Terrance is a big, sweet tuxedo boy with a heart of gold. He came to Tabby’s Place in spring 2011 from a rescue group in New York. This 7-year-old kitty (as of summer 2011) is all man-cat, but in a debonair, old Hollywood sort of way – very elegant, very confident, and very dignified … until you pet him, that is. Then, Terrance reverts to mooshy-cat mode and butts his head into your hand.

With his handsome looks and winning personality, Terrance might not at first seem like a candidate for our Special Needs crew, but inside our beautiful boy lurks that infamous kitty condition: FIV (feline immunodeficiency virus).

FIV suppresses a cat’s immune system, which means that Terrance is a bit more susceptible than the average cat to colds and other illnesses. Cats with FIV can live the same long, healthy lives that uninfected cats do, but it’s important that we help Terrance along the way, just in case.

We keep our FIV+ suite extra clean and provide our cats with a high-quality diet to support their immune systems. Terrance also gets more frequent vet checkups so that we can keep close tabs on his health. So far Terrance has been healthy, with only a cracked tooth to take care of, and we’re doing our part to keep him that way.

Before Terrance came to live at Tabby’s Place, he was in a foster home with 20 other cats and got along with them swimmingly. It’s been the same here – Terrance is friend to human and feline alike, and he loves to have companionship.

We know that Terrance’s his forever family may be a little harder to find, given his FIV+ status, but we’re hopeful he will find them nonetheless. In the meantime, you can be a part of Terrance’s Tabby’s Place family and help support him along the way.