His weight hovering dangerously low, he was literally starving. Yet something about him melted the hearts of Waiheke Island couple Jim and Clare McGibbon.
"He was so small and scrawny," says Jim. "The bones were sticking out of his back so much we were afraid to stroke him, but we felt protective towards him and thought we could offer him a better life.
"We couldn't resist him, so we took him home. It's the first time we've fallen hook, line and sinker for a cat."
He is talking about Kiefer, a small black cat who, named after Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland, got lucky the day he met the McGibbons.
Now, four months later, Kiefer is a healthy, "loving, gorgeous cat" thanks to the care showered on him by Jim and Clare but also, Jim believes, because good nutrition helped play a part in getting him back to good health.
McGibbon says while he is no expert in dietary matters, he says Hill's "Science Diet" Healthy Development kitten food definitely helped Kiefer on the road to recovery: "Mind you, he has an appetite like a blast furnace."
But when Kiefer's story began back in March at Stony Batter Historic Reserve on Waiheke Island, it was touch and go whether he would survive. Driven by hunger, he snuck out of the bush in a desperate bid to snaffle a piece of tinned tuna being enjoyed by a group of picnicking French tourists.
Taking pity on him, the group took Kiefer to the island's WISCA animal shelter where he was cared for by the centre manager, Michell Hopkins.
"It was a Thursday night and for some reason I was still at work," she recalls. "These people had this very thin, little black cat. He was really starving and was so terrified he could barely move; at 900g his weight was only about half what it should be for a kitten his age (he was five months old at the time).
"I put him in isolation, gave him a small amount of food and kept him warm overnight with a hot water bottle," she says. "We don't know where he came from but my feeling is he is a kitten from a wild litter; he was incredibly lucky."
It was not long after this the McGibbons came into his life. The couple work at WISCA's every Sunday as volunteer animal attendants and they quickly fell in love with Kiefer.
Already with four cats in their home - 15-year-old Jinx, twin brothers Gizmo and Asbo (10) and Xena (seven) - they couldn't resist making it five with Kiefer.
"He's boisterous, has bags of energy and is a real ball of fun," says McGibbon. "There's a real hierarchy among them, but Kiefer has already worked his way up to number two – when the other cats are not around he'll sit on our laps and cuddle up."
There is an interesting story behind his name. Known as Stony while he was at WISCA's, the McGibbon's decided to call him Kiefer after actor Kiefer Sutherland for his role playing Jack Bauer in 24, one of their favourite television shows (the series ran between 2001 and 2010).
"We were big fans of the series back in the day and we often talked about calling our next cat Jack Bauer. I suggested calling him that because he'd survived against impossible odds.
"I was vetoed by Clare, so eventually as a compromise we decided to call him Kiefer,"
McGibbon says. "He's already lived up to the name by getting us to shout 'dammit' every so often (the expletive was regularly spoken by characters on 24, especially Jack Bauer)."
Hill's marketing manager in New Zealand, Sophie Kennedy, says Kiefer's story is an example of how pets can transform people's lives.
"We believe it is our duty to give every animal the best care humanly possible," she says.
"Nutrition has the power to change their (pets) lives and believe it is the single most important thing a pet owner can do to enrich and lengthen the special relationship they have with them.
"We have been associated with the global veterinary industry for more than 75 years and when you combine our scientific approach to nutrition with the expertise of over 220 veterinarians and nutritionists, it's clear we're much more than just a pet food manufacturer," she says.