"We're blessed to be in a great position with amazing jobs and careers to be able to help like this"

VACAVILLE, CA (MPG) - Tiffany and Thomas Hanes are feral foster parents and their home is set up to help homeless cats have a safe shelter until they can get back on their four feet. They are one of 35 foster homes for the Solano Kitten Network and have volunteered for several years.

Thomas is proof kitty work isn't just for women. This robust guy served 20 years in the United States Air Force working as a hydraulic mechanic, retiring as a Tech Sergeant E6. Last year, he learned to tube feed a failing kitten that fit in the palm of his hand.

"I was really nervous when we first started to tube feed but the more I did it, it wasn't so nerve-wracking," he said. Due to Tiffany being a Vet Tech at Vaca Valley Veterinary, the couple handle the most critical and consider their home a “Kitten ICU”. Their 2-story Vacaville home is filled with upscale furniture and decor with walls adorned with pictures of cats.

One large frame is filled with a tiny orange-striped tabby that has a slight malformed nose due to a life-threatening bacterial infection that was eating away at its skin. This was also the first feline that Thomas heavily assisted with.

"There are lots of stresses with being a Feral Foster Home," Tiffany explained. This particular kitten required holding the body round the clock and Thomas got up in the middle of the night to feed it special formula through a minuscule tube through the kitten's nose.

This kitten was such a "fighter," they said and why they did the courageous steps to keep trying to save the little life, despite a couple times Tiffany broke down and cried that she couldn't do it anymore. But, then she'd start another day and the baby would still be alive.

If it weren't for Dr. Harpinderjit Jassar, Tiffany's boss, they said they "definitely couldn't have saved him". They kept "McNugget" as part of their family which includes two teen sons.

"He has the most amazing personality," Thomas said. "He actually plays fetch with us."

Their kitchen is stocked with special kitten formula and miniature baby bottles along with Gerber Baby Food in chicken or turkey, a staple for abandoned babies.

"We're blessed to be in a great position with amazing jobs and careers to be able to help like this," he said.