She Was Just Diagnosed. Then the Cat Chose Her
He wasn’t her cat. But he knew something was wrong
☕ The Cat Who Knew
Some stories don’t come with a big turning point.
They begin quietly—with a diagnosis. A stillness. A soft chest. And a cat who decides not to leave.
This week’s They Saved Me First story comes from Joyce Garber, who was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in March of 2023. She was living with her brother, his wife, and her teenage niece at the time. And while their home had more than a few cats running around, one in particular started showing up when everything else felt like it was falling away.
He wasn’t her cat.
But that didn’t stop him.
🎧 Listen to this 5-minute moment as Joyce shares how a quiet tabby named Tails started curling up on her chest—right where the cancer was—and never stopped choosing her.
🐈 Meet Tails
Joyce didn’t feel well. She was tired. Out of work. Not doing much. She said it felt like she had the flu for two years.
And then—almost out of nowhere—one of her niece’s tabby cats started curling up on her chest. Not beside her. Not near her. Right on top of the affected side of her body.
“He crawls up on me,” she told me. “Turns upside down. And expects me to hold him like a baby. He’ll nuzzle my face. And he just purrs and purrs and purrs.”
It started within days of her diagnosis.
She hadn’t even really noticed Tails before that—he was one of many cats they had at the time. But suddenly, he kept showing up. Curling into her body. Choosing her.
“He didn’t stay Lizzy’s cat for very long,” she said.
🧡 What Comfort Actually Looked Like
Joyce wasn’t feeling great. She was on the couch a lot, trying to rest. And Tails became a quiet presence in that stillness.
She didn’t try to make sense of it right away. “At first I was just thinking, oh, here’s a cuddly cat. This is nice. I like this.”
But it wasn’t random.
He kept showing up. Always on the same spot. Always staying longer.
Joyce told me she believes he knew something was wrong. That he came over to offer comfort. Healing. Wordless support. She said, “He doesn’t lay anywhere else except for right here. And this is the affected breast.”
And beyond that?
She talks to him now. All the time.
“It’s me and him now,” she said. “So we talk a lot.”
🌿 Lessons With Fur On Them
🐾 1. Let yourself receive the comfort you didn’t ask for.
Lesson: Joyce didn’t ask for a cat to lie on her chest after her diagnosis. But Tails came anyway. Sometimes healing begins when we simply let someone show up.
Action Step: What comfort have you been pushing away? What would happen if you let yourself soften into it?
🐱 2. Pay attention to where your cat goes—especially when you're still.
Lesson: Joyce noticed that Tails always chose the same side of her body to rest on. That’s not random. Animals are intuitive, and they often tell us things with their bodies that we don’t catch with our minds.
Action Step: Next time your cat snuggles in or stares at you—don’t brush it off. Ask: what are they trying to say?
🧘♂️ 3. Stillness makes space for connection.
Lesson: Tails didn’t start curling up beside Joyce when she was busy. It was when she was resting. Quiet. Slowed down.
Action Step: Block off 10 minutes today to just be still with your cat. No agenda. No scrolling. Just see what they do.
🐾 Something to Think About
Joyce believed she was just watching TV.
Tails believed she needed him.
And maybe they were both right.
This week, I’m thinking about this:
What would change if I paid more attention to the small ways my cats are already showing up for me—without asking for anything in return?
Because sometimes healing doesn’t look like medicine or breakthroughs or clarity.
Sometimes it just looks like presence.
A purr.
A warm weight on your chest.
And a cat who decided… you’re not doing this alone.
🎧 Want to Hear Joyce and Tails’ Full Story?
👉 Click here to listen to the full episode or search Golden Whiskers wherever you get your podcasts.
Thanks for being here,
Scott 🐾
Founder, Golden Whiskers
Good morning Scott. It was so much fun to wake up to this!!