A Tiny 4-Month-Old Kitten Was Covered in Industrial Glue-And His Transformation Is Pure Magic
A tiny kitten is thriving after he was found covered in glue.
In a TikTok posted by the CBC News, the poor four-month-old kitten was brought into the Humane Society of North Texas by a "good Samaritan" back in mid-April, who found him covered in industrial-strength glue.
@cbcnews A passerby found this four-month-old kitten near an industrial area in Fort Worth, Texas in April. A vet with the local humane society told CBC Radio's As It Happens that Elmer is now happy and healthy. #cats#animalrescue#cbcradio
original sound - CBC News - CBC News
"It was covering his head, his ears, his mouth, his nose. It was completely all over his body," Misty Mendes, the rescue group's director of shelter medicine, told the outlet. The team didn't know whether he would survive the night because "it absolutely can be deadly, not only from just the toxin, but I had no idea at that time if he had ingested any."
The director described the ordeal as a "fight against time," especially since the glue around his mouth and nose needed to be removed so he could breathe.
"We were trying to use anything we had," she continued. "We started with Dawn dish soap, [but] it wasn't working very well." Finally, the team found a bottle of [canola] oil and used that to clean him up.
Mendes revealed that it took days to get him finally cleaned off and that the staff "spent six hours intermittently massaging Elmer with the oil, washing him off in warm baths, and syringe feeding him."
"He was shaking," Mendes said. "I think he was probably very close to death because he didn't fight. He didn't meow, he didn't hiss or growl. He was just very, very lethargic, but very tolerant."
Once he was cleaned up, the shelter decided to name him Elmer, in honor of the glue brand, and now "he is amazing." On TikTok, the Elmer brand commented on the video, saying, "So happy to see brave, little Elmer thriving in his new home ."
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CBC News confirmed that Elmer was adopted by Leah Owens, 72, who originally volunteered to foster him.
"We just fell in love with each other. I could tell he loved me, and I knew I loved him," Owens told the outlet. After the ordeal, Elmer is known to be very playful and sweet, and loves to "crawl up in my lap and... put his little paws on my face, such a sweet little kitty."
Related: Kitten's Dramatic Reaction to Getting Her First Shot is Absolutely Hilarious
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This story was originally published May 14, 2026 at 10:51 AM.