After White Coat Waste succeeded in shutting down a kitten experimentation lab at the University of California, Davis—along with its decades-old breeding colony—the cats who remained needed forever homes. Anthony Bellotti, the organization’s founder and president, knew right away that he wanted to give one of them a safe place to land.
“Once our group managed to close the facility, I was set on adopting one of the cats myself,” Bellotti explained. “One of my own cats, Petite, had recently passed away, and I found myself at a crossroads. But as the old saying goes, ‘You don’t pick the cat—they pick you.’”
When Bellotti visited the rescued cats, he was taken with all of them. But one, in particular, connected with him almost instantly. She was a delicate orange tabby who had spent her entire life—12 years and 10 months—inside the laboratory. At times, she had even been used in experiments. By the time she was released, she was underweight, trembling with nerves, and too frightened to eat. Her existence up to that point had been nothing but survival. And yet, when she met Bellotti, something shifted.
For more than a decade, she hadn’t even been given the dignity of a name—only the sterile label #11-245, a number tattooed into both of her ears. Bellotti knew she deserved far more than that. He gave her her first real name: Marigold.
“Her coloring reminded me of marigold petals, so it felt right,” he said.
It took only a few months for Marigold to begin blossoming in her new environment. She learned her name quickly, grew comfortable with her surroundings, and began to thrive in ways no one had imagined possible after such a bleak beginning.
“Marigold is thriving,” Bellotti shared happily. “She’s healthy, she’s gained back all the weight she lost, and now she’s completely food-obsessed—always asking for snacks! We just marked her 13th birthday, the very first one she’s ever celebrated outside of a laboratory. Our family even threw her a little party, complete with her very first KitNipBox.”
Today, Marigold delights in the little things—playing with catnip toys, kneading biscuits, and basking in the love of a real family. Her painful days in the lab are behind her, replaced with comfort, joy, and the unconditional love of a forever home. For the first time in her life, she isn’t just a number. She is Marigold—cherished, safe, and truly free.