Perfect match: North Carolina woman, 101, adopts 19-year-old cat

HICKORY, N.C. — This pairing of senior citizens should give you some pause. Or more properly, some paws.

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Gus, a 19-year-old cat, found a new home as he was adopted last month by a 101-year old North Carolina woman named Penny.

“Our hearts are full with this beautiful adoption,” the Humane Society of Catawba County wrote on Facebook.

Jane Bowers, the Humane Society of Catawba County’s executive director, told Fox News that Gus had been surrendered to the shelter in September when his previous owner no longer could take care of him.

“His owner was heartbroken,” Bowers told Newsweek. “Obviously, we would take good care of Gus, but living in a shelter is not ideal, especially at his age.”

A few weeks later, Penny’s family expressed interest in Gus, since the woman’s previous cat had recently died, the network reported.

“The adopter’s family contacted us asking to adopt a senior cat for their mother,” Bower told Newsweek. “She had recently lost her cat and although they had given her a stuffed cat, she wasn’t happy because it didn’t purr.”

Since Gus is about 133 years old in cat years, Bowers was leery at first.

“We were cautious because of the age of all parties but the family said they were willing to care for the cat on behalf of their mother,” Bowers told the magazine.

But Gus turned out to be a perfect fit.

Bower described the adoption as a “match made in heaven,” with Gus settling into his new home.

“(He has) made himself at home and (is) eating like a horse,” Bowers told Newsweek.

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