It was a cold evening on December 12 in Campbell County, Virginia. Snow had been falling for hours, leaving a thick 14-inch blanket across the ground. For most people, it was just another winter storm. But for 12 tiny cats, it was a fight for their lives.
Volunteers tucked the kittens under their shirts, using their body heat and warm water bottles to slowly bring the babies back to life. Minutes passed, and then—they felt it. Little movements. Signs of life.
A woman was driving when something odd caught her eye — a metal crate sticking out of a snowbank. There were no homes nearby, nothing that made sense for a crate to be there. Curious and concerned, she pulled over and walked through the snow.
Inside the crate were six cats, shivering from the cold. Even worse, four tiny kittens were lying outside the crate, right in the snow. They looked frozen and helpless.
When Melissa Labryer, an animal control officer, arrived at the scene, she immediately spotted the babies, who appeared to be 5 or 6 weeks old, lying lifeless in the white powder. Labryer quickly moved all the freezing cats into dry carriers and headed to the nearest animal shelter.
On the way, Melissa made an urgent call to a shelter volunteer:
"I need help! I have frozen cats, and I need volunteers at the shelter—now!"
Barbe Shackelford, director of Friends of Campbell County Animal Control (FOCCAC), said that once the message got out, volunteers quickly took action and sent out a call for help in their volunteer chat group.
Within minutes, people showed up — towels in hand, ready to do whatever they could. The team worked quickly to dry the cats, but they were especially worried about the four tiny kittens. Each one weighed less than a pound, and they were soaked and ice-cold. They weren’t even moving.
Thanks to the quick action of the animal control officer and the volunteers, the abandoned cats were soon dry and grooming themselves as if nothing had happened.
They called them “The Frozen 12.”
One of them has already been adopted. Three more — Frenchie, Ring, and Swan — are ready for their forever homes.
As for the four kittens found out in the snow, their journey isn’t over yet. They’re eating and getting stronger, but one tiny black kitten named Kristof is still fragile. His big, soulful eyes show just how much he’s been through. He’ll need extra care and love before he’s truly out of the woods.
Soon, the rest of the kittens will also be ready for adoption. Until then, they’re being kept warm, fed, and loved—just as they should be.