A tiny kitten with an injured back had one problem: the wheelchairs available at his animal shelter were too big for him. The solution came from an unexpected place – toy cars, pieces of cardboard and wooden rulers.Named Gelato, the kitten was brought to Cincinnati Animal Care in Ohio after being found as a stray with an injury to his lower spine that left him unable to use his hind legs. When conventional wheelchairs proved unsuitable for his tiny frame, shelter staff decided to improvise. Their creation, made using Hot Wheels cars and wooden rulers, helped the little kitten move around.The makeshift wheelchair soon attracted attention online, with photographs of Gelato capturing the hearts of people well beyond the shelter. Now, nearly two months after his story first gained attention, Gelato has found a home with someone who already understands what it means to care for cats with special needs.According to The Washington Post, 28-year-old tattoo artist Hope Hollandsworth adopted Gelato on October 12, 2026, after seeing his photograph and feeling drawn to him.“He was just so cute,” Hollandsworth said.
How a pair of toy cars helped Gelato move
Gelato’s story began when Sayre Morgan spotted a tiny stray kitten and a group of other kittens near a road in Cincinnati. He took the kittens to an animal shelter, where an X-ray revealed that Gelato had an injury to his lower back. He could not stand or walk normally and dragged his hind legs when he tried to move.Despite his condition, the kitten showed interest in playing with toys and interacting with other cats. But there was a practical challenge: he weighed just over a pound and stood around four inches tall, making the shelter’s existing wheelchairs too large for him.Mallory Smith, a veterinary assistant lead at Cincinnati Animal Care who was fostering Gelato, decided to make a smaller one herself.In July, Smith began building a wheelchair using cardboard packaging. She fashioned the material into a frame and attached two toy ambulance cars from a collection of Hot Wheels vehicles to serve as wheels.The first attempt did not last long. When Gelato tried moving around, the cardboard frame fell apart.Smith then bought four wooden rulers, each costing 99 cents, and attached them to the sides of the frame using electrical tape, duct tape and zip ties. The sturdier design worked, allowing Gelato to move around with the support of the small wheelchair.Smith affectionately called the contraption “The Lion’s Throne”.“It was really cute to get to see him kind of have that autonomy,” she told The Washington Post in August, describing the joy of watching the kitten move more independently.The little wheelchair was not a permanent solution, but it gave Gelato a way to explore his surroundings while his caregivers worked on his recovery.
Gelato is continuing therapy to improve his mobility.
From a makeshift wheelchair to a new home
Gelato’s story drew widespread attention after Cincinnati Animal Care shared his photograph on social media in July. The image showed the tiny kitten strapped into his unusual wheelchair, with toy cars serving as its wheels.As the photograph circulated online, people began offering help, including assistance with making a sturdier wheelchair. Smith worked with a friend who was an engineer to develop a 3D-printed version that could be adjusted as Gelato grew.The kitten also continued his daily physical therapy. Smith moved his legs to help build strength and mobility, and his condition gradually improved. At one point, he was able to stand without the wheelchair’s assistance, although his long-term ability to walk independently remained uncertain.By the time he was adopted, Gelato had moved on from the original toy-car contraption to a more stable, traditional wheelchair.For Hollandsworth, the kitten’s special needs were not a reason to look elsewhere. She already had two cats, Bread Crumb and Sprinkles, who have limited use of their hind legs because of spinal injuries. She hoped Gelato would become another companion for them.After meeting him at the shelter on Monday afternoon, Hollandsworth took him home. The kitten reportedly spent his first night there sleeping in her arms.
His new owner says she will love him regardless of whether he learns to walk independently.
“Either way he’ll be perfect to me”
Gelato’s recovery is still a work in progress. He will continue therapy in the hope that he can regain the use of his hind legs. His adoption, however, means he now has a permanent home where his needs can be understood and accommodated.Hollandsworth knows that recovery may not follow a predictable course. Having already cared for two cats with mobility challenges, she is familiar with the patience and attention that special-needs animals can require.“Either way he’ll be perfect to me,” she said.Gelato’s story began with an injury that left him unable to walk normally. A shelter worker’s resourcefulness gave him a way to move, a photograph brought him to the attention of potential adopters, and a new family has given him a place to call home.His tiny wheelchair may have been made from everyday objects, but it served a larger purpose: helping a vulnerable animal explore the world around him while he waited for his next chapter to begin.
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