We really don’t believe anyone can show us a cat who’s sweeter with people than our Sam. Even if you’ve never met him before, go into his suite and sit down, and it’s likely that the first cat to greet you will be our fluffy boy.

He’ll wander in and out of your lap, rubbing his head on your pen, your shoes, your hand—whatever’s in reach. If he really likes you and is especially excited to see you, he’ll start drooling and do his best to sit on your head. Apparently, this is Sam’s form of a compliment.

Sam was surrendered to a shelter by a previous owner because he “wasn’t good with other pets.”While he’s been with us, we have occasionally seen him swat another cat, and he can have a bit of an edge with them, but we have other felines who are far worse in that vein. With the humans around him, Sam is as gentle as he is sweet-natured.

So what’s the deal? If Sam is so terrific (and you really have to meet him to appreciate how nice he is), why hasn’t someone taken him home by now?

Sam, it turns out, is one of our Special Needs crew. He has a condition called atopy, or environmental allergies. We had been treating him for these with an immunosuppressant drug, and it was working beautifully—right up until the point where poor Sam developed an adverse reaction to the drug. Of course, we discontinued it immediately. At this point, we’re giving him allergy shots, with moderate success. He has these vaccinations twice a week, but, as he does increasingly well, the hope is to decrease their frequency to once per month or so.

In addition, Sam has feline herpes. This isn’t that uncommon among the cats who pass through our doors, and it’s the cause of Sam’s chronically runny eyes. The treatment for his eyes involves oral antiviral drops, an antiviral drug, and a tear stimulant, all administered twice daily. Fortunately for us, Sam is usually far more cooperative than other cats about taking his meds.

We’re thankful for the advances in feline medicine that have made possible a number of good treatments for our boy. However, Sam’s medical issues require daily attention and a lot of money, and those are two serious strikes against his being adopted.

We remain hopeful that someone with a big heart and sufficient resources will fall in love with Sam and provide him with a forever home. Until that happens, however, we’re asking you to help us help our deserving boy. If you’re looking to sponsor one of our felines, won’t you consider Sam?