was Told To Post Here As Well

Image credits: Tiffix

#88 They Gave Her Away On Facebook. After A Flea Bath, Eye Drops And Antibiotics, Horchata Is Good As New!

Image credits: CaptainE0

#89 We Found Her On 4 Of October And This Is Her Now

Image credits: Flostyles

#90 From A Skinny Outside Stray To An Indoor Couch Hog, This 10 Year Old Cat Was Found By Us And Adopted By My Parents Who Are Giving Her A Well Deserved Retirement. They Named Her Wheezy After The Respiratory Infection She Had When We Found Her In April

Image credits: busiqq

#91 It’s Amazing The Difference Some Tlc And 24 Hours Can Make!

Image credits: reddit.com

#92 Apollo Has Given Us Just As Much As We Have Been Able To Give Him

Image credits: reddit.com

#93 The Difference 6 Months Can Make

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#94 We Fostered Jester After Her Leg Amputation At 6 Weeks Old. She Was Found With Her Leg And Shoulder Shattered And Was Terrified Of Everything. Now Her Incision Has Healed, She’s Staying Forever, And She’s The Happiest Little Tripawd

Image credits: reddit.com

#95 Rescued From The Streets Of Cairo At 3 Weeks, Ashes Was An Underweight Orphan Who Was Littered With Infections And Didn’t Know How To Groom Himself. 2 Months Later In Toronto, He’s Happy, Healthy, And Very Handsome!

Image credits: reddit.com

#96 8 Year Old Tuna Slept Behind The Toilet For A Week Because She Was So Scared. Now, Three Weeks Later, She Owns The Place

Image credits: reddit.com

#97 This Is My Kitten, Bubbles. My Brother Rescued Him From An Alley Way Back In August 2019. He’s Four Months Old And Looking Real Healthy The Vet Says!

Image credits: reddit.com

#98 From A Scared And Shy Girl. To A Happy, Loving, Belly Exposing Girl. After Almost Three Years She’s Finally Trusting Me Enough To Lay Down In My Lap. It’s One Of The Best Feelings. I Love Her So Much

Image credits: reddit.com

#99 Her Last Owners Abandoned Her Outside In The Middle Of Winter As A Baby. We’re Going To Give Her The Best Life!

Image credits: reddit.com

#100 From Terrified Cat Who Hid For Over A Month After We Got Her, To Cuddly Kitty Who Has No Concept Of Personal Space. We Still Have A Long Ways To Go, But She’s Getting There, Slowly But Surely!

Image credits: reddit.com

#101 In 2007, Molly Was Rescued From A Snowbank. His Fur Had Been Shaved Off And He Had A Massive Infection On His Chest Wall. He Was So Severely Malnourished , His Eyes Were A Bright Orange. Today He Is Spoiled Rotten, Full Of Sass And Rules The Roost With A Velvet Paw!

Image credits: reddit.com

#102 This Is Runa. I Found Her Crying Outside A Pizza Shop In The Sleet. Look At Her Now! Fat, Happy And Proud 3 Months Later

Image credits: reddit.com

#103 Odin The Day I Found Him In A Trash Bin Behind A Walgreens And Odin 5 Years Later. The Bathroom Is Still He Favorite Place To Hangout

Image credits: reddit.com

#104 Found This Baby Boy At The Side Walk, Dehydrated, Unconscious And With Severe Eye Infection. Long Story Short, A Little Love And Care Could Transform Anyone. 3 Week Into Rescue And This Little Fella Couldn’t Stop Loving Me

Image credits: reddit.com

#105 This Boy Was Next On The Euthanize List At The Shelter Because He Has Fiv, Only Had A Couple Months To Live, Was Severely Underweight, And Afraid Of Humans. Two Years Later He’s Extremely Healthy, Chubby, And Sleeps On My Chest Every Night!

Image credits: reddit.com

#106 Tiny, Covered In Fleas, And Very Feral. Now, Ivy Is A Lovable Destroyer Of Toys And

Image credits: reddit.com

#107 Lucifer In Our Yard In Early October And Then Yesterday Morning In Our Room. Lil Dude Is Healed From Flea Allergy Wounds, Is Growing In A Healthy Coat, Has Gone From Skittish To Super Talkative, And Is The Love Of Our Lives ??

Image credits: reddit.com

#108 3 Months After Adoption❤️

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#109 We’ve Had Chili For 2 Years, Looking Forward To Many More!

Image credits: reddit.com

#110 Lux Was Rescued From A Hoarder’s House. She Was Covered In Fleas, Severely Underweight And Stank Of Piss. Three Years Later The Glow Up Is Real

Image credits: reddit.com

#111 A Not Very Happy Little Man Before Adoption To The Happiest Little Fluff

Image credits: reddit.com

#112 What 6 Weeks In Foster Care Does For A Skinny, Crusty, Poopy Kitten. I Love Sending Happy, Healthy Kittens To Their Forever Homes

Image credits: halfwaycrate

#113 Skinny Minnie To Chunky Monkey In A Year

Image credits: JudyBolton

#114 From A Scared Stray Cat With 3 Newborn Kittens (Plus 4 Adopted Ones) To This Confident Chonker Enjoying Her New Forever Home

Image credits: reddit.com

#115 Meet Luke. The Day We Met vs. Six Months Later

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#116 3 Years Ago Today My Husband And I Ran Up To The Grocery Store To Grab A Few Last Minute Items. This Little Guy Was Sitting Outside Eating Popeye’s Chicken

Image credits: reddit.com

#117 1 Year Later…

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#118 He Went From Living On The Streets On His Own As A Two Month Old Kitten, To When We Picked Him Up The Day He Was Going To Be Euthanized To Now, A Sassy Boy Who Loves Cuddles

Image credits: reddit.com

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